Foundry released Mari 4.5 with a new Material System aimed at giving artists a streamlined, drag-and-drop interface for setting material-driven looks of assets. As a result, Foundry said, the same software tool that’s used for complex “hero” assets can be used to quickly and efficiently create high-volume assets.
Mari’s Material System allows users to import PBR textures, which are ingested and configured for use as presets in a Mari materials library. Those material presets and control set-ups can then be shared throughout a team via a single file that includes all of the necessary information, including source images.
“We are empowering artists to create high-volume assets far more rapidly and cost-effectively, while also giving them access to the beloved package they are used to, to create complex hero assets,” said Mari Product Manager Rory Woodford in a prepared statement. “Mari 4.5 is part of our ongoing mission to improve the tools that artists depend on to create increasingly innovative work on shorter schedules.”
Also new in Mari 4.5 are a simple and familiar layer-stacking system for controlling material properties and visibility, a material grouping system, a new Arnold shader from Autodesk, and an updated node graph UX that allows more complex workflows.
Watch Foundry’s marketing video, below, for a better look at what’s possible with the new Mari 4.5 Material System.
Foundry Mari is available on a perpetual license ($2,068), on a quarterly rental license ($689/quarter), or as a single license on an annual subscription basis, paid monthly ($59) or yearly ($599). A non-commercial version is available for “at-home learning, exploring and personal projects.”
