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MSFS20 Sketchup->Twinmotion->UE5->msfs

Nordscape

Nordscape

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Hello. I request som input from the forum regarding successrate and workflow regard the following issue.

I recently got introduced to Twinmotion for rendering. I am currently using Sketchup 2017 for model making.

I understand that Twinmotion is unable to export the rendered model as a .gltf and therefore I will import the rendered model into UE5 and then export as .gltf since UE5 has this possibility as a plugin.

I suspect I will still need to do some adjustment through e.g. MCX before import into msfs2020 developer.

Do you have any ideas on how this will work? Please bear in mind I am an amateur with limited knowledge about textures.
 
Are you using Twinmotion to texture the object? Or another application? When using SketchUp my workflow is SketchUp -> Blender (UV Mapping) -> Substance Painter -> Blender (glTF export using the MSFS SDK plugin) -> MSFS. You can import from SketchUp to Blender by either using the Blender plugin to directly import SketchUp files, or export the SketchUp model as another file type. There's glTF export plugins for SketchUp or dae that you can use. You can also use Blender to texture your object. There's websites out there with PBR materials for free or the different maps as seperate image files you can use.
 
FlynZSky said:
Are you using Twinmotion to texture the object? Or another application? When using SketchUp my workflow is SketchUp -> Blender (UV Mapping) -> Substance Painter -> Blender (glTF export using the MSFS SDK plugin) -> MSFS. You can import from SketchUp to Blender by either using the Blender plugin to directly import SketchUp files, or export the SketchUp model as another file type. There's glTF export plugins for SketchUp or dae that you can use. You can also use Blender to texture your object. There's websites out there with PBR materials for free or the different maps as seperate image files you can use.
Click to expand...
Thanks for your reply! I have been reluctant to use Blender due to the steep learning curve. What I like about Sketchup and Twinmotion is the user-friendlyness for someone as "simp" as myself. I want to check out the possibilities as mentioned in the initial post, but it seems to not fully export textures as I would have hoped.

The export kind of works but only in regards to the coloring. Reflections, pbr-values, glass, and so on did not export
 
Nightstalkernor said:
Thanks for your reply! I have been reluctant to use Blender due to the steep learning curve. What I like about Sketchup and Twinmotion is the user-friendly-ness for someone as "simple" as myself. I want to check out the possibilities as mentioned in the initial post, but it seems to not fully export textures as I would have hoped.

The export kind of works but only in regards to the coloring. Reflections, pbr-values, glass, and so on did not export
Click to expand...

I have not had time to look into this workflow, but did look at a number of web pages on TwinMotion and 2 recent versions of DataSmith Exporter, and some forum posts expressing concern on the limited support of quirks encountered with Sketchup Binary *.SKP file format.

The replies to forum posts show a consistently polite interest in helping, but more in the form of intent to provide further compatibility in the future when the TwinMotion and DataSmith feature set is expanded.

It seems that the developer wants to become a more widely used platform to attract more ArchViz and Unreal Engine users.

Generally speaking, documentation was limited, although when renders are made, they are good quality compared to other renderers.

I did not see any examples of content that made extensive use of PBR textured content that will respond and render dynamically - and differently- with changes in global illumination, where the 3D models and rendered textures were exported for a sim platform.

IIUC, an inherent practice in the workflow due to how Unreal Engine works, is a fallback to lower resolution "baked" static renders rather than output of PBR textured content that will respond to- and render- dynamically and differently- with changes in global illumination.

That works OK for architectural visualization (aka "ArchViz") which typically only uses a number of static "scenes" for clients.


And use of 3D models textured with textures derived from "baked" static renders is the best possible in prior versions of FS2Kx / P3D.


But MSFS 2020 and 1024 are both intended to use PBR textured content that will respond and render dynamically- and differently- with changes in global illumination.


So, this workflow may have a future, but IMHO, it is in an early phase of development, and may already be eclipsed by other products.

That is as far as I had time to see on an initial cursory scan of the above products and related Unreal Engine platform in question.


I hope this info might prove useful. :)


BTW: Have you considered using "Materialize" to create PBR textures compatible with (1) method MSFS SDK uses for 3D models ? :scratchch


PS: TwinMotion can import *.SKP files directly, so DataSmith plugin may not be required, and Sketchup Make 2017 free may be used ?

Justin Geis' video outputs an ArchViz image from a Sketchup model processed by TwinMotion, but says the free license version requires that one make all edits in Sketchup and re-import / re-process the 3D model afterwards in TwinMotion:


GaryGB
 
Last edited:
GaryGB said:
I have not had time to look into this workflow, but did look at a number of web pages on TwinMotion and 2 recent versions of DataSmith Exporter, and some forum posts expressing concern on the limited support of quirks encountered with Sketchup Binary *.SKP file format.

The replies to forum posts show a consistently polite interest in helping, but more in the form of intent to provide further compatibility in the future when the TwinMotion and DataSmith feature set is expanded.

It seems that the developer wants to become a more widely used platform to attract more ArchViz and Unreal Engine users.

Generally speaking, documentation was limited, although when renders are made, they are good quality compared to other renderers.

I did not see any examples of content that made extensive use of PBR textured content that will respond and render dynamically - and differently- with changes in global illumination, where the 3D models and rendered textures were exported for a sim platform.

IIUC, an inherent practice in the workflow due to how Unreal Engine works, is a fallback to lower resolution "baked" static renders rather than output of PBR textured content that will respond to- and render- dynamically and differently- with changes in global illumination.

That works OK for architectural visualization (aka "ArchViz") which typically only uses a number of static "scenes" for clients.


And use of 3D models textured with textures derived from "baked" static renders is the best possible in prior versions of FS2Kx / P3D.


But MSFS 2020 and 1024 are both intended to use PBR textured content that will respond and render dynamically- and differently- with changes in global illumination.


So, this workflow may have a future, but IMHO, it is in an early phase of development, and may already be eclipsed by other products.

That is as far as I had time to see on an initial cursory scan of the above products and related Unreal Engine platform in question.


I hope this info might prove useful. :)


BTW: Have you considered using "Materialize" to create PBR textures compatible with (1) method MSFS SDK uses for 3D models ? :scratchch


PS: TwinMotion can import *.SKP files directly, so DataSmith plugin may not be required, and Sketchup Make 2017 free may be used ?

Justin Geis' video outputs an ArchViz image from a Sketchup model processed by TwinMotion, but says the free license version requires that one make all edits in Sketchup and re-import / re-process the 3D model afterwards in TwinMotion:


GaryGB
Click to expand...
Thank you so much for you input, Gary! No I have not yet looked into the Materialize function, but I will check it out! :)
 
GaryGB said:
You may recall I had first cited that 3rd party PBR utility for you in this thread: ;)

https://www.fsdeveloper.com/forum/t...ures-to-continue-edit-work.459431/post-929856

MSFS SDK supports several PBR criteria, one of which is in wide use in 3D model graphics, and Materialize is compatible with that criteria.

GaryGB
Click to expand...
Thanks Gary. I remember you mentioned it, and I did try it but never really got it to work correctly so I gave up. But I will have another look. Thank you :)
 
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