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What’s new in ArtEngine 2021.5?

May 20, 2021 in Engine & platform | 8 min. read
ArtEngine 2021.5 example 2
ArtEngine 2021.5 example 2
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Harness the power of example-based workflows with new collaboration features, better mask tools, and more in the latest ArtEngine 2021.5 update. Plus, enjoy an extension of the GDC promotion until July 5.

Promotion extended until July 5

In March, we launched a promotion during GDC to offer ArtEngine for just $19/month (instead of the regular price of $95/month), set to end on May 17. Our vision was to celebrate users and increase overall accessibility to the product. Since its launch, ArtEngine has proven itself, time and time again, as a premium product, largely focused on AAA gaming studios and large industrial companies. 

However, over the past two months, we’ve been blown away by the incredible art created by an influx of new users; many of whom are indies and small studio teams who have celebrated the more accessible price point. For this reason, we are extending the promotion until July 5. If you purchase ArtEngine before then, you can lock in the $19 monthly price for the next twelve months. To access the discount, simply visit the product page.

ArtEngine 2021.5 example 1

Herb Flower, a Utah-based freelance photogrammetry expert, was one artist that picked up ArtEngine during the promotion to improve a rocky material. On the left of the above photo is the original detail texture, created by using software that converts the color texture into a bump map. On the right is the updated material that uses a detail map. This change was made by scanning another rock via photogrammetry and cleaning it up in ArtEngine. 

As Herb notes, “I think the results speak for themselves! I'm not sure people realize how important the detail texture tiles are for enhancing even a high-detail texture.” To learn more about Herb’s work, you can visit his website or download his photogrammetry assets on the Unity Asset Store here. If you’d like to learn more about surface photogrammetry and scan cleanup in ArtEngine, check out the Get Ready for Photogrammetry ebook.

New project export tools prove that sharing is caring

You’ve been open with us – and we hear you. Our team understands that, for some, the example-based workflow is a completely new way of working that can make ArtEngine difficult to grasp at first. 

As such, we’re focused on helping you unlock the power of AI-based workflows more quickly, so you can create better content, faster. We started this journey earlier in the year by investing in a steady stream of fresh YouTube tutorials, created by one of our artists, Victor Kam. Over the past few weeks, we’ve been honing ArtEngine’s features to highlight sample projects and their node graphs, in addition to improving direct collaboration capabilities so you can learn from, and share with others.

We’re excited to announce a new Export Project feature, now available in ArtEngine 2021.5. Whether you’re an environment artist at a large studio that needs to collaborate closely with your team, or an indie that wants to unpack your approach among friends, Export Project lets you share your ArtEngine project as a .zip file to more efficiently showcase your work. Similarly, you can import other creators’ projects using File > Open, before selecting the desired file.

File > Open example 1
File > Open example 2

To further explore this feature, we invite you to download some of the example projects below, all of which were created by Victor. After unzipping, open ArtEngine, go to File > Open, and select the .art file. Note: To see the full results, you’ll need to execute the entire graph again by clicking Execute All Nodes. Play around and make tweaks to your liking, then use Export Project to share your own work.

Export Project

Example project 1: Seamless gravel

Seamless gravel

Learn how to process a photogrammetry scan and transform it into a seamless gravel material. Simply use Mutation to identify real-world scale and set texel density. Download now.

Example project 2: Mossy bark

Mossy bark

Discover the new Feature Selector to quickly extract moss from this tree bark material, or even create a new, tileable mossy bark material. Download now.

Stay tuned for more updates in the coming months, including templates and a new content window, where you can leverage common preset workflows and a library of ready-to-use assets to make your material authoring processes even faster.

New Feature Selector speeds up and enhances mask generation

Want to quickly create more accurate masks? Now you can with our new region-based Feature Selector. This powerful node reinvents the way that you work with masks in ArtEngine. Apply this node to any image to generate a smart grid of super pixels – a cluster of similar pixels based on input parameters. Once your super pixel cluster is created, you can rapidly generate a mask of its area.

New Feature Selector

Improved Multi-Angle to Texture heightens scanning precision

For all you photometric stereo maestros out there, we come ready with an update to Multi-Angle to Texture (MATT). You can now specify several parameters of your capture rig to refine the results of this MATT node – an improvement that we hope makes your life easier.

Multi-Angle

New command-line interface accelerates your material creation pipeline (ArtEngine Studio only)

Our new CLI tool allows you to integrate the power of ArtEngine into your pipeline without the need to open the application. First, create a node graph, then define an “in” and “out” folder, and our CLI tool will run in the background.

Join us on our journey and become a beta tester

Have you ever needed to create quick and easy PBR materials for objects in your game or project? We are looking for Unity users to be beta testers for a new mobile application. To give us your input as we build out the application, please fill out this intake survey and we will get back to you as soon as possible.

beta tester section

As our community of users continues to grow, so does the wonderful art that you create. If you have any feedback for us, or are interested in having your artwork featured, we invite you to share it on our Discord channel , the ArtEngine forum or drop us a line at artengine-info@unity3d.com

Happy creating! 

Artist credits: Herb Flower (header image), Victor Kam

 

May 20, 2021 in Engine & platform | 8 min. read

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