It’s a pleasure to see on social media how much you’re enjoying FWsim these days. While enjoying some of your breathtaking shows, we’ve been working hard on making FWsim better and easier to use. These upgrades will be included with the FWsim 3.3 update, which is expected to see the light by the end of May. Here’s a comprehensive list of changes to come:
- Improved realism of included effects: We will replace some of the old effects in the database with redesigned versions, to take advantage of all the latest improvements in our fireworks rendering.
- Improved performance. FWsim already runs well even on old computers, and with this update we’ll make it even faster to load and run.
- Improved effect selection window: Thanks to new icons, new users who are unfamiliar with real fireworks can get a quick sense of the different types available. Animated previews will help you understand how the effect will look like once it’s integrated into the show. And the window will load slightly faster, therefore making your show design process more fun.
- Improved camera moves: We plan to add a new camera animation timeline. This will make it easier to animate camera moves. It will also allow new types of camera moves that have not been possible previously.
- Improved camera positioning: In FWsim 3.3, you will be able to select from a range of predefined viewpoints, or create your own. That will make it easier to view your show from different angles, and see how your design really looks like.
- Improved effect editor with more beautiful tails. As you perhaps know, “tails” are trails of sparks that are pulled behind the stars of a firework. These tails will be highly realistic and have been carefully designed by our pyrotechnics expert. This is a great way to instantly make your effects better: Simply add one of the presets to your effect, and you’ll get amazingly realistic tails.
This image shows the new effect selection window, with easier color selection, nicer filters, and animated previews of each piece of firework.
Now you know what’s coming to FWsim in the near future. Stay tuned to the Announcements section so you don’t miss anything about our next updates. Also, we invite you to follow us on Twitter and Facebook to join the conversation -- we’ll be happy to answer any questions you may have about FWsim, and always eager to share your amazing firework displays! We’ll be here again soon to tell you more about the next FWsim Challenge. Until then, have a nice week and stay safe!
