You can see all list from 3dsMax 2017 +
http://cganimator.com/unofficial-3dsmax-whats-new/ 3dsMax 2021
* No SDK Break – Plugins compiled for Max 2020 are supported in Max 2021
Full MikkT Space Support for Normal Map
New BakingToTexture
New Simplifed PBR Material
OSL
Physical Material and Arnold as Default
Viewport
Rendering
Python 3
New Weighted Normal Modifier
New Installer
Explicit Normal Preservation
http://cganimator.com/unofficial-3dsmax-whats-new/ 3dsMax 2021
* No SDK Break – Plugins compiled for Max 2020 are supported in Max 2021
Full MikkT Space Support for Normal Map
- Baking -Scanline Renderer can output normal map in MikkT sapce
- Rendering – Normal map in MikkT space can be rendered in Scanline Renderer
- Viewport – Physical Material supports MIkkt space normal map in viewport
- API – Normal bump mode is now exposed as a part of 3dsMax API
New BakingToTexture
- Brand new tool for baking maps and surfaces offers streamlined workflow with full queue control
- Extensive renderer support including Arnold
- Error validation and compatible map filtering
- Faster performance
- MikkT normal map baking
- Override map
- Extensive renderer support including OSL and Blended Box Map
- Bake element viewing in VFB while baking
New Simplifed PBR Material
- Two simplified frontends to Physical Material has been added, that are intended to mimic shading models commonly used in game engines
- PBR Material (Rough/Metal)
- PBR Material (Spec/Gloss)
- Drag and drop downloaded PBR maps straight from Windows Explorer into the Material/Maps Browser.
OSL
- New dynamic UI generation – Simple Gradient and 1-of-N supports dynamic entry
- Qt based custom ui support
- New HDRI Environment map – Environment shader with exposure adjustments, ground projection mode, and separation between Background and Environment.
- New HDRI Lights – Allows using a set of HDR photos of light sources as an environment map.
- New Environment/Background Switcher
- New Camera/Object/Spherical Projection map
- New Curve(Color), Curve(Float) map – Transform an input using a arbitrary curves. Can be used for gradients or as a color correction tool. Each color channel is mapped individually by the curve.
- New Uber Noise map – Combines many noise functions in one. Can do classic Perlin, Fractal, Cell as well as fBm noise and multiple flavors of Worley noise.
- New Wireframe map
- New 4-Point Gradient map
- New Spect/Gross to Physical map
- FBX export will embed OSL code
- “Version” metadata support
- Proper UDIM support for AssetTracker
- Paths in OSL shaders can be edited in Asset Tracker
- OSL compilation at startup runs on separate thread
- Fixed OIIO file lock. Bitmap files used in an OSL map can now be edited outside of 3ds Max, as the file no longer locks (PU3)
Physical Material and Arnold as Default
- Physical Material and Arnold as Default
- Previous defaults is still available by MAX.Legacy market default
- Physical material for imported model
- Support PBR Wavefront MTL extention from Exocortex for Obj import
- API support for 3rd party for new default
- VRayMaterial to Physical Material support
- CoronaMaterial to Physical Material support
Viewport
- New “HDAO” mode – gives a “tighter” AO apperance revealing smaller details.
- AO (when enabled) is always on, and does not disappear while navigation
- New Progressive Skylight viewport menu option can turn on/off the progressive mode (really same as the old “Skylight as Ambient” but with the opposite polarity of the switch and a better name)
- New Progressive Skylight visible option in the Per-View Presets viewport menu dialog
- New slider for the fading factor in the Per-View Presets dialog
- Physical Material Coating support in the viewport
- Custom Per-View Settings
- Synchronize with Display Mode (PU2)
- Image-based lighting (IBL) is now automatic when an environment is added to the scene. This saves time as there is no need to add a skylight to the scene to have to enable this feature
- Roughness for physical materials is now supported in the viewport in “Realistic” mode (PU2)
- improved shadows supported in “Default” lighting mode (PU2)
- Floating viewports (PU1)
Float up to 3 viewport windows
Provides more flexibility in how you work by leveraging your multiple-monitor setup
Floating viewports are fully functional and can be configured separately
Rendering
- Substance plugin
- QT re-write of Physical Material UI to increase performance.
- New 2K UV template image(color/Grayscale)
- Single click map select in Slate Material Editor
Python 3
- Python 3.7 integration(3.7.5,)
- Python 3 is the default. Command line is -pythonver <2|3>, and env var is ADSK_3DSMAX_PYTHON_VERSION=<2|3>
- 3rd party Python module compilerd with different version of compiler support
- Both Python 2.7( 2.7.17) and Python 3.7 interpreters are supported.Python 2.7 can be enabled through a command line switch or environment variable.
- PySide2 was updated to 5.12.5 for both Python2 and Python3
- qtmax helpers – GetQApplication() returns PySide2.QtWidgets.QApplication, GetQMaxMainWindow() returns PySide2.QtWidgets.QMainWindow
- Connect VS Code to Max’s python and debug scripts
- Virtual Environment support
- Startup script support with package entry-points
- MAXScript global variables can be created from Python through pymxs.
- New items can be added to MAXScript arrays and dictionaries directly from Python.
- improved handling of passing parameters (arguments) by reference (as opposed to by value) to pymxs APIs
- ability to pass functions to callbacks.addScript() as opposed to passing their names as a string
- Python 3 Alert Mode (PU2)
Will assist in preparing for the Python 2.7 to 3 transition. With mode enabled, users will be informed of exactly which scripts needs to be updated. Both users and automated tool are easily detected as warnings are logged to the MAXScript Listener, the 3ds Max system log file (Max.log) and the console when running 3ds Max Batch.”
New Weighted Normal Modifier
- Improves the shading of models by altering the vertex normals to be perpendicular to larger flat polygon and generates explicit normals for meshes better and faster than ever
- Area/Angle/Largest Face based
- Full control over smoothing and blending values.
- Hard edge detection by smoothing group/UV/edge angle
- Snap to Largest Face (face aligned normals) – allows for coplanar faces contribute to the weighting. When active it will snap the normal to the face with the highest weight, among the faces sharing that particular normal vector based upon the detected hard edges. This option can be used in combination with Area and Angle weighting
- Using the existing UV seams (and channel) – as an additional hard edge detection option to generate smoothing results for weighted normals.
New Installer
- Supports online and offline installation. Simpler and faster.
- Material Library installation is optional
Explicit Normal Preservation
- Editable Poly – Detach to Clone, Detach to Element, Detach to Element as clone, Clone to Object, Clone to element, Attach
- Edit Poly – Detach to Clone, Detach to Element, Detach to Element as Clone, Clone to Object, Clone to element, Attach
- Editable Mesh – Detach to Object, Detach to Element, Clone to Object, Clone to Element
- Edit Mesh -Detach to Object
- XForm modifier Preserve Normals option – ensures that normals are maintained when the XForm has a negative scale.
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