Questions before investing in Leadwerks

[Hugh]

So I have some questions:

 

I have DX11 card but Im finding out this is OpenGL so question one is can I "expand" Leadwerks to OpenGL 4.0

 

I have some middleware I would like to use with leadwerks would I have to have Source or can I use the basic license with API to implement middleware such as SpeedTree 5 or GameSpy or use of Nvidia Physx or Havok products.

 

I was looking for high poly character models rendered in Leadwerks but only saw a picture of a rendered soldier and the same model rendered in Marmoset.So would high poly characters need some extra coding to the framework get the desired render and if so is that editable with the basic license.

 

Thanx I may have more questions after these are answered...

[Hugh]

So I have some questions:

 

I have DX11 card but Im finding out this is OpenGL so question one is can I "expand" Leadwerks to OpenGL 4.0

 

I have some middleware I would like to use with leadwerks would I have to have Source or can I use the basic license with API to implement middleware such as SpeedTree 5 or GameSpy or use of Nvidia Physx or Havok products.

 

I was looking for high poly character models rendered in Leadwerks but only saw a picture of a rendered soldier and the same model rendered in Marmoset.So would high poly characters need some extra coding to the framework get the desired render and if so is that editable with the basic license.

 

Thanx I may have more questions after these are answered...

 

Btw if some questions seem stupid I apologize I am a 3d artist at heart attempting a crack at programming,mainly a LUA guy though

[Mumbles]

The next version of Leadwerks will support OpenGL 4.0 straight out of the box, but there's no definite date for the release of that, basically "When its ready"

 

As for your 'middleware' you shouldn't need a source license to integrate that with any of your Leadwerks projects. Of course I may be wrong, but I think you should be able to implement anything like that rather easily.

 

High quality rendering should also be rather straight forward. High quality rendering, without complex coding in one of the strongest points about the engine...

[Josh]

So I have some questions:

 

I have DX11 card but Im finding out this is OpenGL so question one is can I "expand" Leadwerks to OpenGL 4.0

It is unlikely you will be able to write your own OpenGL 4 renderer and add it to Leadwerks. However, version 3.0 is being written with OpenGL 3.3/4.0 support.

 

I have some middleware I would like to use with leadwerks would I have to have Source or can I use the basic license with API to implement middleware such as SpeedTree 5 or GameSpy or use of Nvidia Physx or Havok products.

I don't think you will be able to integrate SpeedTree without the source, but our engine can render much more vegetation than SpeedTree. Version 3.0 is being written in pure C++, so you might have better luck integrating that with external libraries.

 

I was looking for high poly character models rendered in Leadwerks but only saw a picture of a rendered soldier and the same model rendered in Marmoset.So would high poly characters need some extra coding to the framework get the desired render and if so is that editable with the basic license.

The engine is not limited by the number of triangles in a mesh, unless you go over the ~65,000 vertex limit.

[Mumbles]

I don't think you will be able to integrate SpeedTree without the source

 

Oh yeah... I just noticed GameSpy, and thought, 'that should work' Guilty of not reading the rest of the list...

[Josh]

I think the SpeedTree guys would be better off selling a modeling application for trees, instead of trying to get their code into your engine. Their vegetation rendering is mediocre, and trying to get developers to integrate such a low-level system into their design must be difficult. I was asking them about the modeling app, because it exports to FBX, so it will work with Leadwerks out of the box, but they kept trying to steer me back to their SDK.

[Pancakes]

3d coat has a vegetation modeling app

 

it's kind of simple but it works really well; gets it done

[Hugh]

3d coat has a vegetation modeling app

 

it's kind of simple but it works really well; gets it done

 

1.Another question since using SpeedTree isnt a solution if I export plants modeled in Maya would that mess with performance Or is Maya or Max plants already the standard pipeline.

 

2.I am not complaining about the rendering In Leadwerks but since I have DX11 now I would like to get the best rendering I can for my projects.What should I look into learning or working on in Leadwerks to get the best out of my GPU.Would Nvidia Scenix be something my worth time.Im sorry if my question or hypothesis seem very off I am a 3D artist picking up programming again.

[Josh]

1.Another question since using SpeedTree isnt a solution if I export plants modeled in Maya would that mess with performance Or is Maya or Max plants already the standard pipeline.

The engine doesn't care what program you modeled your objects in. It just loads FBX files. The constraints for performance are the same as any real-time renderer. Keep the polycount to only what you need, and collapse surfaces into single objects whenever possible.

 

2.I am not complaining about the rendering In Leadwerks but since I have DX11 now I would like to get the best rendering I can for my projects.What should I look into learning or working on in Leadwerks to get the best out of my GPU.Would Nvidia Scenix be something my worth time.Im sorry if my question or hypothesis seem very off I am a 3D artist picking up programming again.

I don't know what NVida Scenix is, but you should not have to resort to integrating third party code into the engine to get good performance. The renderer already is very fast for the amount of detail and features it handles.

 

The question of optimizing performance is pretty broad, but generally speaking you can turn on billboards for far away vegetation, use vegetation layers for any frequently repeating objects, and keep your model polycounts within reasonable limits.

[Hugh]

My last question is can I add HDR rendering and if so would it be dnoe by rendering to a custom buffer?

[Josh]

HDR is already supported.

[Raziel_n2gc]

There is anything you need to get started, don't care about the killer features everyone wants but nobody uses.

First you have to get the basics done and therefore you have everything you need right at the start.

It will take enough time to give Josh a chance to implement the cutting edge things you desire.

But don't forget, there will be something new again you will wish to have in your project.

Really, concentrate on the basics. It can look awesome without DX11 too...

[DaDonik]

You won't find another engine at the same price level which is capable of such nice graphics.

Combined with the fact that it is relatively easy to use, i think it's a good choice for artists

 

For the HDR thing. This is just one line of code for you, to enable it.