LightWave3D opinions?

Bluestemos

Link to their features-page

I've heard a bit about LW, but I haven't seen many people using it, especially for games. Would getting LW over something like MODO make sense? I'm currently using a student version of Cinema 4D Studio and it's going to run out fairly soon.

Also, it seems LW's student version is fully commercial (but not free), which is nice.

I feel like I should look into Maya or 3ds Max at some point but I'd rather stay away from Autodesk for as long as I can. MODO Indie is also something I'm considering but paying 280€ for a 100K poly budget is a dealbreaker.

So, Lightwave - opinions? 

peanut™

Modo is a derivative of Lightwave, while the question is legitimate the answer would be to go with Modo over Lightwave. There's many reason for this considering customer support and popularity.

Bluestemos

peanut™ said:

Modo is a derivative of Lightwave, while the question is legitimate the answer would be to go with Modo over Lightwave. There's many reason for this considering customer support and popularity.

How about MODO Indie? I'm a full-time student and there's no way I can afford the full MODO. The 100K poly limit when exporting is a concern, as I need to be able to move my high and low polys between software, mainly for baking.

I think MODO has a student version as well, but it's non-commercial and it has an annual cost - and I'm quite unsure of the upgrading process. I believe they require you to use the student version for 2 years before you can upgrade to the full version.

JedTheKrampus

If you're really that strapped for cash, why not give Blender a try? There's no import/export limit and you can script it.

ironbearxl

JedTheKrampus said:

If you're really that strapped for cash, why not give Blender a try? There's no import/export limit and you can script it.

+1, Lightwave is not bad at all, but Blender is very similar and really really good. It might take you some time to configure Blender to your liking if you're coming from something else, but it's worth it.

WaYWO

Lightwave is a killer when you add plugins to it, and there are a lot of LW plugins out there.
I made this piece entirely with LightWave, except for baking  : https://www.artstation.com/artwork/yQDDK , and it's game ready...

Bluestemos

JedTheKrampus said:

If you're really that strapped for cash, why not give Blender a try? There's no import/export limit and you can script it.

I've tried Blender a few times, but I found it extremely hard to get into, mainly because it felt so shortcut-oriented. The UI felt extremely clunky for me as well (especially when coming from Cinema 4D, which has one of the nicest UI's IMO), but I'll probably give it another shot at some point, now that it's been updated a few times since I last used it.

JedTheKrampus

If you're going to give Blender another shot I highly recommend the Pie Menu Editor extension. Even with just the official pie menus addon or the addon from pitiwazou's Github Blender gets quite a bit less clunky.

pior

mainly because it felt so shortcut-oriented.

It actually isn't more shortcut-oriented than any other application - this is somewhat of a myth perpetuated by Blender users taking pride in memorizing and using the default set of hotkeys. Just like any other program Blender comes with default key bindings, but all of them have menu equivalents, and all of them can be set to any custom input.

The main problem is mostly the documentation and tutorials being written by users of the program often (always ?) mentioning the default (= arbitrary) shortcuts for  tools rather than simply mentioning their menu locations. But that's nothing that a little bit of research can't solve.

All that said, addons coming with hardwired keybindings are definitely a problem. This is just plain stupid and seriously needs to stop, but unfortunately it seems to be a trend followed by many third-party addon creators.

ironbearxl

Hi pior, I agree especially about the add-on shortcuts; I've got into the habit of double checking my shortcuts after installing any add-ons.

Bluestemos, the UI is a lot less clunky now, I would even say it's elegant imo. The one and only menu I can think of that needs a little re-organization is the 'Mesh' menu in edit mode. I think because Blender is getting more and more modeling tools by the minute, it's starting to get a bit cramped.

Bluestemos

@Tidal Blast : So MODO Indie has the Vertex Toolkit built-in?

@pior : I guess I just got the shortcut-oriented feeling since I was in fact trying to follow tutorials and the tutors always used shortcuts, and didn't show where the tools actually are.

@ironbearxl : Hmm, I'll probably have to look into Blender some more.

However I'm kind of leaning towards MODO Indie here. Having used the trial of the previous MODO version I really liked the UI and the way the program works. I've also seen a ton of Cinema 4D users like myself start using MODO, so I feel like it could be a fitting next step.

I'll check the trials of them both out and try to test them as thoroughly as possible, thanks for the tips guys.

pior

Yeah, mentioning the shortcut to a tool as opposed to explaining where to find the tool itself is a common mistake made by people who have little experience teaching. It being so widespread is unfortunate.

Best of luck in your research !