As we are making the textures, it is always advisable to check these in the engine to make sure we are getting the desired result we are looking for. In order to do this, we will need to export both the mesh and the materials we are using in a way that the engine will be able to read them. To do this, we will use the Crytools exporter that we installed in Chapter 6, The Modeling Workflow for Game Characters and Tools.
Before we export the model, we need to make sure that the right materials are applied to the correct geometry and named in a way that will be understandable. It is also good practice to do this with the meshes to save confusion. Once we have this organized, we need to make sure that the Maya scene is saved in our desired engine location where the model and texture will be read by the engine. The steps are as follows:
- The first step is to make sure the meshes we are looking to export are grouped in a way that the exporter will recognize. To do this, we first open up the tools button from the Crytek shelf.
- We have an option that will automatically set up the correct group naming for the mesh that we want to export. This saves us time and automates the grouping process for us. Without selecting meshes, press on Create CryExportNode.
- To check the group, open up the outliner.
- Next, we need to set up the materials for export. Within the engine, we will need to create a multimaterial that will contain all or separate materials for each element. To set this up, we use the material creation tool named Mat Ed that is available on the Crytek shelf.
- The first step is to name the group. Once this is done, select all of the meshes and then click on Get Materials From Selection. This will add all of our materials to the group.
- Now that we have all of this set up, we can use the exporter. Select the Exporter button from the shelf and then set the desired export path for the materials and the mesh.
