Brazil Rendering System V2 Pre-Release
What is meant by "Pre-Release"?
"Pre-Release" is our Work-In-Progress (WIP), late-beta development version of Brazil r/s V2. "Pre-Release" means the software is feature-complete, but that a few features are still being finalized. Thus it is not technically, "done," but it is usable, and our studio partners have already relied on V2 for many professional projects, including feature films, for over a year. Brazil r/s V2 will be released (also referred to as "gold" release) as Brazil r/s V2 (without "beta" or "pre-release" tags appended) when the software is complete and bug-free, to SplutterFish's high standards.
Why would I want the Pre-Release?
Brazil r/s' current state includes all of the features slated for V2, with a few of them still being finalized. It is shockingly stable, and practically bug-free. We are offering this because it's at a point where artists want to use it, and this version has already been used heavily in production through its extensive beta period, enough so, that we are confident in releasing this version for professional work.
Does "Pre-Release" mean it's going to be buggy?
No. At the time of this writing, and with the exception of the unfinished features, the software is practically bug-free. By making the pre-release available, we're committing to keep the software as bug-free as possible from now until it goes gold. We have a handle on what issues are still left to wrap up, which is why we were willing to release the current version as a "Pre-Release." We take software reliability very seriously, and we intend to be fully open regarding the status of the pre-release software via this webpage and in a special section of our online forum. If new, critical bugs are found, they will either be dealt with immediately, or this page will be updated with the new information.
What known issues should I be aware of before I make a purchase?
- Render time displacement, while functional, is still in active development and buggy
- 3D Motion Blur of deforming meshes and particle systems is still in active development and buggy
- Render to Texture support is limited and has a few bugs
- G-Buffer support is currently limited
- Support for 64-bit 3dsMax 9 is not currently available (coming soon)
- Photon Maps and Irradiance Render Caches can not be saved/loaded (coming very soon)
- Tiled Brazil r/s Shadow Maps have filtering artifacts so tiling is currently disabled
- Field rendering is not supported
- more details here...
Why a Pre-Release version?
We did the same thing with Brazil r/s V1 and found it invaluable in making the final release of the software as reliable and user-friendly for which it is renowned. We enjoy developing software this way, and we know that many artists out there enjoy engagement with programmers to participate in their tools development. Making the Pre-Release version available gives new, non-Brazil r/s artists the same early access our current customers have, and we gain insight on how well the software works for those learning it for the first time.
When will the software be released? (aka, when will it go gold?)
SplutterFish has very high standards for when considering a product far enough along to be considered for official release. We do not believe that software or the users of software benefit from software that's forced to be developed on arbitrary schedules. We do understand that this can make scheduling and budgeting difficult for those awaiting the release (which is another reason for the pre-release). Brazil r/s will go gold when we consider it ready: The artists using our pre-release software will help us make that determination.