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Honest opinion - functions, UI, bugs and concerns
Hi,
Honestly, I have very mixed feelings about the new product. Tested v02.1
On one hand, it includes features that Vantage really lacks, such as:
The first (and repeating) thought that comes to mind is: why not just add these features to Vantage instead of releasing a separate piece of software?
It feels like this new app is aimed at less advanced users—something like a competitor to Twinmotion. That’s okay, but not if it comes at the expense of Vantage.
UI:
Because of its simplified approach, the interface feels more like a game than a professional tool. In its current state, it doesn’t give me the impression of “high performance” or “optimized workflow.”
This simplicity was actually the reason I gave up on Twinmotion so quickly. After a few days or weeks of use, the inherent limitations of an “app for dummies” become more and more irritating and overshadow the advantages. At the end of a day tool ends up feeling like just a temporary solution. I feel that this kind of interface is a trap in longer therm.
As for the UI—nothing too impressive there. There’s a lot missing, and I’d rate the current layout maybe a 3 out of 5.
Some things are confusing, like the cloud shadow toggle being linked to the sun rather than the sky, or how “layers, targets, and exclusion areas” vanish from the side panel when painting scatter objects.
Also, there’s no highlight object when adding elements to a scatter selection (and the cursor change to painting not to pointing), which is pretty annoying.
I was surprised to find scene-wide color correction hidden in the camera settings. It also can’t be applied globally, nor can it be copied between cameras. There’s no preset system either.
Also I don’t understand why there’s an inconsistency with how navigation in 3D dimension works compared to Vantage (like ctrl+alt+middle mouse button movement doesnt work).
There’s also no convenient way to freely navigate the scene from a saved camera position without affecting that camera’s position (like a simple toggle between camera and perspective view from the same spot).
Bugs from testing a single heavy .vrscene file:
My concerns:
My biggest worry is that Envision’s development will be prioritized over Vantage, offering features missing in Vantage while in the same time not providing what Vantage already excels at.
I also disagree with the point of view, that Vantage is just for quick, simple visuals. I’ve fully switched to it and no longer use Corona or V-Ray—even for high-quality, marketing-level images.
The early days with Vantage were tough, since not all V-Ray features were supported and it took time to figure out what was a bug, what was unsupported, and what was a host error. (It’s still frustrating that I need a V-Ray license bundled with Vantage just to see material previews in the host editor.)
Nowadays, I really appreciate working in Vantage. Its Live Link is a game changer, and I can’t imagine working without it. I can confidently say that Vantage gives me a competitive edge—it lets me produce up to ten times more high-quality conceptual variants in the same amount of time compared to using classic V-Ray or Corona.
What Vantage really needs is more functionality to work independently of V-Ray without leaving the Vantage environment, along with more animation features: a more robust timeline, the ability to animate objects, a material editor, and no forced V-Ray bundle.
From what I’ve seen so far, Envision worries me more than it excites me, mainly because I’m afraid Vantage’s development will stall. At the same time, what I’ve seen with my own eyes in Envision leaves me absolutely certain that I’m not interested in switching from Vantage to Envision.
The ability to easily add animated people is something I miss in Vantage. I need it occasionally (a few times a year), but not frequently enough to justify paying for a full ANIMA license. Maybe I’d consider an ANIMA license if I didn’t have to pay for that pointless V-Ray license (which I hardly use) that Vantage forces on me.
I hope that feedback like mine will be taken into consideration as you continue to develop your products. If needed, I’m open to provide further suggestions.
Matt
Honestly, I have very mixed feelings about the new product. Tested v02.1
On one hand, it includes features that Vantage really lacks, such as:
- Built-in human animation ANIMA CROWD (though unfortunately in my case, the module showed an error and refused to launch.)
- Slightly better camera and element animation
- possibility to copy objects
- A timeline that’s marginally better than Vantage’s
- The option to either link or embed a .vrscene file (but there is a lack of smth like XREF manager)
The first (and repeating) thought that comes to mind is: why not just add these features to Vantage instead of releasing a separate piece of software?
It feels like this new app is aimed at less advanced users—something like a competitor to Twinmotion. That’s okay, but not if it comes at the expense of Vantage.
UI:
Because of its simplified approach, the interface feels more like a game than a professional tool. In its current state, it doesn’t give me the impression of “high performance” or “optimized workflow.”
This simplicity was actually the reason I gave up on Twinmotion so quickly. After a few days or weeks of use, the inherent limitations of an “app for dummies” become more and more irritating and overshadow the advantages. At the end of a day tool ends up feeling like just a temporary solution. I feel that this kind of interface is a trap in longer therm.
As for the UI—nothing too impressive there. There’s a lot missing, and I’d rate the current layout maybe a 3 out of 5.
Some things are confusing, like the cloud shadow toggle being linked to the sun rather than the sky, or how “layers, targets, and exclusion areas” vanish from the side panel when painting scatter objects.
Also, there’s no highlight object when adding elements to a scatter selection (and the cursor change to painting not to pointing), which is pretty annoying.
I was surprised to find scene-wide color correction hidden in the camera settings. It also can’t be applied globally, nor can it be copied between cameras. There’s no preset system either.
Also I don’t understand why there’s an inconsistency with how navigation in 3D dimension works compared to Vantage (like ctrl+alt+middle mouse button movement doesnt work).
There’s also no convenient way to freely navigate the scene from a saved camera position without affecting that camera’s position (like a simple toggle between camera and perspective view from the same spot).
Bugs from testing a single heavy .vrscene file:
- Scatter objects generated with ForestPack don’t open in Envision, even though they worked fine in Vantage.
- Some materials that imported correctly into Vantage show up as plain white in Envision.
My concerns:
My biggest worry is that Envision’s development will be prioritized over Vantage, offering features missing in Vantage while in the same time not providing what Vantage already excels at.
I also disagree with the point of view, that Vantage is just for quick, simple visuals. I’ve fully switched to it and no longer use Corona or V-Ray—even for high-quality, marketing-level images.
The early days with Vantage were tough, since not all V-Ray features were supported and it took time to figure out what was a bug, what was unsupported, and what was a host error. (It’s still frustrating that I need a V-Ray license bundled with Vantage just to see material previews in the host editor.)
Nowadays, I really appreciate working in Vantage. Its Live Link is a game changer, and I can’t imagine working without it. I can confidently say that Vantage gives me a competitive edge—it lets me produce up to ten times more high-quality conceptual variants in the same amount of time compared to using classic V-Ray or Corona.
What Vantage really needs is more functionality to work independently of V-Ray without leaving the Vantage environment, along with more animation features: a more robust timeline, the ability to animate objects, a material editor, and no forced V-Ray bundle.
From what I’ve seen so far, Envision worries me more than it excites me, mainly because I’m afraid Vantage’s development will stall. At the same time, what I’ve seen with my own eyes in Envision leaves me absolutely certain that I’m not interested in switching from Vantage to Envision.
The ability to easily add animated people is something I miss in Vantage. I need it occasionally (a few times a year), but not frequently enough to justify paying for a full ANIMA license. Maybe I’d consider an ANIMA license if I didn’t have to pay for that pointless V-Ray license (which I hardly use) that Vantage forces on me.
I hope that feedback like mine will be taken into consideration as you continue to develop your products. If needed, I’m open to provide further suggestions.
Matt
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