Which 3D Model format should I be using?
Im writing a game engine and I'm wondering what 3D model format should I use/load/export? Obj seems universal and easy but it also appears to be unreliable in that most models out there contain errors and it doesn't store anywhere near as much as other formats.
There appear to be formats specifically for games such as MD2/3/5 but Im not sure, I use wings3d if I model, and I don't know what other details beyond purely loading what I need and support from the format Id have to implement, such as would I need to implement IK? and can I use scripted per piece animation rather than Inverse kinematics and bone rigging?
Answer
Collada is an open XML based format for 3d models owned by the Khronos group(OpenGL standards body)
From the Collada.org FAQ:
The COLLADA 1.4.x feature set includes:
- Mesh geometry
- Transform hierarchy (rotation, translation, shear, scale, matrix)
- Effects
- Shaders (Cg, GLSL, GLES)
- Materials
- Textures
- Lights
- Cameras
- Skinning
- Animation
- Physics (rigid bodies, constraints, rag dolls, collision, volumes)
- Instantiation
- Techniques
- Multirepresentations
- Assets
- User data