[tommsy64]

What you are thinking of is called Level of Detail (LOD). The principle being that 3D models further away can be rendered with fewer vertices/polygons, i.e., at a lower LOD. 3D models in Minecraft are almost all simple cubes or a collection of rectangles (e.g., torches, levers, slabs). There aren't really any extra polygons in these models that can be removed to create a less detailed representation, unlike, say in this [1] model of a rabbit.

Thus, you are right in thinking that Minecraft doesn't implement a LOD by changing the resolution of the models; however, it does use progressively lower resolution textures for texturing models that are farther away. This is a common technique called mipmapping [2].

[1] - https://cathyatseneca.gitbooks.io/3d-modelling-for-programme... [2] - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mipmap

[didericis]

Thanks for the info. That book looks great intro into this kind of stuff, just bookmarked it.