Press Release: Flatiron version 1.50 released – including new unwrap options and faster scene baking

The rapid development of visualisation and rendering engines requires new techniqes for the creation of interior and exterior scene solutions. Today 3d-io announces the immediate availability of the most anticipated scene baking plug-in for Autodesk 3ds MAX. With a focus on supporting all major 3ds Max renderers and enhancing the unwrapping and packing of UV maps for 3d scenes in a simple yet powerful way, Flatiron 1.50 brings benefits to all customers working in game development, architecture or CG visualisation.

Highlights of Flatiron 1.50 (http://flatiron.3d-plugin.com)

Single pass rendering

Flatiron now provides the option to bake all objects at once into the texture map. This speeds up the whole baking process significantly because it avoids repeated reinitialization of the renderer and combines all objects on the fly instead of using a separate merge pass afterwards. The speed improvement is especially significant when baking a lot of small objects.

The bake method of previous Flatiron versions is still available as an option.

Multi-map mode

Flatiron now supports unwrapping and baking into multiple texture maps. Instead of using Flatiron individually with different selections the user can now assign selection sets and then let Flatiron handle multiple groups of objects at once.

The multi map mode can also be used in combination with automatic distribution. Instead of manually assigning objects into groups, users can just take all the objects and have them automatically distributed among a selected number of textures.

Changes and new features in Flatiron 1.50

• Single Pass Rendering for multiple objects. Flatiron can now bake a whole set of objects in a single render operation instead of rendering them all separately. This reduces render times significantly and improves compatibility with render output formats. See below for details about supported renderers.
• Surface angle based seam assignments. This improves the unwrap results of hard surface meshes.
• Flatiron can now automatically distribute the objects over multiple texture maps to allow for greater fine tuning of output sizes.
• Support for selection sets added. Group your objects into sets and Flatiron can create separate texture maps for each sets.
• MAXScript support for all the new features
• A few minor user interface improvements
• Various minor fixes

The single pass render mode is fully supported for 3ds Max Scanline Renderer, Mental Ray, finalRender and V-Ray (version 1.50 SP4a and up). Brazil and older versions of V-Ray support a compatibility mode that also allows to bake multiple objects at once but this mode ignores object specific settings (i.e. ‘don’t cast shadows’).

About 3d-io

3d-io games & video production GmbH is specialized company for high-end software development, modeling, animation, rendering, CG effects and 3D industrial design. 3d-io GmbH, headquartered in Wiesbaden, Germany, has an established strong presence in game development, design & video production, digital content creation as well as in graphics and animation. We are dedicated to provide easy-to-use software products accompanied by dedicated support team, experienced programmers and top notch 3D artists.

Contact: http://www.3d-io.com, http://www.3d-plugin.com

3d-io Developers and Designers are proud to announce the resurrection of the popular and reliable organic skinning plug-in for Autodesk 3ds Max. In cooperation with Digimation Inc. 3d-io has rebuild, improved and optimized this unique character skinning tool in order to further enhance artist productivity. The new BonesPro continues the tradition of incomparably fast and easy skinning setup and smooth skin deformations. In the current, extremely high demanding world of CG animation every possible increase of quality and speed is crucial to succeed over the competition. For convincing animations it is mandatory that the mesh deforms and follows the movements of the skeleton accurately. Creating realistic looking movements while the deadlines loom in the near future is a very challenging task. This is where BonesPro steps in. It provides you with the ability to achieve impressive results in record time and master the daily challenges of the animation industry.

Key Features of BonesPro

Speed BonesPro delivers fast results through a quick assignment set-up and convenient adjustment options.

Quality Meshes deform like elastic skin, avoid face clipping and don’t tear vertices too far apart from each other.

Flexibility Hypodermic deformer objects can handle the most problematic areas in an animated mesh with ease.

Teamwork API access allows integration into existing pipelines and Teams can collaborate on scenes without having to supply everyone with licenses.

And Beyond BonesPro can not only be used for traditional character skinning but also for many specialized animation effects. The BonesPro plug-in and associated training materials are now available at http://www.bonespro.com If you are a veteran user of BonesPro you can now take the next step and improve your animation workflow even more. If BonesPro is new to you, check out the tutorials and free trial to see how BonesPro can increase your productivity.

