or those who don’t know the tool: Material Maker is an open-source procedural material authoring and 3D texture painting tool based on the Godot engine that lets artists create node-based PBR texture maps for engines like Godot, Unity and Unreal via visual graphs and export templates.
Material Maker 1.5: What’s New
Material Maker 1.5 has been released by developer Rod Zilla with upgrades focused on file format support, workflow improvements and additional nodes. The update introduces support for DDS image loading, a texture format widely used in game pipelines, and FBX mesh loading for previewing and working with 3D models directly inside the authoring environment.
A command-line interface (CLI) has been reinstated, allowing for scripted or batch export of materials without the GUI, which benefits automated pipelines and bulk processing. Workflow has been improved in the node graph editor with lasso selection and additional keyboard shortcuts, and there are updates to the Library and Reference panels, including a clipboard paste option for reference images. The release also adds 10 new nodes, including seven signed distance field (SDF) nodes, expanding procedural texturing capabilities.
Position in Production Toolchain
Material Maker remains positioned as a free alternative to subscription tools like Substance 3D Designer, targeting texture authors in games and VFX who prefer open-source, node-based workflows. It supports Windows, macOS and Linux and is licensed under MIT, allowing integration into both hobby and professional projects without licensing costs.
What It Means for Artists
Support for DDS and FBX aligns the tool with industry standards for game and real-time asset pipelines. The return of a CLI enables light automation and bulk tasks that were harder to do in earlier versions. New nodes broaden procedural control, though Material Maker remains primarily geared toward texture creation and export, not a full shader authoring suite. Users should evaluate the interface and output quality before integrating it into production workflows.
Official Material Maker devlog on itch.io
// https://rodzilla.itch.io/material-maker/devlog/1312764/material-maker-15
Material Maker official site description
// https://www.materialmaker.org/
