I''m looking for a 3D modeling program to use to make 3D .x meshes to import into my game -- something reallllly easy to use since I am a programmer and not an artist. I only want to pay upto $50 -- I know there are some cheap ones out there like Blender and Milkshape, Canvas3D etc for that price range, but I haven''t tried any of them, so I was wondering what one is best for making directX meshes with material lighting attributes. Also, I''m looking for mesh model "clip-art". I plan to use a bunch of placeholders now, and swap ''em out later when I get an artist. Do any of the cheap modelers come with clip-art, or does anyone know where to get some. Thanks much, -Gilderoot

*cough* kazaa *cough*

what''s kazaa?

quote: Original post by Gilderoot
what''s kazaa?

Ignore him, he is a lamer that would rather see the computer industry shrivel up and die then pay a single cent to someone else.

I recommend you do a seach on this forum, this topic has been discused many times before and other people can answer you better than I can.

I think you can get Mikeshake Blender for $40 and I am almost certain it exports .x files. I am not at home so I cannot check. Its pretty simple to use as well. Not too many features beyond primatives, bones, and materials though. I hope that search works out for you.

blender is free and you have to download a export script to save .x files.
but it''s unique interface makes it hard for some people to grasp quickly. once you learn it though, it rocks.
if you''re looking for something easy and geared toward programmer-friendly and not artist-friendly, i''d suggest milkshape. It''s $20 and no i haven''t used it, but i''ve heard it''s easier for quick and dirty modeling for games.

I''ve only used Milkshape seriously, tested some other progs, but not long enough to do a just comparison. Having said that, I''d say Milkshape is a good choice, not just because it''s cheap ( 25$ ), also because the interface is easy to learn, it has a huge amount of importers/exporters, even more tutorials, and a great community on forums ( just use search before asking basic questions tho ). You can make a lot of really nice stuff with Milkshape ( just browse the Art forum ), tho the uv-mapping utility is quite unusable, so for that I''d recommend LithUnwrap, which is free ( do a search on google ). The most recent addition is a browser-addin for viewing textured, animated models online, which is nice.

Yeah, i agree about Blender its great if you want to seriously model and have a lot of control and future expandability. It''s free. It''s not a great choice if you want something to make real simple models right away. There''s a small learning curve with Blender. Milkshape is easy and I think you can try before you buy. I think I heard some good stuff about Wings 3D but not sure.

http://zmodeler.nfscheats.com/

I have no artistic talent at all so its hard to tell whether it can make good looking models, but I have amnaged to sculpt something..

Is free and supports .x

Please don''t be put off by the way its designed for cars.

Suplimentary documentaion is very good.,,

quote: Original post by Gilderoot
I''m looking for a 3D modeling program to use to make 3D .x meshes to import into my game -- something reallllly easy to use since I am a programmer and not an artist.

I only want to pay upto $50 -- I know there are some cheap ones out there like Blender and Milkshape, Canvas3D etc for that price range, but I haven''t tried any of them, so I was wondering what one is best for making directX meshes with material lighting attributes.

Also, I''m looking for mesh model "clip-art". I plan to use a bunch of placeholders now, and swap ''em out later when I get an artist. Do any of the cheap modelers come with clip-art, or does anyone know where to get some.

Thanks much,
-Gilderoot

You get a copy free of TrueSpace for this site http://www.pcplus.co.uk/

There was link here on GameDev to get version 3, but I lost the link maybe some else knows it.

Version 3 of trueSpace came out on PCW about a year ago. (http://www.vnu.net/) but I think its crap compared to... (see post above)