Well you definitely have a point, but the thought process (was / is) mulling over what Maya LT can and can’t do… Which mainly comes to outside the engine, like if you wanted fluid simulation and V-ray renders outside of UE4 it couldn’t do that.
See where I’m coming from?
Even if you’re just working on games, the lack of Python scripting alone is a massive detriment.
To the heavy hitters that have posted on this thread, I’ve got to ask about the elephant in the room
**Full Maya is pricey & Maya LT is crippled at least partially, yet anyone can download a free 3-year student license for full-Maya and use it to do commercial modeling!
What’s to stop them?**
As buyers, how exposed are we from buying assets over the net that we can’t possible know anything about, because we’re just getting an FBX most of the time?
Autodesk like to talk tough especially when students write to inquire. But they don’t seem to enforce their rules as there’s no ‘student’ residue in exported models.
Why does AutoDesk continue to operate their licenses this way? If the rules are so clear and rigid, why not use some sort of watermarking on student versions?
They have records of everyone who’s purchased a proper license, and everyone who has a student license. If all you have is a student license, and they find out that you released a game, they’re going to look into it. And they have crazy resources at their disposal.
Plus, as a developer, you should understand very well how wildly immoral pirating is.
Just use blender. Or, you know, get your pants sued off after stealing from the largest 3D graphics corporation in the world, and posting the work created with those tools online for everyone to see. Then get shunned by the entire gaming community for doing something taboo. Including possibly being banned from major publishing platforms.
Please re-read my post again more carefully. I’m a buyer not a modeler! I’m concerned about piracy and exposure legally, That’s what I suggested watermarking student versions!
The key question I’m asking here is this: As game makers are we legally exposed if we unwittingly buy assets from modelers who use pirated or student 3D software?
But to go back to what you wrote before, your assumptions are wildly inaccurate! Fact check:
#1. There is no validation on the student signup process. Put in whatever name / email / location info you like! Your supposition that AutoDesk can use their omnipotent power (which I don’t doubt) to track down students by details supplied doesn’t hold water. This is especially so because in many parts of the world outside the EU and US i.e. Asia and Latam, piracy is rife and going down legal channels isn’t practical at all.
**#2. **No licensing info appears to get copied over after FBX export / import. So how do you suppose, tracking, tracing and auditing could be done anyway, once the assets are inside a game engine?
Actually, I think my real mistake was assuming that your post was relevant to the thread.
Maya & Maya LT are being discussed here alongside Max and Modo.
+1 Modo
+1 Blender
Blender is very capable and totally free with no legal or license issues. Modo costs a fraction of Max & Maya and is seen as a rising star by many. On the flip side, Maya LT is cheaper but crippled. Full versions of Max & Maya cost too much for most Indies, so there’s a real temptation to use cracked / student versions for commercial work. But there’s added pressure to learn them too, because the games industry sees them as the standard benchmark when hiring. [Disclosure: Game designer trained in Maya]
Modo is participating in the Steam Summer Sale.
Here’s the skinny on the price drops:
Perpetual Licenses:
MARI indie - 40% off
MODO indie - 40% off
MARI indie + MODO indie Bundle - 40% off
Subscriptions:
MARI indie 3 month - 25% off
MODO indie 3 month - 25% off
MARI indie + MODO indie Bundle 3 month - 25% off
MARI indie 6 month - 25% off
MODO indie 6 month - 25% off
MARI indie + MODO indie Bundle 6 month - 25% off
The sale starts today June 11 and will commence at 10am Pacific on June 22nd.
Details from here - http://steamcommunity.com/app/321540/discussions/1/594820473984260890/
Totally okay to like multiple programs. With that said, it’s apples and oranges. Try them all.
You have to allow a little expansion to the topic at hand, it’s not like were talking about what’s the best type of Giraffe!. Maya / Max / Modo / Blender, all 3D modelling apps which do the same / similar things. It’s pretty ON topic.!
Well yeah that is :D… I was referring more to another topic that included blender as well.
Apologies I didn’t specify…
Nice thread!
I actually use Lightwave 3D 11.6. I kind of like that program for rigging and making models(customization). I have seen 3D max in action and find it interesting and nice. However, the price is a bit too unrealistically for me. I also find the subscription price too high(2014) when I checked it out last time.
I got Lightwave 3D for like 999$ on sale back in 2014. I am very pleased with the tool(it use to cost around 1500$).
Have look here:
It has two editors. Modeler and Layout. The workflow will feel funny in the start but after a while you get use to the way the mouse works. You can try it for free and then decide whether this is fine or not. I also like how upgrading to a new version is not full price but only halve.
But after seeing the MODO indie price I kind of feel like trying it out. MODO’s price are very low compared to other tools on the market. MODO also seems more modern in its user interface.
Thanks for sharing this knowledge about MODO! 
Edit:
“We’ve upped the FBX and OBJ poly output limit to 100k”
Hmm… well I am not able to use that then. I need to take models that holds at least 1,000,000 poly and cut down into small pieces from time to time. Well I stick with Lightwave 3D as I already know that workflow well 
There are no limits to the amount of polygons in the Modo Indie scene file AFAIK. FBX/OBJ export limit to 100K triangle max should be enough for most people 
I’d love to see this 1 million poly mesh of yours 
You could try the trial to see if you like the workflow before purchasing the full version. Their upgrade situation is really good. If you are on Modo 101, you can upgrade for the same price as someone from Modo 801, currently $500, which is 1/4 the price of the software. So it would be cheaper in the long run is you like it.
I would also strongly recommend Modo for game art. It’s a fantastic app for 3D artists and multi-specialists, always ahead of its time.
Hi, I’m a beginner, and curious, and have questions about which program to use, my budget is zero, I went the cost x benefit, heard of 3dmax and blender (don’t laugh) had difficulties in learning the 3dmax so I started in Blender (don’t laugh, I’m new), I even liked the blender to be very configurable and found easy to do everything with keyboard shortcuts very easy, even after knowing what it was, the vertices etc still had difficulties with the 3dmax then heard of the industry standard, and I decided to delve into the 3dmax, and really found it very good for architectures and models where needed exact measurements, the blender is great so you don’t have to do an extrusion with measure exactly 1.999 cm for example at least I couldn’t figure out how to do, and after a while I was doing a building in 3dmax and autocad in a few clicks, but still it took to do organic objects, where I discovered the Zbrush I found until cheap compared to others that have around, still had difficulty with animation, so Googled it and found the Maya, I was amazed with the new update do bones with 2 clicks recently heard of Cinema4D and Model, and not to waste time studying wanted to know if they are good in architecture with exact measurements like 3dmax, if any is superior in animation that the Maya, because I think these programs Autodesk too heavy and cluttered interface, I was wondering if there is a program exclusively only for modeling, a program just for animation as well as Zbrush is focused almost solely on modeling? because those animation and rendering of 3dmax I don’t use, are just to mess up the interface and leave the heavy program, which the strong point of the Model? build a House on the model is faster? to make a car which program is better, which one is better to UVmap?
If your budget is zero then your only choice is Blender. I would be surprised to find any of the major software programs that can’t do specific measurements (except for Zbrush since it’s not really designed for that).
Really, you should just stick with one program and learn that one really well. Maya/3ds Max are pretty much interchangeable in terms of features so either way is fine. You’ll see more differences if you use Blender but the biggest problem with Blender is that studios don’t use it so you would have difficulty finding a job if you only use Blender.
Modo I think is a good alternative to Maya/3ds Max and it’s also way cheaper.