3ds Max 2024 now available for download
Mar 29, 2023 by CGPress Staff
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Autodesk has released 3ds Max 2024. New features include:
- OCIO colour management is now available as a technology preview, bringing modern colour management solutions throughout Max.
- A new boolean modifier is available that allows users to incorporate boolean operations into the modifier stack.
- An OpenVDB meshing method is included in the new boolean modifier, providing an alternate wat to calculate operations. OpenVDb booleans are topologically independent of the source geometry and they will often yield good results even when mesh errors are present that would cause standard boolean techniques to fail.
- The array modifier is updated with a new Phyllotaxis distribution technique. This type of pattern is frequently seen in nature, particularly in plants and trees.
- The array modifier includes a new Material ID rollout that can control the materials IDs on a per-face or per-element basis. Several modes are available including random, sequenced, and the ability to change the ID of the first and last clone in an array and randomise the remainder.
- The array modifier can now use a progressive transform mode that increments the transform value for each element.
- A new controller allows the user to add multiple Transform controllers to an object as layers of blended animation data. This lets animators add unique animation data to each layer, as well as allows them to control how the layers blend together.
- A new material node allows the user to switch between multiple materials using a numeric index.
- The motion paths feature that allows users to visualise animation paths has been updated so that it can now be used for all controller types and it works with the new list controllers.
- The slate material editor has been overhauled to use QT. As a result, it’s much more customisable and dockable, as well as promising significant speed improvements.
- The material editor now includes a new Compound node that allows you to create sub-graphs. These can be used to organise large graphs to aid legibility. Creating a compound is as simple as right-clicking on a selection of nodes and selecting Package Nodes in Compound,
- The Modifier list has been improved to use QT and now includes a list search feature so that users can start typing to find the modifier they need.
- The Symmetry Modifier‘s default Mirror Axis is now X to better align with artist’s workflows.
- STL import is now an impressive 10,000 times faster, and the STL Check modifier is 5000% times faster.
- Auto Smooth is now at least 10% faster
- The Material Modifier can now be used on splines without them being converted to a mesh. It can now also retain explicit normals when applied to a mesh.
- Spline Welding is improved
- Retriangulation for Edit Poly and Editable poly is improved as follows: The edit poly modifier now uses the new retriangulation algorithm introduced in Max 2023.2; Editable Poly objects and the Edit Poly modifier now automatically retriangulate faces when a vertex, edge, or face is adjusted in a way that causes edges or hidden faces to cross; New faces that are generated when performing capping are no longer left unsmoothed. Instead, faces are assigned to a new smoothing group; The new traingulation algorithm is now used for face splitting by insertion of edges, Slice, Cut, Bridge, Vertex extrusion, and edge extrusion.
- 3ds Max 2024 ships with Substance 2.4.10 and Arnold 5.6.0.1
There are many more improvements, you can find an exhaustive list in the release notes or visit the 3ds Max blog for an overview. You can also see Changsoo Eun’s unofficial what’s new in 2024 post and video demos.
Looking forward to the stable 2024.3 release sometime in December.
Nice feedback on the release and its features.
You seem to have tested it and have encountered errors/bugs?
If you could provide some more useful details, that would be kindly appreciated.
Nice features, will test it as soon as possible.
Wow, they couldn’t even be bothered to change the logo. Jaw dropping my a$$. How far out of touch are they? I mean boolean as a major update, whatever happened to Proboolean, oh yeah it crashes your file, slate material needed a complete reworking, not a tweak. Retopology tools, this could be good but I can’t believe it gets used a lot (certainly not here). Array modifier, these are minor updates. Why do we have to install a new version and not just update the previous one? All those plugins need to be re-installed / updated, WHY?
How about reworking the whole UI, it was out of date 10 years ago, the ribbon tab, the menu headers, the icons, modeless selection tools, speed up searching for things, maybe have some file diagnostics to isolate problems, map size warnings, you name, easy stuff.
How about improving the basics inside the program, timeline showing seconds perhaps, layers reworked, menus organised logically (use tabs), how about a render room for testing materials, proper customisable viewports (sort out the mess of viewport display) BASIC stuff that could improve day to day user experience.
Every item inside 3dsmax should be update on every major release, particles, populate, menus, layers, the whole lot, not just 5 or 6 things that hardly anyone uses.
Isolated well paid execs making decisions based on falling for their product managers waffle. Yeah let’s update booleans, great idea!
Rant over, so disappointing.
There are similar rants on this site going as far back as 2014. It’s 2023, surely everyone that’s been disappointed with Max should have completely moved on by now.
