Project Materials Beta Viewer Brings The Spectacular World of Specularity (and More) to Second Life

Iris Ophelia's ongoing review of gaming and virtual world style

The long-awaited Project Materials Viewer for Second Life has finally arrived, and many builders and designers have been clambering to take it for a spin. This viewer adds a new range of options for those creating with mesh including support for specular maps. But what exactly does that mean for you and me? Mostly it means that a lot more realistic-looking (and just plain pretty) mesh items will be coming to your inventory very soon.

Designer Damien Fate (the man behind Fatewear, Loco Pocos, and one of the team members of coldLogic) has been one of those tinkering with the new viewer, and he's made a video that definitely illuminates the difference:

 

If you're pressed for time, he also shared an animated gif of the difference via Plurk.

These new features are a big deal when it comes to 3D modeling/rendering for some pretty obvious reasons. For example, when specular mapping handles shimmer and shine instead of a static baked texture, dynamic changes in lighting won't make things look off or flat. This also means that texturing certain types of materials or surfaces won't be as much of a pain to get right as it once was.

This technique is also often used in animations and games to add an extra level of detail or ornateness to items for added impact. Action MMO TERA in particular makes great use of specular effects in its armor and outfits, as shown above. It's also common for avatar/character skin to have some specularity for a healthy and natural look, and while Materials currently can't be applied directly to the SL avatar it would be a great addition (and completely revolutionize skin-making) if they ever decide to change that.

Of course there's a lot more to this new project beyond just specularity. While SL Materials are still in beta, I'm eager to see what clever designers like Damien will do with it. As for that stunning dress in his video, you'll be able to pick up the non-Materials version very soon at Fantasy Faire 2013.

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Iris Ophelia (@bleatingheart, Janine Hawkins IRL) has been featured in the New York Times and has spoken about SL-based design at the Fashion Institute of Technology in Manhattan and with pop culture/fashion maven Johanna Blakley.

Comments

[Natalie Seymour]

I'm very excited for this and I wish they would extend the material features to include the SL avatar. It would be amazing to have normal map features for skin makers to add realistic details or even on clothing system layers....I can only dream :(

[Adeon Writer]

Sporting a normalmapped hoodie from day one thanks to an awesome friend! :)

[Cake]

You know what this means?

Shiny disco suits!

Someone please make one.

[Adeon Writer]

Let me get this overwith:

OMG THIS WILL BE THE DEATH OF SL.

That said thanks to an awesome friend I'm now sporting a normal mapped hoodie.

[Adeon Writer]

My original post didn't go thought at first, oh well, this is exciting enough to say more than once. :)

[Aliasi Stonebender]

You know what's really interesting?

Sure, normal avatars won't work with this. But mesh avatars probably will, since they work with other texture fiddling (full bright, shiny, transparency, even bump maps).

That ought to really make a well-designed one pop!

[eddi haskell]

This is nice, but I think that the project that allows Mesh clothes to expand and fit bodies dynamically would be more exciting for me and the people I know. I do not want my SL Avatars to thin down and to be able wear mesh effectively. My two male fit avatars like their fit shapes and want to keep them -- and they are not huge. The last time I purchased a Mesh item it was a University of Michigan sports jacket, and I broke through the shoulders, even in the XL version.

The other thing is this-- and I keep on saying this. The only way SL is ever going to grow is if it becomes easier for the standard Facebook user to use. I have been in Second Life for 6 years, am considered a bit of a "techie", and still gnash my teeth at having to work around the latest update. All this is great, but unless a new user can feel comfortable by the third time they log in to SL, most of them are not going to stay. A more complicated third party viewer is not going to let numbers pick up.

But still, if this can make Second Life a more beautiful place graphically (clothes are not the only Mesh items), I am all for it.

[Archangel Mortenwold]

What user interface does this viewer use?