I am new to Unreal Engine, and I am trying to learn all that I can. I want to create custom characters and other 3D assets - such as starships- for use in Unreal Engine.
What software is typically used to create custom characters that can be used in Unreal Engine? I’m sure different software is used for different parts of the creation process. I suppose I’m looking to find out all the software I need to create custom 3D assets to use in Unreal Engine 5. I want to create my own characters, starships, etc.
For example, if I want to create an alien for a game I want to make, how would I go about doing that? What are all the programs I need to do this?
I realize it’s a lot to learn, but I want to do this as a hobby in my time off. I don’t really know where to start, so I came here to ask everyone.
Blender is the free alternative for 3d modeling. Max and Maya are the most common “industry standard options”. After modeling you’ll want to bake and texture your assets, Substance Painter and Designer are the industry standards, and there really isn’t a single great alternative like Blender is for 3d. Quixel Mixer might be the closest thing.
Beyond that, zBrush is very popular for sculpting 3d models. SideFX: Houdini has a lot of powerful procedural tools, there’s terrain specific options, foliage tools, and character specific tools as well.
Could you briefly describe the general steps of creating a 3D asset to be used in Unreal Engine? I’m very new to this, and I’m trying to gather as much knowledge as I can.
So many UE people are relying on ‘pre-made’ and ‘library’ assets these days.
I used to work in a render system called ‘Bryce 3D’ (back in the late 90s). It was a render engine, not a ‘game engine’. When I branched out to actually making my OWN 3D models, I gained a local rep and ended up getting a paid gig as a 3D instructor at a community college. 3D can be a path to success. However, you need to ‘stand out’ from everyone else.
If you want to actually ‘stand out’. Learn to model 3D assets. I use photogrammetry assets and ‘old school’ modeling technques to make my 3D work. My tool of choice is Blender now, however, I learned my basics using 3DS Max, Maya and some other long forgotten tools.
I have been doing this since the late 90’s. Tools change so, you are constantly learning.
Model/Bake/texture/sculpt… uhm no.
Model/sculpt/texture then BAKE. Is a better workflow.
Hope that helps.
What software materials translate best into Unreal? Like Corona, Bray, Arnold, Physically based materials(3ds max) What materials need little to no further editing inside UE5?
Thank you