Moved on where no1nja? Write my own software? One is allowed to comment on major updates, you don’t get rants on the Vray or Forest Pack forum, I wonder why? Anyway this is mild and you know it. Most people experience crashes day in day out with this software, have done for years, yes it’s much better these last 5 years or so but it’s still flaky sometimes. Kid yourself as much as you want and watch those marketing movies again, then think how much you will really use those amazing features..
“Write my own software?” – Yes, ’cause that’s the only available option besides Max.
Anyway, I wasn’t defending the software. Just wondering how every year for so long its literally the same complaints, sometimes from the same people, despite all the much better alternatives – Blender, Houdini, Cinema4D.
“Anyway this is mild and you know it” – Trust me, the comments are only going to get more….interesting. Nothing gets the cgpress comments going like a Max release news.
I wouldn’t consider these as better alternatives. They are all great software but unfortunately they can’t just classify as “better alternatives”. Despite it’s flaws (just like every 3D software) Max is still an amazing tool and industry standard and everyone knows it
This release bring a whole slew of powerful, artist friendly tools for current industry workflows and you’re out here complaining about tiny crap. It seems like you are the one out of touch honestly.
couldn’t agree more with you Mike
Mike i challenge anyone including you to tell me about these artist friendly tools!? I think every person supporting these dev choices is either entirely missing the point or, and i will go bokdly further, has no clue what is and isnt demanded in a production pipeline.
If you are refering to booleans, dump this from the priority list because guess what, i got blender installed that can boolean all i want for free and zbrush (which every serious artist has already invested it in their pipeline). Lets not forget the two other powerful plugins i can get for max for under 100 usd if i really need it!
Thats it should i go about arrays just read the post i made below!
Now let me tell you about real production demands,
Animation tools.
Character toolsscene scale issue bug thatvwas brought up a million times where max hangs up in the viewport if you move away from point zero! Cloth tools as old as time, vasic sim tool dump that massfx!
How about proper modeling tools and intuitive shortcut creation, the cut tool is still crap the basic topo tools are slow and missing real features!
Animation layers!!!!!!
Rigging spline ik with proper effectors.
Skin menu that blinds the eye when navigating it. Cat is outdated it menus are out dated cant maximize layer window!!!
Should i go on?
Yet some of you are here raving about artist tools? How serious can you be meanwhile aome of us have to spend dollars and still not get the job done as effectively as need be.
@William You have blender. Why not just switch over if everything is so much better? Why are you not animating in it? Are you paying their developers for your benifit, or are they not deserving?
Artist friendly – I guess it’s all in how you look at it. I can now model, boolean, chamfer, model some more, do more booleans, chamfer again all in a non-destructive manner. I can easily move the operands around without having to select them in a list. I can shift clone them. Yep, I’m good.
Thats a lame excuse as old as your Old hat, are you seriously implying that modeling and its accompanying toolsets are in the same league as animation/rigging/pipeline or even FX? You seriously think they are in the same ballpark in Max in terms of priorities?
Modeling is not even close to anything in a pipeline. It is why modelers all over the world use all kinds of software without the TDs caring where or how and when they were made! As long as the polygons align you are done. same goes with texturing and painting, photoshop, substance, Mari, blender no one cares.
You can learn and implement modeling toolsets within minutes and hours within your pipeline and can switch back and forth with no issues at all.
Try the same with animation and rendering and assembly and see how that goes.
You can’t just “switch over” it doesnt work that way in real life. Besides that, you missed the entire point of it.
The basic fact is that if you are looking for specific functions such as in your case booleans or arrays or other such easily accessible toolsets, you already have them available next door or via free add-ons or plugins in Max, its right there, jump in bring the model import export and done!
Do I want good Booleans in Max? Yes I do since year 2000, Will the lack of boolean tools kill my pipeline or hinder performance? Not really I can download free software and get the job done with little to no learning curve or time wasted!
Now if I have a small dev team (as shameful as it is for a company like Autodesk) to take on tasks within a given priority list and I look at Max, what would I choose?
Booleans or non existing animation tools that kill projects where they stand? Which one would i invest in? the highest demanding top 5 list of points for 10 years and counting now, or some array tools that i can find on scriptspot?
What about FX? Do I need liquid in Max? No I dont because I have plugins that already do that in a far superior manner than Autodesk will ever be able to do for years to come even if they started investing in them today.
Same for Fume and particles! Same for Hair and hair dynamics.
I welcome the UI enhancements in the material editor, but its far from ready and universal. I still cant maximize layer interfaces in CAT or skin bone selection list! The things that matter are still locked up.
