We are completing our overview of APEX PhysX content in Mafia II by this video,  showcasing most noticable effects based on APEX Particles module.

Previous comparison video, dedicated to APEX Clothing module, is available here.

If YouTube video is not working for you, you can watch alternative variant at Vimeo

APEX Particles effects are including:

• Various dynamic debris (concrete fragments, glass pieces, wood splinters, etc) from bullet impacts.
• Additional physically simulated chunks from explosions, car crashes, wheel slip, trash cans, mailboxes and other destructible objects.
• Vehicle tire burnout effect -  realistic fluid smoke, which reacts to environment and character/NPC movement.
• Up to 3000 (APEX Medium settings) or 10 000 (APEX High settings) unique particles on screen.

Sum: You can find dynamic particles almost in every single GPU/PPU PhysX game, but in Mafia II particle effects are close to their perfection – realistic collision simulation, various particle types (for both graphical mesh and physical behaviour), LOD based resource management (particles are not dissapearing over time, like in earlier games) – and, most important, pretty decent performance.

If your system can handle such effects, we recommended to leave them enabled, or you’ll loose significant piece of game’s immersion.

Finally, keep an eye on Mafia II GPU PhysX info mini-site for additional information and comparison screenshots.