Digital Rain Generator
The Digital Rain generator creates Matrix-style falling character trails. Vertical streams of characters fall down the screen with customizable speed, density, and visual properties.
Overview
Digital Rain simulates the iconic cascading text effect, where bright "head" characters lead trails that fade into darkness as they fall.
Animation Settings
Trail Properties
Trail Length
| Range | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1-50 | — | Number of characters in each falling trail |
Longer trails create more dramatic streaming effects. Shorter trails appear more scattered.
Length Randomness
| Range | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 0-100% | — | Variation in trail length across different streams |
At 0%, all trails have identical length. At 100%, trail lengths vary significantly.
Fade Amount
| Range | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 0-100% | — | Percentage of the trail that fades from white to black |
Controls how much of each trail shows the fade gradient versus staying at full brightness.
Trail Width
| Range | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1-10 pixels | — | Base width of each falling trail |
Wider trails create thicker, more prominent streams.
Variable Width per Trail
When enabled, each trail can have a different width within a range:
- Min Width (1-10) - Minimum trail width
- Max Width (1-10) - Maximum trail width
Spawn Rate
Frequency
| Range | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1-20 trails/sec | — | How often new trails spawn |
Higher frequency creates denser rain. Lower frequency creates sparse, isolated streams.
Pre-Run
When enabled, the animation starts with trails already falling rather than an empty canvas. This avoids the "build-up" period at the start.
Movement
Speed
| Range | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 0.1-5.0 chars/frame | — | How fast trails fall |
Higher values create faster-falling rain. Values below 1.0 create slow, deliberate movement.
Speed Randomness
| Range | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 0-100% | — | Variation in speed between trails |
At 0%, all trails fall at the same speed. Higher values create varied falling speeds.
Direction Angle
| Range | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 0-360° | 180° | Direction trails move (compass heading) |
- 0° - Up
- 90° - Right
- 180° - Down (default, classic Matrix style)
- 270° - Left
Noise Overlay
The noise overlay adds animated texture to the trails.
Noise Amount
| Range | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 0-200 | — | Brightness variation strength |
Higher values create more extreme brightness flickering. Very high values (100+) create dramatic effects.
Noise Scale
| Range | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 0.01-2.0 | — | Detail level of the noise pattern |
- Lower values (0.01-0.5) create larger, smoother features
- Higher values (0.5-2.0) create finer, more detailed noise
Animated Noise
When enabled, the noise pattern evolves over time rather than staying static.
Noise Speed
| Range | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 0-100 | — | How fast the noise pattern evolves |
Only available when Animated Noise is enabled. Higher values create faster-changing patterns.
Random Seed
Enter a specific seed value or click the dice icon to randomize. The same seed with identical settings produces the same animation.
Workflow Tips
Classic Matrix Look
- Set Trail Length to 15-25
- Keep Fade Amount high (70-90%)
- Use Speed around 1.0-2.0
- Direction at 180° (straight down)
- Map to green characters in the Mapping tab
Sparse Rain
- Lower Frequency to 2-4 trails/sec
- Increase Speed Randomness to 50%+
- Enable Length Randomness at 40%+
- Shorter trail lengths (5-10)
Heavy Downpour
- High Frequency (15-20 trails/sec)
- Enable Pre-Run to start full
- Wide trails (3-5 pixels)
- Enable Variable Width
Diagonal Rain
- Set Direction Angle to 135° or 225°
- Increase Speed for dramatic effect
- Works well with Speed Randomness