Archive notice: This article was originally published on May 26, 2006. Links and embedded videos are preserved as part of the historical record.
Modo 201, the modeling, painting and rendering software from Luxology, is available now. The program is intended to combine expanded modeling functions with 3D painting and rendering; it is aimed primarily at 3D artists in the fields of game development, visual effects, video production, graphics and design visualization.
The new features in the version include a Paint module that allows painting directly onto an object in the viewport. Modo users can choose from a large number of brushes and can paint in all mapping channels, including the bump-mapping channel. Matching this tool is a UVW unwrap that smooths and unstretches the painted surfaces as required. The user draws the edges of the texture directly onto the object. The result can be stretched and flattened until an even grid is created.
Luxology has significantly improved the renderer: Users now find features such as a Fresnel effect, anisotropy and subsurface scattering. Micropolygon Displacement provides extremely detailed surfaces through bump displacement and normal maps. The viewport allows real-time display of bump and normal maps through expanded pixel shaders. As an addition to the normal viewport, there is an interactive ray tracer that displays the ray-tracing scene immediately and updates it interactively while the user works on it.
An integrated learning system with more than 4 GByte of video tutorials and a large amount of sample content is intended to familiarize beginners and those switching over with the Modo features.
Modo 201 is offered for 895 US dollars (update from older version: 395 US dollars) and is available for both Windows and Mac OS X. More information and an option to purchase online can be found on the Modo website (see link below).
Further links:
- Luxology: Modo website
