Im looking for what you guys would think is the best 3d modeler for games. Like levels. Im having trouble fining one. 3dsmax is okay but not great 4 games, in my opinion. What do u think is the best? something like gamespace? thanks

Quote:

Original post by gamacreata Im looking for what you guys would think is the best 3d modeler for games. Like levels. Im having trouble fining one. 3dsmax is okay but not great 4 games, in my opinion.

Why do you say that exactly? 3D Studio Max is quite popular in the gaming industry..in fact, it's practically a staple in most development studio's art department. If you're simply daunted by all of the bells and whistles and need something a bit more concise, have you tried checking out Blender?

Also, what exactly are you aiming to do? Are you solely interested in level design, or character/object modeling as well?

It all depends on what you're trying to model and what approach you want to take for modeling. If you're looking for someone to create assets for levels or the actual level environment itself then Max or Maya will work fine for creating static meshes. Most game environments are created with a combination of static meshes and height maps which are generated in the game editor. For interior levels BSP geometry is often used, which is also created in the game editor. For creating static meshes though I personally prefer Maya, because it has a more customizable workflow that allows me to work faster than I can in Max, but that's just a preference. Too bad you need a program right away. Im currently working on a terrain creation system that I know will revolutionize the way game levels are created. However, I don't expect it to be fully functional for another couple of years.

If its characters that you're looking to create then either Max or Maya would work equally as well. Again, it's a matter of preference and it's difficult to say that one program is better than another in a factual manner. But if you don't seem to like Max, then you may want to give Maya a try. Mess around with the Maya PLE for a couple weeks or months to see if you like it. Just as a heads up though, Maya can be more complex than Max in certain respects, but also allows for greater control and efficiency once you begin to master it. As for other programs such as Blender, I can't offer my oppinion since I've really only used Max, Maya, and Rhino.

If you can be more specific to what you're trying to accomplish it may allow us to help you out more.

You could try DeleD 3D Editor, to be found at http://www.delgine.com. Specifically designed for level-editing, but now also being transformed into a more generic modeler. :)

Personaly i use my home environment (MAya 6.5) for all my 3d graphics needs. The new exporters from microsoft make it nessicary for me to use maya because of the new directx shaders and effect connections made in the new sdk. IF you want to build levels, Maya makes "Level tools" which give you some options that you might find intesting. the best thing to do when making a level is to define your scale for all objects in the map by feet or meters (which ever you chose) this of course alows for a more realistic look to everything. I know thats pretty basic but i believe most modelers if nto all have "snap to grid" features, just mesure everything up and there you go. but if i were you i'd look at maya. I'm buildign my game on it compleately and it's awsome