Avid Technology has announced that its Softimage subsidiary has unveiled SOFTIMAGE|XSI 6, the latest version of its flagship 3-D animation and character creation software.
The company said XSI 6 introduced new features for accelerated animation that simplify working with 3-D characters and motion capture data. A new collaborative framework in XSI 6 software also allows 3-D artists to work together non-destructively, in a studio environment that provides easy integration with other 3-D applications.
XSI 6 will support the .NET framework and include integrated C#, an object-oriented programming language popular with next-generation 3-D game developers. The software also offers support for Python, a preferred scripting language used by technical directors for setting up film and visual effects pipelines.
In addition, Softimage is working closely with industry partners to offer support for DirectX 10 hardware that will operate on Microsoft Windows Vista once it is available.
The company noted that creating animated 3-D visual effects, characters and 3-D game titles for next-generation consoles — such as the Microsoft Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii and Sony Playstation 3 — was becoming increasingly complex. Because it is built on the newest code base of any comprehensive 3-D application on the market, XSI software is well suited to operate with next-generation hardware and 3-D game development and visual effects pipelines, Avid said.
For more information, visit www.softimage.com/xsi.