Version: Unity 6 (6000.0)
Language : English
Precalculating surface lighting with lightmaps
Introduction to lightmaps and baking

Baking lightmaps before runtime

Resources for precalculating the lit colors of GameObjectsThe fundamental object in Unity scenes, which can represent characters, props, scenery, cameras, waypoints, and more. A GameObject’s functionality is defined by the Components attached to it. More info
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and storing them in textures called lightmapsA pre-rendered texture that contains the effects of light sources on static objects in the scene. Lightmaps are overlaid on top of scene geometry to create the effect of lighting. More info
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Page Description
Lightmaps and baking Learn about precalculating the color and brightness of surfaces in a sceneA Scene contains the environments and menus of your game. Think of each unique Scene file as a unique level. In each Scene, you place your environments, obstacles, and decorations, essentially designing and building your game in pieces. More info
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, then storing the result in a texture called a lightmap for later use.
Set up your scene and lights for baking Set up meshes and GameObjects so that they store precalculated color in lightmaps.
Preview baked lighting Edit a scene and preview changes to lightmaps and lighting without affecting the baked lightmaps.
Bake lighting Generate lightmaps for your scene.
Configuring baking lightmaps Resources for selecting CPU or GPU lightmapping, and changing how GameObjects store lighting in lightmaps.
Troubleshooting baked lightmaps Solve common issues with baked lightmaps, such as hard edges or light bleeding.
Optimize baked lightmaps Speed up baking time by configuring baking settings or selecting different GPUs for rendering and baking.
Lightmapping settings in the Lighting Settings Asset reference Explore the properties and settings in the Lighting Settings Asset window to customize baking lightmaps.

Additional resources

Precalculating surface lighting with lightmaps
Introduction to lightmaps and baking