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In three-dimensional scenes, the term billboarding is applied to a technique in which objects are sometimes represented by two-dimensional images applied to a single polygon which is typically kept perpendicular to the line of sight.

The name refers to the fact that objects are seen as if drawn on a billboard.

This is also known as a backdrop.

This can be used to good effect for a significant performance boost when the geometry is sufficiently distant that it can be seamlessly replaced with a 2D sprite.

In games, this technique is most frequently applied to object such as particles ( smoke, sparks, rain ) and low-detail vegetation.

A pioneer in the use of this technique was the game < cite > Jurassic Park: Trespasser </ cite >.

It has since become mainstream, and is found in many games such as < cite > Rome: Total War </ cite >, where it is exploited to simultaneously display thousands of individual soldiers on a battlefield.

Other examples include early first-person shooters like Doom and Hexen.