This isn’t one of those “I’m starting to learn modeling which program should I use”. I’ve used Maya LT rather extensively and have long held the belief that it is the superior software (which seems to be the general consensus, but of course to each their own). However, after playing around in Blender 2.8, I’m beginning to wonder if that is the case.
My main issue with blender was based on three things.
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The UI was disgusting. I would explain it as imagining you were modeling on a cluttered desk. Even though the cluttered desk doesn’t impact you directly, it still causes quite a lot of frustration no matter how used to it you get. Some people can work in a cluttered desk (or perhaps thrive off it), which is why Blender’s UI doesn’t bother some people. Maya’s UI is still probably less cluttered than Blender 2.8, but it’s quite tolerable.
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Blender’s viewport had a rather poor display. It was not very kind to the eye - looked very outdated. The viewport is now far superior to Maya or really any other 3D viewport I’ve ever used.
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The hotkeys in Blender are ridiculous. This wasn’t really rectified in 2.8 but I addressed it by literally going line by line in user preferences. Basically just removing half of them and remapping the others. I still prefer Maya’s “right-click to do everything”, but maybe someone will make a super piemenu for Blender in the future.
- Maya LT is rather affordable so even though Blender 2.8 is free, I don’t think the price is a valid comparison.
What I’d really like to know is the specifics. What tools does Maya have that Blender doesn’t and vice versa for game content? Polygon Modeling tools seem to be a bit more complete in Blender (though 3DS Max still takes the cake), unwrapping seems to be a bit faster in Maya. I haven’t gotten far enough into animations to really judge either. Can Blender match Maya’s rigging and animation system? I know Maya LT has some animation features taken out of it… Sculpting and Painting tools don’t really matter because Substance and Zbrush going to be preferable.
Not really interested in “Blender is better” or “Maya is better” comments but rather what are the pro’s and cons of both from your perspective? Personally I feel that they are quite similar these days, but maybe I’m missing something?
Main reason I’m asking is because I’m looking at starting to make animations and once you set up the rig in Maya or Blender you’re kind of stuck with it for good or you won’t be able to edit old animations or your rig (assuming it even imports properly).