Meanwhile in the animation department, We are still struggling with tools that are so ancient and dying they make Greek Mythos look modern in comparison.
Each have own demand. I don’t need animation layer.
This is not a democracy its basic math and economics supply and demand. If you have ten tools available in the market all competing to get the same thing done and you have thatbone tool that does not even exist yet is asked for by the top five demands list for 10 years now, that one tool that can make or break pipelines which one would or should a competent effective dev team and supervisors choose to focus on next? You tell me sheelock because i am at a loss here unless there is a deliberate attempt not to work on such tools in order to further a political agenda!
Can you come up with a more creative rant? so disappointing.
Jesus. You’re mad that they didn’t rework the whole UI and every item inside 3ds Max. Trust me, I’ve complained plenty but as 3ds Max updates go, its pretty decent.
I dont care about the ui they can take five years to fix that if they need to. And is that all you picked up from what i wrote is that the extend of people’s vocabulary these days?
I didnt say that, that was g_l another person who posted.
haha someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed today. Chill chill, they dev team has done tons of work. You clearly have no experience in development work to know how much goes into revamping the UI. They are doing just what you are complaining about, reworking the ui. They revamped various aspects of max and updated them to Qt. It takes time, doesn’t happen over night.
Yeah i wonder about the boolens too… So there are now like 3 ways to make booleans..? The new Booleans Modifier, the original “Boolean” (i think its called that) compound object, and the somewhat “newer´” ProBoolean… Am i right :-)…?
AFAIK they said that the new boolean modifier is the fastest, most advanced, and “problem free” solution out there, so one should now always use the Boolean modifier, theres no reason to go for the boolean compound objects now… Correct?
Correct. And they dare not remove the older options less they break something else.
ProBooleans is older than the updated Booleans in the compound objects. ProBooleans is created and licensed by nPower. NPower hasn’t been updating their Max tools for years now, they seem to be focused on SolidWorks and other CAD software plugins.
Lol i didnt know that… so use boolean modifier, if any problem, use boolean compound object, if ny problem use the oldest boolean – the Probelean… correct now?
The boolean modifier is using the same library as the boolean compound object, but they have been updating a lot of the issues found in the carve library for the boolean modifier. I don’t know if the compound object is getting the same updates to the library. The modifier provides a much better workflow, as you stay in the stack. It also has OVDB and split, as well as a few other features you won’t find in the compound object or Pro-booleans.
They need to keep the older tech in for at least a while so it won’t break older scenes. I would just report any issues you see with the modifier, as it is more likely to get updates over the compound versions.
This place breeds negativity doesn’t it.. To the first post, the stability has been something the team has worked extremely hard on. I think every release has been more stable for a while now. If there is a bug, and I have logged it, I usually find it has been fixed in the next update.
As for updating every feature in every release, you would need a team of 200 developers for that. Nobody updates everything all at once. Max seams to mostly be focused on modeling at the moment, and the improvements have been good. I would love to see more focus on animation, but I don’t hate the modeling updates. They are still very useful to me. I like the new boolean modifier, and am intrigued with the OVDB. Hope that goes further than just the boolean modifier.
Oh you can also show frame:ticks or mm:ss:ticks in the timeline. Have been able to for what seems like… forever. Cheer up buttercups!
Nonesense about number of team members. One person did more with particles than autodessk could ever do in decades tyflow….. Talent doesnt come cheap but money isnt an issue just get the right person in make them an offer they cant refuse and get to work d*mn it! Give me the budget and i will mke max fukin great with ten devs within two years!
Who the fuk cares about array tools jesus christ! Fix the damn basics i cant animate for shit in this software let alone care about some array tools! You need one go to scriptspot and sownload a dozen for free or pay a burger buks and get them in! Who the hell makes these dev choices. This is not negativity these are fukin frustrated customers!
This is pure negativity.
I take William’s “negativity” anyday anytime over your positivity, positive one.
lol no… to your safespace back you go!
@william , well said. I wonder why users keep making excuses for such an expensive software.
Expensive? the monthly cost is less than half of my day rate.
Do you know how long he has been working on TyFlow? And what the max team has been working on behind the scenes?
Thats kind of an important detail…
Yes i know how long it took and guess what, it doesnt matter as long as you know you are going to get what you pay for in the end.
They are not even trying!
Oh and behind the scenes what behind the scenes? Nothing is revealed anywhere not even in their beta forums and any notion of animation tools is shut down or ignored. Thats been goin on for over ten years, what are you speaking of?
Who cares about array tools and booleans?
