It sounds like a good idea... I'm still having blending problems with it, though. I get a result like this:
The color is supposed to be a gray color and looks right when I have a black background instead of an image. Did you change the glBlendFunc or use a different particle image?
Edit: Sorry about the PM'ing... my account seems to be screwed up. I have 1 of 0 allowed PM's and whenever I try to view my options or details it tells me I don't have permission.
