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Reflection on 3D Modelling Innovations
Introduction
The evolution of 3D modelling programs has significantly shaped the industry, with notable contributions from Maya and Unreal Engine. This document aims to reflect on their advancements and the implications for future developments in 3D architecture.
Maya’s Legacy
Maya, released in 1998, introduced several foundational features that were often underappreciated for decades. These include:
- Rigorous Scene Graph: A structured representation of the scene, which allows for complex scene management.
- Edit History Tracking: Enables users to revise past decisions without undoing subsequent work.
- Data Inheritance with Change Propagation: Facilitates efficient data management and updates.
- Transformation Gizmo: A thoughtfully designed tool for manipulating objects within the scene.
Only recently have teams begun to standardize around the Maya-influenced Pixar USD format, acknowledging the importance of these foundational elements.
Comparison with Unreal Engine
In the same year, Unreal Engine introduced its own innovations, which surpassed Maya in several areas, including:
- Scripting Language (UnrealScript): Provided rigorous forward-compatibility rules.
- Two-Dimensional Inheritance and Change Propagation: Enhanced data management capabilities.
- Automatic Networking: Simplified multiplayer game development.
- Metadata-Centric Design: Allowed script declarations to drive both code and user interfaces focused on artist-centric property editing.
Both Maya and Unreal arrived shortly after Java (1996) and just before C# (2000), acting as engine-specific analogs to many language innovations.
The Need for Architectural Advancement
Despite the promising beginnings, all four systems—Maya, Unreal, Java, and C#—became ensnared in product release cycles and immediate customer demands. This led to a focus on incremental improvements in data architecture rather than the groundbreaking advancements envisioned by their architects.
Future Prospects
I believe that the most effective version of a 3D architecture is yet to come. The future will likely focus on:
- Collaborative Editing in a Revision-Controlled Environment: Enhancing teamwork and project management.
- Rigorous Networking: Enabling unlimited scalability through server-to-server and client-to-server interactions.
- Enhanced Inheritance and Change Propagation: Allowing for more sophisticated data management.
- Programming Language Advancements: Striving for greater expressive power and rigor.
- Standardized Definitions: Establishing a comprehensive definition of the entire stack, akin to web standards.
Houdini’s Unique Architecture
Houdini offers its own architectural magic centered around compositional proceduralism. It functions similarly to Haskell for artists, presenting both benefits and challenges. Its true potential lies in the ability of its operators to generate GPU code directly.
Reflection Proposal and Future Innovations
The reflection proposal has been postponed to C++26, which may pave the way for alternatives to UE4-5 UPROPERTY macros and UHT. My experimentation with the Verse research compiler and a strongly typed runtime layer built on C++23 has yielded promising benefits.
Development Tendencies
It is a natural inclination for exceptional developers to focus on enhancing their specific areas of the engine rather than embarking on complex organizational projects that impact the entire engine and its user base. When attempts are made to implement sweeping changes through consensus, it often leads to fragmentation of ideas.
Conclusion
The next evolution of the Unreal Engine scene graph promises to offer greater clarity and rigor regarding referencing, containment, inheritance, instantiation, and change propagation. This evolution will align all related tools and scripting concepts.
I view AI as a technology that accelerates content creation and enhances engines, rather than serving as a replacement. The concept of transitioning from prompt to playable game via video models necessitates artificial superintelligence.
To achieve this, a foundational standards base is essential, with components developed on top of it, ensuring a shared understanding of the scene graph and its functionalities—much like how the web was standardized with DOM (scene graph), HTML (USD), and JavaScript (scripting).
Additional Resources
For further information, please refer to the Wikipedia page on Autodesk Maya.