I don’t get the cancellation o Phoenix. While Svetlin may have left, and the new TyFlow does the smoke and fire now, what about water?
I think management is making a big mistake here. Phoenix is a big part of what makes VRay so great.
Why would you not at least continue to release maintenance builds for new versions of VRay and Max (and any other host)?
The Phoenix team has consistently been very responsive to bugs and questions. I wish @georgi.zhekov the best of luck.
It probably wasn’t making them any money.
Then simply charge for it like the used to. I have no problems paying for a working Phoenix. I thought it was strange when they bundled it. Bundling things just means everybody pays for it, even those who don’t use it.
I have paid three years maintenance license in advance. So now I’m paying only for keeping the license alive without any maintenance,
Actually this can be an advance for the current license holders. I don’t expect any new competitors for me, because there isn’t any affordable options to purchase for visualizations/animations that require a liquid element.
Really bad news yesterday about the end of Phoenix FD.
Honestly, l’m really angry because I chose Chaos solutions (V-Ray+ Phoenix FD) for several reasons:
• The fact that Phoenix FD is fully integrated with 3ds Max and V-Ray - an all-in-one solution. lt’s an easy and efficient workflow for me, as I work every day on naval movies.
• The fact that Chaos is a well-known provider of 3D solutions, and I trusted that the products they develop wouldn’t be discontinued so abruptly. (I was wrong!)
Now l’m in big trouble because I won’t be able to edlt my old scenes when clients request changes.
Moreover, I no longer have a solution that meets my needs for realistic simulation of water and oceans.
ls lt at least possible to maintain Phoenix FD’s compatibility with newer versions of 3ds Max?
If not, since I can’t guarantee the longevity of my work, I will seriously reconsider using V-Ray as well.
I purchased the bundle, for Vantage, and they removed Vantage. I wonder if they will rebrand Phoenix and sell it under a different name, removing it from the bundle, like Vantage
Reading the short notice about this, it comes across as a ‘‘we can’t be bothered with it any more and we don’t owe any of you lot any explanation’’ kind of thing. 
I stopped when they ended perpetual - I don’t use it enough to justify a rental like that.
It seems short-sighted though, even if it was just maintaining recompiles for new versions of Max, that would be something - or gifting subscribers a perpetual for the current and older versions of Max.
With Svetlin developing the fire/smoke side in associated with Tyson for TyFlow 2, it seems pretty likely that the ocean/liquids side will follow (although how long it will take I’ve no idea)
Would FumeFX be an option as a replacement?
I mean at the very least give updates for new versions of vray and max.
Really disappointed. I hope Svertlin can get water in TyFlow soon. If anyone can, he can.
There is now a build available that supports 3ds Max 2027.
https://forums.chaos.com/forum/phoenix-fd/phoenix-fd-announcements/1246191-phoenix-5-25-for-3ds-max#post1246197
Phoenix was an excellent piece of software. However, fluid simulation work in the VFX industry has now moved almost entirely to Houdini.
From a business perspective, it is unfortunately very difficult for fluid simulators other than Houdini to remain commercially viable.
tyFlow is also an excellent tool. However, as long as Autodesk’s core business remains architecture and manufacturing, and it continues to own Maya and 3ds Max, I do not expect VFX-oriented functionality in those products to develop much further.
I believe the same can also be said of Chaos.
By 2030 there will be very few computer jobs left. Unless you have a few PhD’s, it’s over for you. Where there previously 100 artists, there is now one person overseeing AI. It’s no use saying “AI can’t”, it’s only a matter of time until it can. Why would anyone hire us, self taught artists when there is only one position and the guy with a PhD is willing to compromise on salary because it’s the ONLY opening he can find?
Phoenix, Maya, 3DS Max, Enscape, Vantage, all of these will go away within the next couple of years. Chaos themselves are trembling because they don’t have the compute to compete with the likes of OpenAI.
If you’re reading this now, I’m sorry to be the one to lay it on you, but you’re gonna have to get a job doing something physical with your hands like maybe a boilermaker or builder, the only people who earn a living in the future are those who can crawl into unpredictable situations and perform physical labor where AI can’t go.
I disagree,
Companies don’t want to work with people who ramble or overshare, so they will stick with the traditional methods when handling their data.