About 3d-io 3d-io games & video production GmbH is specialized company for high-end software development, modeling, animation, rendering, CG effects and 3D industrial design. 3d-io GmbH, headquartered in Wiesbaden, Germany, has an established strong presence in game development, design & video production, digital content creation as well as in graphics and animation. We are dedicated to provide easy-to-use software products accompanied by dedicated support team, experienced programmers and top notch 3D artists. Contact: www.3d-io.com

About Digimation Inc. Digimation specializes in developing and delivering 3D solutions for the training and simulation industry including; Interactive Maintenance Trainers, Small Arms Trainers, Virtual Task Trainers, as well as Virtual Environments used in homeland security applications. The company’s service division produces photorealistic 3D parts used in maintenance trainers, OpenFlight 3D models used in simulations, and full 3D animation. Contact: www.digimation.com

Düsseldorf by 3DPowerstore

On 25. 09. 2009 we were guests and speaker on the Open Doors Even in Düsseldorf, organized by 3DPowerstore. On my side was also Christian Kandler, out lead software engeneer, responsible for the architecture of all those greate plugins and software developemnts in our portfolio.
During the day, we have presented our complete 3d-plugin suite, and additionaly made a sneak peak into the BonesPro4, our newest development for the organic skinning of the characters in 3DStudio Max. It was also the absolute highlite: for the first time sice 10 years, 3DSMAX gets a extremly fast and flexible skinning addition, beating the standard skin in both setup speed and easy of use many dozen times.

Here is a small collection of photos made by 3dpowerstore, showing some moments of this very interesting day.
We would like to thank 3DPowerstore, Iris Ashe, Ron Martin and Oliver Cleve,  for the perfect organisation and support!

Visit 3dPowerstore Dimension Homepage for more informations

Visit 3d-plugin Homepage

On 30. 09. 2009 you can visit me and a part of the 3d-io Development Team on Third Dimension 2009, organized by WeltenBauer in 2009 Walhalla Studio Theater, Wiesbaden – from 9.00 AM.

Please sign up for free and visit us on that day – we are presenting for the first time our very new and unseen 3d-plugin!

Visit Third Dimension Homepage and sign up for free:

Visit 3d-plugin Homepage

The Rebirth of an Old Universe – The Making Of Perry Rhodan

Thanks to Sven Sauer for preparing and creating this video of “Making-Of Perry Rhodan game”.

In this making-of documentary we will illustrate the laborious process of creating the Perry Rhodan game. Locked into dark rooms filled with computers, a group of 30 enthusiastic artists and programmers has spent 14 months to design hundreds of space ships, planets, alien races and fantastic stories and baked them all into one of the most complex science fiction computer game adventures.

Our main goal was to create a modernized design for the classic Perry Rhodan series in order to approach a new target audience without alienating the traditional fan base. The original designs of planets, space ships, architecture and costumes were elaborated by a whole army of science fiction authors and coined the perceptions and expectations of the readers. We had to stay faithful to these sources while connecting them with new concepts and introducing transformations to established characters and places. It was a delicate balancing act.

“There were some interesting gaps within the Perry universe, things that were only marginally touched by the novel authors. We tried to fill those gaps and invigorate them with our own ideas.”

It was a constant challenge to envision a world more than 3000 years into the future. What does exist in that time? Objects and environments need to look strange and foreign to us even though they can be traced to mundane elements of everyday life. And how can today’s concepts of futuristic design be interwoven with the classical future visions of the sixties that are omnipresent in the Perry universe?

All designs relate to today’s architectural principles. Familiar elements are modified but still recognizable. This enables the viewer to relate to this world, understand it and interact successfully with it.

We didn’t want to stay confined to a small area like a building, a city or even one planet. While it wasn’t possible to show the gargantuan size of the Perry Rhodan universe within the scope of a game we wanted to at least hint at its expanse and visit multiple planets throughout the galaxy. Following the storyline the player is confronted with 4 significantly different planets, each featuring its own history, environment and subsequently a unique design.

