Best Orientation for Export (Blender)

anonymous_user_5d102604
Sat, 31 Aug 2019 17:16:28 +0000
Asset Creation

I’m trying to find my way through the maze that is coordinate system synchronization between exporting models from Blender and importing into Unreal. Essentially my goal is to be able to model inside Blender using the default orientation (-Y = forward, +Z = up), then export and import to Unreal so that my model’s forward facing direction becomes +X = forward and +Z = up.

This makes the most sense, right? Your model walks between two spaces, what is important is that he knows which direction is which (the labels of those directions are not important). Or in other words, it makes more sense to make sure forward=forward, up=up than it does to make sure x=x, z=z, etc.

I had to test a bunch of import/export options to find what I think is the best solution. That setup is to export from Blender with the FBX export options of “-X = forward” and “+Z = up”, then to leave “Convert Scene” unchecked during import to Unreal. These options do not really make any sense. If anything, it seems like it would be +X=forward, not -X. But for some reason, they seem to work.

My question is to those out there who have more experience at this. Is this a good solution, or does it just seem to be at the moment? My static meshes are facing the correct way in Unreal (with +X = forward, +Z=up), but I have not tested this with characters yet.

Thanks for any advice!

2 posts - 1 participant