Autodesk Inc. today unveiled the latest version of its award-winning 3D modeling, animation and rendering software for video game, film and video production pipelines. The announcement of Autodesk 3ds Max 8 was timed with the start of the annual SIGGRAPH expo, taking place this week at the Los Angeles Convention Center.
"There are four specific areas of focus we are invested in for 3ds Max 8 that will address the present and future demands of increasingly complex 3D production environments," comments Martin Vann, VP of worldwide sales, marketing and support for Autodesk Inc. "Those areas are character development, advanced modeling and texturing, more comprehensive development framework and complex data and asset management (dealing with scalability, collaboration and scene complexity)."
With this latest release, Autodesk says it has amped up its character animation toolset with advanced rigging tools, motion mixing and motion retargeting (non-linear animation). Modeling and texturing advancements include new UV pelt mapping designed to decrease the time and labor required to accurately texture a 3D model, as well as DirectX and .fx support to create real time shaders inside the 3ds Max viewport.
To address the need for 3D tools that can scale to manage rapidly expanding data sets and bandwidth/interaction requirements, 3ds Max 8’s comprehensive development framework promises to deliver improved software developer kit (SDK) tools and documentation, XML support that efficiently exchanges scene and animation data, an interactive MAXScript debugger and support for the Autodesk DWF Viewer, the free, downloadable application that offers review and approval collaboration for 3D data.
In addition, 3ds Max 8 will offer continued connectivity to third-party, industry-standard asset management systems, and further enhances complex data and asset management with the integration of Autodesk Vault, a full-featured data management and asset tracking solution.
Features released exclusively to Autodesk Subscription clients over the past year will automatically be included in 3ds Max 8, These include Cloth, Hair, Fur, mental ray 3.4 and eight satellite render nodes, along with an extensive collection of visualization features compatible with Autodesk VIZ 2006, including enhanced File Link, Autodesk Inventor import, radiosity and adaptive subdivision.
Scheduled to release this fall, Autodesk 3ds Max 8 will carry a suggested retail price of $3,495, with upgrades from 3ds Max 7 available for $795. The new package will be demonstrated in the Autodesk booth (# 1700) at SIGGRAPH, taking place August 1-4 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. For a complete list of new features, go to www.autodesk.com/3dsmax.
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