Chapter 10. 3D Modeling

In Chapter 5, “Shapes and Objects,” you learned how to create a few basic objects. Truth be told, to make your game a little more appealing, you’ll probably want to create some out of the ordinary, wild, and interesting shapes. To do this, you’ll need to use one of the 3D modeling software packages available on the market. In this book, you’ll be using a program called Autodesk 3ds Max. This package is one of the gaming industry’s standards for 3D modeling and has all the tools necessary for creating all types of 3D objects. Keep in mind that 3ds Max is not the only package available; dozens of other programs are used, including one called Maya that is also quite popular. I chose 3ds Max for several reasons. First of all, it allows you to export objects to a file format that can be opened in Blitz3D. In many other 3D programs, you can’t save your file formats to something that Blitz3D will understand. However, there are many third-party programs (programs by other companies) that will convert the files for you. Another advantage of 3ds Max is that you can also try it out for free for 30 days. Finally, the skills you learn in 3ds Max can be transferred to other 3D modeling packages.

The purpose of this chapter is to give you an introduction to creating shapes in 3ds Max. As you’ll see, there are thousands of different combinations of filters, effects, and objects that you can apply and create, and it would take several books to cover all the features. My goal is not to teach you everything about 3D modeling and 3ds Max but to give you a jump-start into learning the program and creating a few objects. If you are interested in pursuing 3D modeling further, I suggest you start by reading Game Art for Teens by Les Pardew, published by Course Technology.

Rather than showing you each tool and describing it, we will take a project-based approach. I’ll show you how to create several objects, but then I encourage you to experiment on your own and go out and learn more about this and other 3D modeling packages.

To get the program for this book, you need to download the 30-day 3ds Max trial. You can get this from the Products tab at http://usa.autodesk.com. Just click where it says Products, then Free Product Trials, and then download the 3ds Max trial.