Pixel Shades
ShaderCinematic skies, soft shadows, and colorful lighting for your world.
Why gradeB
How grades workStrengths
Points lost
- First release only 5 months ago−5 points
- Under 5 million downloads−1 point
All 10 criteria
Maintenance
Full points21 / 21Last releaseHow long ago the newest file came out, or an existing file was marked as working on a new Minecraft version.3 weeks ago (4 Oct 2026) 12 / 12Supports popular versionsWhether the project has a file for a Minecraft version that 15% or more of the popular mods updated in the last 6 months also support. A version many modpacks use, like 1.20.1 or 1.21.1, also counts after a release in the last 12 months.26.3 (latest) 9 / 9Regular releasesIn how many of the last 24 months a new file came out. Full points at 3 months.Does not apply. The project is under 6 months old.Stability
Full points10 / 10Removed from modpacksHow many modpacks removed it in a later version of the pack. We can only see this in modpacks with two or more versions. A pack that swaps it for another edition of the same project, or that is rebuilt from scratch, does not count.None of the 3 modpacks with two or more versions removed it 5 / 5Quick fixesHow often a release needed a quick fix: a new release within 3 days to fix a problem in it.Not measured yet.Known conflictsHow many projects say they do not work with it, compared with how widely it is used. Packs, small projects, forks, ports, add-ons, alternatives and old versions do not count.None 5 / 5Transparency
Full points3 / 3Source codeWhether the project page links to its source code, so anyone can read what it does.Does not apply. A shader's files can be read in the download.Place to report problemsWhether the project page links to a place where players can report problems: an issue tracker or a Discord server.Discord 3 / 3Popularity
1 point lost3 / 4DownloadsDownloads on Modrinth and CurseForge. Full points from 5 million.27,734 3 / 4Track record
5 points lost3 / 8AgeHow long the project has existed. It counts less when no new file came out recently.5 months, 4 releases 3 / 8
39.9 of the 46 points that apply = 87 out of 100. The points above are rounded to whole numbers.
Images
About
Pixel Shades is a shader pack that gives Minecraft a cinematic visual overhaul, with changes to skies, clouds, water, lighting, foliage, and post-processing. Its layered sky shifts through amber and violet dusk, deep-blue nights, and golden dawn, with animated stars and a faint Milky Way; clouds can be stylized and flat or volumetric with self-shadowing, and respond to rain and sunset light. Water combines animated waves, reflective surfaces, depth-based color, caustics, and foam along shores, while soft shadows, ambient occlusion, and changing sun and moon lighting add depth to the scene. Wind-animated leaves and grass include translucent, softly glowing backlit foliage, and the cinematic post-processing offers individually toggleable effects including bloom, sharpening, vignette, chromatic aberration, and film grain. Performance profiles range from low settings for older or integrated GPUs to ultra settings for flagship GPUs. The pack works in the Overworld, Nether, and End.
Written from Modrinth . How we write it
In-game changes
Changes how the game looks: 10 shader programs, for the Overworld, the Nether and the End. Draws its own shadows, water and sky.
Settings in English.
Details
- Creator
- Dark_PixelForge
- License
- All rights reserved
- Downloads
- 28K
- Created
- 1 Jun 2026
- Official pages
- Modrinth , CurseForge
- Links
- Discord
Security
No harmful code found in the parts we could check
We checked what is inside its files, without opening them in the game.
One of its files for recent versions cannot be checked: its author does not let other sites download it from CurseForge.
Why we show this: a shader cannot run programs, but its file can hide one. Our checks look for known signs of harm. They cannot prove that a file is harmless. In the grade: malware means no grade.
How we checked
- FilesWe download the files from Modrinth or CurseForge and look at what is inside them and what their code can do, without running them. Fixed rules tell what is harmful.3 latest files: the newest file for each Minecraft version and loader. All 3 are for recent versions. Recent versions: those released in the last 2 years, plus 1.20.1 and 1.21.1, among the most played in modpacks. 1 of them is not checked yet. See each file in Releases
- Author on ModrinthThe disclosure form on Modrinth, where the author declares that the project reads or edits things on your system outside the game. Since 13 Aug 2026, Modrinth's rules require it when this applies.Nothing declared about your system outside the game.
Privacy
Sends nothing
A shader has no code that can connect to the internet, so it cannot send anything about you.
AI
No sign that AI was used to make it
We looked for AI tools in its texts, files and images and found none.
Why we show this: some players and servers avoid projects made with AI. Not in the grade: using AI does not tell whether a project works well or is kept up to date.
How we checked
- Author on ModrinthThe disclosure form on Modrinth. Since 13 Aug 2026, Modrinth's rules require it when a substantial part of the code is AI output, when an asset is mainly AI output, or when the project or its page relies on generative AI.No AI content declared.
- Description and changelogsThe description, project page and newest changelogs: sentences saying an AI tool was used, and text pasted from an AI chat.Nothing found3 of 5 changelogs read
- Its filesFiles that AI coding tools leave behind (like AGENTS.md), and the texts inside the files you download.Nothing found
- Images in its filesHidden data in the images of the files you download, where AI image tools write their name and settings.Nothing found
Compatibility
See all 4 filesPoint at or tap a version to see it.
Modpacks using this project
Modpacks that include Pixel Shades in at least one of their versions, most downloaded first.
Latest files
The newest file for each Minecraft version and loader. The files for recent versions come first. Recent versions: those released in the last 2 years, plus 1.20.1 and 1.21.1, among the most played in modpacks.