Texturing and PBR workflow - what software do you recommend for game assets?

[Nora.G]

I've got my models created but now I need to texture them properly. I'm looking for recommendations on texturing software for game assets and PBR texture creation tools.

What's the best workflow for creating high-quality textures for game development? Should I use dedicated texturing software or can I get by with what's built into modeling programs?

I'm particularly interested in tools that are good for environment asset creation tools and character texturing. Are there any free PBR texture creation tools that are actually good, or do I need to invest in something like Substance Painter?

Also, how important are UV mapping tools for beginners in this process?

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For texturing software for game assets, here's my recommended workflow:

1. Substance Painter - Industry standard, but not free ($20/month)
2. Quixel Mixer - Free with Epic account, uses Megascans
3. Blender Texture Paint - Surprisingly capable and free
4. Materialize - Free for generating PBR textures from photos

For PBR texture creation tools, Substance Painter is worth the money if you're serious. The smart materials and generators save so much time. But for beginners or those on a tight budget, Quixel Mixer is fantastic.

The key with any texturing software is understanding the PBR workflow: albedo, roughness, metallic, normal, and sometimes height maps. Once you understand what each map does, the software choice matters less.

UV mapping tools for beginners are crucial here. Bad UVs make texturing much harder. Blender's UV tools are good, and there are great tutorials on proper UV unwrapping for games.

[Charles61]

I'll add ArmorPaint to that list. It's a relatively new 3D painting software that's very Blender-like in interface. It's free while in beta, and the developer plans to keep a free version available.

For environment asset creation tools specifically, Quixel Mixer is hard to beat because of the Megascans library. You can create incredibly detailed environments quickly by mixing and matching scanned materials.

One thing beginners often overlook: you don't always need to paint textures from scratch. Using tileable textures and adjusting them in your texturing software can save huge amounts of time.

Also, consider your game's art style. Some styles work better with hand-painted textures, others with photorealistic PBR. Choose your texturing software for game assets based on the style you're going for.

[JustinM]

The built-in texturing in modeling software has gotten so much better that for many projects, you might not need separate texturing software.

Blender's texture painting, combined with its shader editor, can create complex PBR materials. You can paint directly in the 3D viewport and see real-time updates with proper lighting.

Maya's 3D paint tools are less developed, but they exist. Most Maya users I know use Substance Painter.

For indie developers, I'd recommend learning Blender's texture painting first. It's free, integrated with your modeling workflow, and capable enough for many projects. If you hit its limitations, then look at dedicated texturing software for game assets.

Also, don't underestimate the power of procedural textures. Blender's shader nodes can create amazing materials without any painting at all.