Mise à jour du 28 août : retour de l’article après un retrait temporaire, ajout d’informations supplémentaires sur les fonctionnalités.
Publication initiale le 27 août 2013.
Autodesk dévoile Maya LT, une version allégée de Maya avec un prix revu à la baisse. Le produit se destine aux développeurs de jeux vidéo indépendants.
Ce produit disponible sous Windows et Mac OS X est destiné à répondre aux besoins des indépendants qui n’ont pas forcément les moyens d’acheter des licences classiques ; Autodesk leur propose donc à la fois une licence perpétuelle ( 795$ aux USA ) et des licences en location, proposées au mois, trimestre ou année (50, 125 et 400 dollars).
Bien évidemment, au vu du tarif, des limitations sont présentes. Voici un bref résumé des caractéristiques techniques :
– support complet de tous les outils de modélisation Maya ;
– Hypershade est présent ;
– ShaderFX pour créer des shaders HLSL et CgFx est inclus ;
– export au format FBX limité à 25 000 polygones par scène. Le format .mlt (format natif de Maya LT) permet toutefois de dépasser cette limite ;
– en import, support des formats .ma, .mb, .mlt, OBJ et FBX ;
– support des fichiers 2D BMP, PNG, DDS, EXR, TGA, et TIFF pour les textures ;
– export des normal maps ;
– générateur de skeleton ;
– support de cinématique inverse HumanIK ;
– aperçu DirectX 11 dans le viewport, avec shading ;
– éclairage complet, illumination globale ;
– texture baking reposant sur Turtle ;
(cliquez sur l’image pour une version HD)
– rendu de sprites 2D ;
– ne supporte PAS les moteurs de rendu externe ;
– pas de support MEL, et pour le moment pas de support des plugins. Pas de SDK, pas de support Python.
(cliquez sur l’image pour une version HD)
On trouvera sur la page produit une liste des fonctionnalités détaillées en vidéo, et une grille comparative Maya LT vs Maya.
On peut en tirer cette liste des fonctionnalités présentes dans Maya mais absentes de Maya LT :
Matériaux :
Advanced software shaders
Advanced 2D and 3D procedural textures
Substance procedural textures
Maya paint effects
Animation :
Animation layers
Trax nonlinear animation editor
Live animation retargeting
ATOM animation file save and load
Camera sequencer
Grease pencil
Geometry constraints
Set driven key tool
Spline IK, spring IK
Maya muscle deformation system
Complete set of geometry deformers
Substitute geometry tool for skin
Pipeline et workflows :
MEL and Python® scripting
Write custom plugins with SDK
Read/write Alembic framework format
Scene assembly tools for smarter data
Dynamique et effets :
Dynamics and effects features
Rendu :
Scene rendering
Advanced software shaders
Compositing :
Maya composite
L’absence de rendu externe exclut toute utilisation en rendu précalculé d’images fixes ou animations. L’absence de possibilités en développement risque également de freiner de nombreux utilisateurs potentiels.
La page produit officielle, désormais en ligne, permet de télécharger une version de démonstration.
Voici le communiqué complet :
SAN FRANCISCO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADSK) today introduced Autodesk Maya LT 2014, a new 3D modeling and animation tool tailored for independent and mobile game developers. Available immediately and compatible with certain industry-standard game engines, Maya LT draws inspiration from award-winning Autodesk Maya software to bring an intuitive, affordable new toolset for the creation of professional-grade 3D mobile, PC and web-based game assets.
“We see indie game developers as a key part of the industry, driving innovative new production techniques and gameplay,” said Chris Bradshaw, senior vice president, Autodesk Media & Entertainment. “The market is fiercely competitive, and Maya LT can provide indie developers and small studios with a powerful, yet simplified workflow for designing and animating remarkable 3D characters, environments and props – at a price that fits within even the most modest budget. It’s a practical solution that closely matches the needs of the mobile game development production cycle and helps developers rise above the noise and really shine.”
Smaller studios like Phyken Media, creators of the mobile game Wizard Ops Tactics, saw both the economic and workflow benefits of the new product.
“I jumped at the chance to try Maya LT, as the cost flexibility means we could grow the studio much more comfortably,” said Phyken Media President Kunal Patel. “With an option like Maya LT, our small team can accept bigger challenges and take on various new types of projects that may require more artists without having to worry much about any large upfront expenses. We even found operating expenses are much easier to determine.”
Maya LT for Game Developers
Maya LT debuts with an easy-to-navigate user interface (UI) and industry-renowned 3D modeling and animation tools that enable independent game developers to rapidly deliver 3D assets into game engines. The software integrates seamlessly into game development workflows with out-of-the box support for Unity 3D Engine and Unreal® Engine™ through the FBX file format for primary data exchange, and the ability to import certain 3D asset formats [Maya (.ma, .mb), Maya LT (.mlt), OBJ, FBX, AI, EPS] and texture formats (BMP, PNG, DDS, EXR, TGA, TIFF), as well as export 3D assets in FBX and .mlt.
Key Features
Maya LT has a number of features customized specifically for the needs of mobile and independent game developers: powerful modeling tools to help create and alter 3D assets of any size and export FBX files containing up to 25,000 polygons per object, animation tools that include a skeleton generator and inverse kinematics with Autodesk HumanIK, and high-quality viewport previews to help developers view assets as they would appear in game, reducing iteration and asset creation time. Other key features are lighting and texture baking, giving designers professional global illumination tools to help simulate near realistic lighting through baking lighting data into texture maps, and vertex maps.
Pricing and Availability
Autodesk Maya LT 2014 is now available for Mac and Windows at a starting price of $795* SRP per perpetual license. Term licenses will also be available as part of a monthly, quarterly or annual rental plan in the near future, starting at $50* SRP, $125* SRP and $400* SRP respectively.
Learn More About Game Development with Autodesk Maya LT
For more information, and to download a free** trial of Maya LT, visit: www.autodesk.com/mayalt. Connect with the Maya LT development community at: https://area.autodesk.com/mayalt.