The rather enormous numbers of 3ds Max users in arch-viz, VFX, environmental, mechanical, industrial, forensic, technical and medical animation who can use the new tools to do stuff like this:
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/qp4zgwO2giQ
I think that ILM’s Environments division (which uses 3ds Max for pretty much every shot that passes through it) will be using Array and the OpenVDB-capable Boolean modifier quite a bit.
Hopeless, some of you just hopeless.
ILM using array tools huh? Whats the matter ILM cant spare 100 buks for Railcone? Parametric array or forest pack pro for scattering? What have they been using so far then in their max departments or where they waiting for max 2024 all these years?
More array tools are endlessly available frelly via scripts or can be created easily via maxscripts if need ve for specific actions.
Rather enormous number of max vfx gyys have fune fx tyflow and phoenix fd installed as plugins all costing and all necessary that includes ILM costing an upwards of 3k usd of plugins alone that also includes vray! That also includes ILM, are telling me they couldnt spare 100 buks to get some of the better qrray plugins out there to complete the set!?
I am frankly amazed every time i read such comments.
Meanwhile we dont have any animation tools anywhere not even via plugins! Now go figure or are you one of those to tell me to switch to Maya or blender again?
Well said Guest, good to see some reality checks, nothing wrong with having a strong view, we use this every day. Just look at the amount of plugins we need to do our job, the problem is it’s an embarassment for AD and they know it, they are a large corporate company with huge disconnects with the dev team inside, I mean how do you manage such a gigantic company, must be tough. Hence what we get is patchy as heck but with tonnes of marketing and paid influencers.
@William
..except that all that code in tyflow is not a result of just one developer 😉
Nice release
This site has become an infested spamswamp of Blender fanboys thinking their silly posts on the internet will kill autodesk and magically make blender better and more industry friendly or something…
Only thing they achieve is killing this (and other) sites with their useless posts.
Max usually gets the most hate because it’s by far the most widely used 3D software. It kinda comes with the territory.
I like the update, i like the team and like where it’s going.
the freelance price helps too. I’m too old to change to blender.
now I wonder, what can be improved ? I mean when you’re a pro you already use multiple tools, you don’t have the time to learn new little improvements, you have a job you go for the kill. You use zbrush, buy models if you have to, or textures’ or mocap etc… and plugins and scripts etc…
i don’t even want to spend a day installing new software and plugins etc.. and start again in 2 months for a new redshift or zbrush or else….
can’t the big picture be changed ? Like a Google chrome ? You just use it, it works, end of story, you can go outside and enjoy life.
Don’t worry, AI is coming…for better or worse.
what freelance price…? you mean the indie price option?
Very nice update to the tools (Booleans, material editor, array) that I use daily.
I’m working in arch viz and 3dsmax is the best tool for this, the reality is that 3dsmax is focused mainly in arch viz because this is their main userbase. For animation/FX the push you to Maya, I think Max will never update the anim/FX tools because they already have Maya for this.
I think you are quite right, although I do wish they would make the Slate Editor as flexibel and capable as the material editor in Unreal Engine.
This update gives some hope. I like the animation list controller. But still so much to do. I tried to do hair and export it as alembic in max, not working. Had to do it in blender, it worked. And i don´t use blender. tried to bake maps: cavity, curvature… into vertexolor, didn´t work in max. Did it in blender.
For all of you complaining about animation in Max…
Although you are right for the most part, the hard fact is that developing these things are very hard and time consuming. And on top of that AD doesn’t have a huge team working on Max either. Having said that, up to the 2024 release the Modeling phase was the major focus. For 2025 and beyond the Animation department will start its update phase, along with the Real Time RTX and volumetrics in viewports. And yes, it takes time, but there is a solid plan ahead and when these things land will make a difference.
The thing is, we hear this a lot – we’ve had a decade+ of some new hope in development, whether it’s Excalibur, Project Geppetto, MCG, or Bifrost, which either fall short, don’t appear or are just abandoned
Now I’m reading that Bifrost has been declared not worth implementing, and I wonder how much development time has been wasted on these projects – Geppetto was a complete waste of time, promised so much, delivered so little.
I also hear people talking about Max as a generalist/swiss army knife – well, yes but Autodesk focus seems to be heavily on the modelling tools and leaving it up to third parties for decent cloth, hair, particles, fixing features in biped etc.
