Which lighting mode in Unity is best suited for realistic rendering during gameplay?

The choice of real-time lighting in Unity is particularly effective for achieving realistic rendering during gameplay due to its dynamic nature. Real-time lighting allows for changes in the environment and lighting conditions to be immediately reflected in the scene. This is essential for gameplay scenarios where the player's actions or environmental conditions may alter lighting, such as day/night cycles or when different light sources are activated or deactivated.

In the context of rendering, real-time lighting utilizes shaders that calculate lighting effects on-the-fly, adjusting shadows, colors, and brightness dynamically. This results in scenes that can react to the player's movements and actions in a way that baked lighting or static lighting cannot, as those methods involve pre-calculated lighting results that do not change during gameplay.

While baked lighting and static lighting can create beautiful and efficient visuals in scenarios where the lighting does not change, they are best suited for pre-rendered assets or static scenes rather than interactive gameplay. Mixed lighting can combine aspects of both, but real-time lighting stands out for its adaptability and realism in an interactive context.