MODO 901: The Foundry Announces Most Significant Upgrade Yet for Comprehensive 3D Modeling Software

The Foundry, a global software company headquartered in the UK, is dedicated to making comprehensive, quality software for individuals who are serious about their creativity, and often designing for serious clients within the film industry, whether it be character design, animation, or special effects.

Serving multiple industries, products like MODO are meant to offer comprehensive solutions that allow the creative and professional process to move forward with ease. Users tend to find the software a true embodiment of creative modeling, as well as quite simply—fun.

MODO, geared toward the 3D modeling extraordinaire, offers:

• Modeling
• Design exploration
• Game creation
• Character animation
• Advertising media production

With performance and productivity already well-streamlined in MODO, users upgrading to MODO 901 should be in hog heaven with the ability to work faster, better, and with a wide range of new tools, many of which we don’t know the details on yet.

“When we began working on 901, we committed to bringing our customers the most powerful, relevant version of MODO to date,” said Shane Griffith, MODO product marketing manager at The Foundry. “We looked closely at how the roles of artists in our key markets are changing, the demands they face and how MODO can help them succeed in this shifting landscape. Also, we listened to our MODO customers and community to determine how best to make MODO the most stable, efficient solution for them. The result: MODO 901.”

With a complete package, the goal with MODO is for the 3D designer and enthusiast to be able to actually spend time being creative, and less time focusing on technical challenge. While MODO is already a great package, it’s being improved further as its creator, the Foundry, has taken feedback from users and lent it to good use for MODO 901—the latest and most significant update.

So, if everyone wasn’t having enough fun already, now MODO users can look forward to new tools, enhanced workflow, and features that will allow even greater productivity, as the software works behind the scenes while artists do what they are meant to: enjoy being creative.

With over 100 new features announced, some highlights are:

• Better Booleans, with MeshFusion which is included, and allows for superior results when combining objects.
• New, as well as improved tools for common modeling tasks, to include topological symmetry, split and fill slice tool option, quad fill pattern mode, linear and radial align, and multi-edge slicing
• Improved methods for regular and UDIM multi-tiled UVs, to include improved packing, transfers,  straightening, and alignment
• Layer sculpting at each mesh level, and the ability to transfer multi-resolution displacement vectors between meshes
• Progressive texture baking, as you can preview while ‘baking’
• Choice of individual or floating licensing included in base price for new seats

“The inclusion of MeshFusion in 901 is fantastic news; it provides the most creative workflow I’ve seen for hard surface modelling,” said Grant Miller, creative director at Ingenuity Engine. “901 brings a host of modeling and interface improvements that really speed day-to-day work. It’s great to see a focus on improving the core functionality, in addition to adding powerful new features.”

Expected to ship by the end of May, MODO 901 will be $1799 for ‘new seats.’ MODO 801 is still available for purchase, and can be automatically upgraded to 901—as can 701 to either 801 or 901. The full list of features, hinted at today from The Foundry, will only be fully unveiled in May.

Are you experienced in using MODO, or considering purchasing it when it becomes commercially available this May? If you have MODO 701 or 801, are you planning an upgrade? Share with us in the MODO 901 3D Modeling Software forum thread over at 3DPB.com. Below are some videos with more information about MODO software.