Runtime

Coordinate system

By default, Ambient uses a right-handed coordinate system for normalized device coordinates (NDC) with z from 1 to 0 (i.e. reverse-z with the near plane at z=1, and the far plane at z=0).

For world coordinates, it uses a left-handed system. We consider x to be right, y to be back, and z to be up (same as Unreal). Note that this means forward is -y, not +y or +z!

This means that the default camera without any transformation is lying on its stomach and facing downwards.

NDC:
   y
   |
   |
   0 ---> x
 /
z (coming out of the screen)

World:
  z (up)
  |
  0 --- x (right)
 /
y

WebGPU uses positive-y as up in its NDC, and z from 0 to 1 (https://gpuweb.github.io/gpuweb/#coordinate-systems) - that is, it is left-handed.

Freya Holmér has produced an overview of which programs use which coordinate systems, which can be found here.

For more information on our use of reverse-z, consult the following links:

• https://developer.nvidia.com/content/depth-precision-visualized
• https://www.danielecarbone.com/reverse-depth-buffer-in-opengl/