That’s not a swiss army knife, that’s a knife with holes for everything else to be added to at extra cost
I’ll believe solid animation updates when I see them – still on 2022 here and going to run that for as long as I can
In addition, I don’t mind purchasing Forest Pack, Phoenix FD, Tyflow, Bones Pro, Faceware or Houdini Bridge for a better workflow in Max. Nobody but Blender users think the world should be free and one program has to do everything. Serious users invest in their profession and I like that other developers are focused on being competitive in specific areas. If Max can just improve CAT to give me more competitive animation tools in addition to their improved modeling tools, I’m good. I don’t care about VFX as a core in Max.
There’s possibly a middle ground between wanting something for free and endless rental, and sketchiness about how long you’ve got before they stop authorising your licence
Over on the redshift forum, the devs have said they can’t support Max 2017 any more because Autodesk won’t let them have access – and AD have also said they won’t issue keys to legacy perpetual licences more than 3 versions old
Just because we have our own particular views doesn’t extend to the whole user base, I would just like them to stop leading people on, like they did with the whole ‘perpetuals aren’t going anywhere’, or dangling something on a roadmap
My view is if they’re sawing off the branch they’re sitting on, at least for outside Arch vis
I’ve been using 3DS since before it was Max, and invested god knows how much money in various plugins over the years, a good portion of which either got absorbed or ditched or both most of the jobs outside of Architectural is leaning towards C4D, I’m not some newbie blender fanboy expecting something for nothing
Just something worthwhile, and currently it’s going to take a few more versions before I even consider a Max upgrade from 2022 – if I ever do
Hi Stephen,
I’m much in the same position.
Legally, can they with stop issuing our our legacy perpetual licenses after 3 versions? I don’t recall reading this when I originally bought 3ds Max V1.
Does anyone know?
I thought I saw someone post about something similar on Stack recently, then that post disappeared, or at least I couldn’t find it again…
I hope you’re right. My initial thoughts were Autodesk should have released this on April 1 but now I feel a bit better after reading all the pro and con comments.
Max does not have to being from scratch on animation. In this same CG Press post we see the advancements made on Unreal’s MetaHumans in facial animation and this has a Maya plugin. Why not just add a Max plugin (I know there are issues with Unreal and commercial use) but you get the idea. There are other software programs that have moved way ahead of Max in animation that Maya is connected to but Max still lags behind.
I have not upgraded since Max 2022 and I won’t get Max 2024. I love Max but I have been thinking about a divorce.
CAT is king but I need a decent muscle system and secondary motion, how hard can it be (see Instantrig’s auto overlapping).
My gut feeling is that Max has started their short walk down the plank. I hope I’m wrong.
Max 2025 and beyond will focus on the animation pipeline. The Maya and Max team are working hand in hand in the same space for many years now and both apps share a good deal of same modeling characteristics. Maya is about to lend a big chunk of its cool animation workflows and UI functionality to Max. Also, Max devs are looking at implementing workflows from other state of the art animation programs out there. Can’t say more though, other than these things are very time consuming and have to be made properly into the program to maintain backwards compatibility as much as possible.
“Max 2025 and beyond will focus on the animation pipeline.”.. where’s you found this affirmation? I am beta tester and I never saw this words before on beta community. And max 2025 (Midgard) is already being developed and tested..
Midgard is just the stuff they tell their children to keep them occupied….
A secret second dev team led by Foce will add in the animation tools we’ve been waiting 20 years for at the last minute before 2025 release, they don’t need you because they will be tested by the Maya Beta tester team instead, it will be Maya tech after all and it would be perfection that’ll make you scream in orgasmic delight.
Marc:
You know that as beta tester you even should’nt spill the beans like the project codename ? Even not the fact that it’s actually in development ?
Just saying BTW, not that i think that you caused a cataclysmic leak or something 🙂
@spacefrog i think you are really exaggerating, this codename was even it was even mentioned by the autodesk staff in the official public forum in certain posts.
By the way I not remember also about this information about 2025 will be dedicated to “animation pipeline improvements”.
There is a beta and there is a closed beta.
Also, I said 2025 and beyond; not 2025 exclusively.
It is happening, believe it or not.
@focegi any and all discussions about possible new features or releases of any possible future Autodesk software is strictly against the polices and can lead to speculation and misinformation.
Kelly Michels
3ds Max Beta Manager
@ Kelly, Staying silent about any notion of hope of looking into the animation tools in max for the past 10 years has lead to countless negative posts and bad reviews by users, customers and others.
I think it would be wiser to come out clean and check intentions and plans sooner than later, If there is some serious work to be done in this area its best to let the community know.
What?
Hey, when you say “it doesn’t have huge team working on it”, could you be more specific. I was always wondering just how many people are there developing max and never find any info. If you can give me rough estimate I would be thankful. More or less than 30?