The Datasmith plugin for form•Z allows you to quickly and easily convert your 3D model for use in Unreal Engine 4 and Twinmotion. form•Z projects are converted to match each real-time engine’s capabilities. Unreal will retain objects, components, materials, cameras, lights, group hierarchy, and layers. Twinmotion supports objects, components, materials, and group hierarchy or layers.
The Datasmith plugin for form•Z is available as a Technology Preview. Technology Previews provide early access to new features; however, they may not be functionally complete, and should be used with caution on production work. We encourage feedback on the Technology Preview via email at support@formZ.com.
The Datasmith plugin for form•Z requires form•Z pro, form•Z jr or form•Z Student Edition v9.0.6 or later.
After running the installer below, you will find "Twinmotion" and "Unreal Engine" as options in the form•Z export menu. Select the desired target application to generate a Datasmith (.udatasmith)from your form•Z model. You can then use the import Datasmith feature of Unreal or Twinmotion to add the data to your real-time project.
The Export Options provide some flexibility in the exported data. Most of these are self-explanatory.
Datasmith Layers from form•Z Layers: When this option is enabled, form•Z's layers will be preserved when the project is imported into Unreal Engine. When disabled, form•Z objects will not be assigned to any layer. (In Unreal Engine, layers are an optional attribute.) Note that Unreal Engine does not support Layer nesting, so form•Z's Layer Groups will not be translated. If Layer Groups are required, the Unreal Engine "World Outliner" can be made to reproduce the form•Z layer structure (Layers palette) by setting "Object Actor Hierarchy" to "From form•Z Layers."
Layers are not supported by Twinmotion. However, the Twinmotion "Scene Graph" can be made to reproduce the form•Z layer structure (Layers palette) by setting "Object Actor Hierarchy" to "From form•Z Layers."
Object Actor Hierarchy can be Flat, From form•Z Groups, or From form•Z Layers. This affects how the data is organized and hence what can be manipulated in Unreal and Twinmotion.
Materials Double Sided are useful if you have surface objects in your scene.
