List of rendering APIs

Rendering APIs are low level APIs, typically providing just enough to abstract a graphics accelerator, focussing on rendering primitives,state management, command lists, and as such differ from fully fledged 3D graphics libraries (which handle scene graphs, lights, animation, materials etc); Some provide fallback software rasterisers, which were important for compatibility and adoption before graphics accelerators became widespread.

Some have been extended to include support for compute shaders

2D rendering APIs

• OpenVG

Offline rendering

• RenderMan aimed at offline rendering for CG films.

Software rasterising

• BRender by argonaut software
• Surrender

3D rendering APIs

These libraries are designed explicitly to abstract 3D graphics hardware for CAD and video games, with possible software fallbacks.

Cross platform

• OpenGL and the OpenGL Shading Language
• OpenGL ES 3D API for embedded devices
• OpenGL SC
• RenderWare (combined game engine and cross platform rendering API. Became popular since the playstation 2 had no rendering API, initially relying on bare metal programming.)
• Vulkan

Vendor specific

• Direct3D (a subset of DirectX)
• Mantle developed by AMD.
• Metal developed by Apple.
• Glide API for the pioneering 3DFX accelerators
• QuickDraw 3D developed by Apple Computer starting in 1995, abandoned in 1998
• PSGL for the Playstation 3, designed to work in a manner similar to openGL
• LibGCM for the Playstation 3, a lower level API managing command lists directly
• LibGXM for the Playstation Vita
• LibGNM for the playstation 4
• Redline , for the obsolete rendition verite accelerator