The game script separated the player’s progress into 5 distinct areas, each of them based on a different concept, connected through 4 dramaturgical transitions. For each of these levels we developed a scene that contained the core design elements that were influenced by the story and the environment into which the level is set. Those images were a guideline for the mood, the color, the level of detail, the texturing and the lighting. Together they added up to a style guide that was given to the level designers.

The second level already hints at later twists in the story. The further the player progresses through the area the darker and more mysterious the design becomes. During the following levels the atmosphere turns significantly more ominous, lights are increasingly displaced until Perry finally reaches the planet Betha where he is confronted with a dark and barren wasteland which provides a stark contrast to the clean, bright and life filled areas he visited in the beginning.

The original script positioned the museum in Arkon City, the capital of one of the main species of the Perry Rhodan universe. But the distinctive design of Arkon architecture would have destroyed the envisioned impact of the museum’s concept. It was supposed to convey reclusion: A relic of times long past, abandoned and forgotten in a rocky desert. To emphasize the morbidity of this once proud building we furnished its facade with scaffolding that prevents the monument from collapsing.

The towers and machines were envisioned as a crossover of old ironworks and oil drilling platforms. To convey the size of the mining operation the drills were not separated from the actual city area. Instead we decided to mount the whole city onto the countless connected platforms. The result was a giant city-sized mining drill that’s eating its way through the planet’s surface, taking the whole settlement down with it.

We visited multiple decommissioned ironworks and took them as a base for the city. Ironclad giants, the remains of a glorious industrial epoch. They convey the impression we tried to achieve for Gom Callaedus. It’s a dead city, but its former bustling activity can still be felt. While the derelict mining city is now a hideout for criminals the player is still reminded of the old times when the place represented a technologically significant place.

The last level focuses on the crashed space cruiser in the wasteland. An eroding structure, untouched for thousands of years, the ship has almost become part of the surrounding landscape.

The first trailer and in-game sequences of the game were scheduled to be shown at the Games Convention 2007 in Leipzig. At that time production was still in the early stages, areas and characters were incomplete or missing completely. This required us to improvise. Character designs were not yet completed, so we used helmets to hide their faces. To illustrate the origins of the Illochim species the game centers around and how historical encounters with them influenced mythological lore we used woodcarving images because the corresponding CG assets were not yet finished. What originally started as an improvisation quickly developed into a distinct style that was untypical for a game production but successfully managed to spark the interest of the audience:

The Perry Rhodan trailer was chosen into the top 10 list of game trailers at the Games Convention for its artistic approach.

“Making of a game” | “Digital creation days 2008

ITS ART MAG – Making Of Article
Sven Sauer – Mate Painting Homepage
3d-io – Game Developer

Rising Stars: Indie Game Development – a close look at Multivaders from Paradum Games, their production workflow, design and usage of Flatiron to create awesome baked texture sets for their game.

Blake Robinson, the leader of the Paradum Games team and Igor Posavec, creative head behind Flatiron, meet to discuss some of the main aspects of independent game development, game design and the optimization of graphics assets.

Click here to read the full 4 page interview and learn more about how upcoming new development teams get ready to compete soon ready to compete on platforms like Microsoft Community Games, Iphone, Android and Wii Ware.

Also take a look at a perfect case of Flatiron usage for the creation of game level graphics, light- and GI-maps: this is a real example of how to squeeze the last pixel out of the map in order to get perfect light and global illumination!

Since I am doing at the moment more and more Computer Graphics Design and less Game Design, i have decided to create a new portal site where all current and past advertising works can be presented. CG-IO is a comprehensive Art Collection of 3D Images, Concept Arts and CG Illustrations from our productions. It comprise some of the highlights that are coming out of our creative studio and shows the other side of our everday-work: industrial desing, 3d-prototyping, product concepts and classic print media publications.

I would like to invite you to jump to CG-IO and check the works – thanks in advance

With the fading of our last computer game development (Perry Rhodan is already longer then a year on the market) we have decided to open some of our archives and present some of the unseen material from our Art-box and pack it into an interesting 3d tutorial lessons. The guys from Free3DTutorials have invited us to publish the comprehensive MakingOf of some of our artworks.

