What's new in LightWave 2024

UI

• Added Node Editor Frames

• New Preference Panel

• Image Viewer MMB (ClickDrag)+ Mousewheel Navigation (Zoom In/Out) - Aligned with Render Window UI.

• Scripted ProGeo primitives -

  

  These buttons create Procedural Geometry versions of unit primitives; ideal if you just need a ground plane (use the Grid primitive) or placeholder objects that are completely scene-based

Pipeline, Assets and I/O

• Alembic 1.8.6 Update - Now supports particle loading/saving for Houdinin/RealFlow simulations.

• Unreal Bridge 5.3/5.4

Documentation

New documentation features:

• Searchable

• Dark and light options

• Responsive (works on mobile and tablet)

• The start of integrated docs including 2020

• Documentation build system

Layout

• Animation & Rigging:

  • RHiggit-We are thrilled to announce the integration of a fully updated RHiggit into LightWave 3D, now rebranded as LW RHiggit. This powerful rigging tool brings advanced capabilities to LightWave 3D, enabling users to create complex character rigs with ease and efficiency.

  • WeightBrush - Introducing WeightBrush, a powerful new tool for LightWave 3D that revolutionizes the way you create and manipulate weight maps directly in the layout. This innovative tool provides live, intuitive control over weight maps, enhancing your ability to fine-tune character rigging, instancing, surfacing, and more.

• Geometry Nodes

  • Procedural Geometry Nodes Presets - The ability to save presets in geo nodes means we can supply you with great starting points for complex Geo Node set-ups such as Tendril.

  • Thicken - Thicken allows a generated mesh to have thickness, such as a pipe or walls of an open box. Automatically add thickness to a real-time Boolean object direct in layout. Thicken also gives you animatable controls, so you can change thickness over time.

  • Lathe - Lathe as the name suggests, rotate/spin geometry around an axis. Controls for number of revolutions, number of segments, and even an offset for creating screw/spiral geometry.

  • Tendril/Hyperpaint/Branch - Tendril is a set of advanced procedural geometry tools for LightWave 3D, designed to enhance creative workflows. It leverages two (2) new ProGeo nodes (Hyperpaint and Branch) to generate dynamic shapes and effects. Realtime painting of Tendrils / Vines over time and over Geometry, perfect for architecture, advertising, films and TV shows. Create time-lapse sequences, motion graphics, and more.

• Flow (UP) - Unified Physics - With the inclusion of Flow, we bring you the ability to create variable viscosity fluids - from liquid pouring into a glass, water splashing onto the floor, to jelly cubes bouncing and deforming in real-time.

Rendering (Native)

• AA improvements (up to 30% quicker)

• Clip Map Motion Blur: Improved motion blur for clip maps, enhancing the realism of animations.

Rendering (Octane 2024)

New Octane Photon Tracing kernel, open image in new tab for full 2555 x 4815 resolution. Image courtesy Lewis

• Octane Updates

  • Octane API updated to 2023.1.3

  • New Standard Material

  • New Standard Volume Medium

  • New Photon Tracing Kernel

  • Volume Ramp (Gradient) Node

  • New Octane Post Volume node for Fast Fog Effects.

  • Updated Post Processing node to include Lens flares

Modeler

• Edge Slide - In free-form modelling, there are times when you need to move a point or edge across a polygon's edge to place the detail or a crease exactly where you need it. LightWave's new Point Slide and Edge slide tools give you that ability. Create wrinkles; change points and edges and get precise bevel placement.

LW Pro Tools

• Kit Surfacer - Introducing the Kit Surfacer, a game-changing update for LightWave 3D users looking to save time and streamline their workflow. This innovative tool automates the integration of purchased assets and surfaces, ensuring seamless compatibility and reducing the need for manual adjustments.

• Convert T Nodes - Converts 2015-style surfacing into nodes for native, Octane and Unreal

• Image Replacement - Replaces images used for surfacing in many ways

Quality of Life Updates

Many fixes, additions, and enhancements to your daily workflow to make your LightWave experience easier:

• Consolidate Surfaces

• Adding Under Mouse

• Mouse wheel zooming

• Quick fit all

• Drag-n-drop support

• Custom colors

• Group to compound node

• Node presets

• Add node shortcuts

• Flat node menu

• VPR node editor shortcut

• Tidy selected nodes

• Duplicate nodes

• Node connection early rejection

• Global Node Graph Tree

Library Updates

• OpenVDB Library updated to v11.0-We are excited to announce significant updates to LightWave 3D with the integration of Open VDB 11, upgrading from the previous version 8. This enhancement brings a host of improvements and optimizations to our suite of tools, particularly impacting our flame tool, Turbulence - which can now output to VDB - and water generator, Flow.

• Octane API Build updated to v2023.1.3

• LW SDK Build 3400