Please visit their great homepage and watch how the images in the computer game were made, step-by-step. Press the image below and enjoy the storyboards

http://www.free3dtutorials.com/art-theory/3d-max/making-of-illochim.php

The comprehensive 3D Tutorial "Create optimal UV Maps for professional 3d Characters" is a detailed Step-by-Step Course, backed with original 3D Assets from the Game Production for your own learning, and illustrated with an 3d page illustrated PDF, completly free for download!

We invite you today to download the fully working Unwrella Trial version, 3D Models scenes and the learning PDF and step into the complex, yet easy explained UV creation process of 3D Map Design.

Download the PDF Tutorial from by clicking here:

The Tutorial covers following aspects of the production:

Unwrella Step by Step automatic unwrapping and texture baking tutorial
3. Introduction
4. Content
10. Defining Seams in Max
16. Applying Unwrella
20. Texture Baking
29. Final Result
30. Unwrella FAQ, user manual

In this comprehensive tutorial we will guide you through the process of creating optimal UV texture maps.

Despite the fact that Unwrella is single click solution, we have created this tutorial with a lot of material explaining basic Autodesk 3DSMax work and the philosophy behind the „Render to Texture“ workflow.
This method, known in game development as texture baking, together with deployment of the Unwrella plug-in achieves the following quality benchmarks efficiently:

- Textures with reduced texture mapping seams
- Minimizes the surface stretching
- Creates automatically the largest possible UV chunks with maximal use of available space
- Preserves user created UV Seams
- Reduces the production time from 30 minutes to 3 Minutes!

Please follow these steps and learn how to utilize this great tool in order to achieve the best results in minimum time during your everyday productions.
best regards
Igor Posavec and the team at 3d-io.com
 

Unwrella 2 Highlights:
- Full support for manually placed seams
- Enchanced usability
- Quality improvements and Quad-Poly support

We are proud to inform you that Unwrella 2 is now available for download and purchase.
Also customers who own Unwrella license can upgrade their version at a discount rate.

Please visit http://www.unwrella.com/ to learn more about the new version, or to http://www.unwrella.com/download/ to download Unwrella 2. Once again we would like to thank you for your support and ideas and we wish you a lot of success in your creative 3D Design.

Unwrella, the automatic and optimal unwrapping plug-in for Autodesk™ 3D Studio Max is now available in Version 2.0, introducing the keenly requested support for manual seam placements.

Press the play button to watch 10 minutes feature introduction and tutorial video

Key features of this new version:

Unwrella 2.0 now offers full support for manually placed seams and can maintain the manually chosen chart distribution during the unwrap process.

- Enhanced usability due to seam visualization in the Viewports and user selecable colorization of manual and automatically placed seams.

- Unwrapping of meshes with arbitrary polygon shapes (not just quads) has been improved.

Version 2.0 of the Unwrella unwrapping plug-in for Autodesk™ 3ds Max™ 9, 2008, 2009 (each 32bit and 64bit) is now available for sale and as a freely downloadable trial version on its homepage: http://www.unwrella.com

Unwrella was developed for the high demands of graphics designers in real world production environments and provides a fast, simple and reliable unwrapping solution. It is the first tool of this kind on the market, allowing the unwrapping of 3d models to be done with a single mouse click while simultaneously providing optimal results that combine the minimized texture stretching of automated unwrapping techniques with the efficient space utilization and chunk distribution of UV space that is achieved with manual pelt wrapping methods. This allows users to quickly solve complex tasks like the creation of seamless 3d models, more accurate lightmaps and productive subsequent processing of the UV maps in other 3d applications like ZBrush™ or Mudbox™.

About 3d-io
3d-io games & video production GmbH is specialised company for high-end software development, modeling, animation, rendering, CG effects and 3D industrial design. 3d-io GmbH, headquartered in Wiesbaden, Germany, has an established strong presence in game development, design & video production, digital content creation as well as in graphics and animation. We are dedicated to provide easy-to-use software products accompanied by dedicated support team, experienced programmers and top notch 3D artists. Our latest product on the gaming market was nominated for the German Game Developers Award 2008 in best graphics category, and CG products are used by many famous Game and Design Studios worldwide.