Materials
All objects around us are made of different materials: metal, glass, plastic, rubber, etc. Materials, in their turn, have many parameters, such as color, texture, the ability to reflect, emit or refract light. They can be transparent or opaque. Materials create greater realism in the game. In MANU, there are several different models of materials that can describe both real-world materials and various artistic stylized designs.
Materials in the MANU can only be applied to objects with visible geometry and to 3D objects that have polygon grids (mesh). For example, primitives or imported objects. It is impossible to assign materials for other types of objects (animation, trigger, collider or light) and it does not make sense.
Note: when you want to play around with materials choosing different textures and their settings, always remember that it will affect the performance of your game and its size on the hard drive.
How to apply a material to the object?
In Manu, by default, the Default material is applied to all objects that will be created in the scene. It will also be applied to the imported objects/models.
To apply a material, select an object from your scene, then switch to the Material tab in the Inspector panel. The Material Panel includes texture and material properties that you can manage to make your object more realistic.
You can choose a material from those already existing in MANU. Click on the 3-dots menu and just select the material you need from the drop-down list. After that, the material will be immediately applied to the object.
Material library in MANU
All materials that we create and use are stored in the Material library. We can delete materials, duplicate them, and make new materials out of existing ones.
We can also search for materials using the search option. This option appears together with the list of materials when we press the 3-dots menu.
All the materials that we create are placed in the list of materials. The list is sorted based on creation date.
How to manage materials in Manu?
Rename materials
After applying the material to the object, you may rename it. To do it:
● click on the object and go to the Material Tab in the Inspector Panel
● next, click on the Material name and start typing
● when you are done, just press Enter or click anywhere in the scene.
Duplicate materials
In some cases, the Duplicate Material option will be useful in creating the game objects. For example, in order to change only some settings for the material already existing in the game and apply it to a new object.
To duplicate the material:
● press the 3-dot menu, which is next to the Material name in the Material Panel;
● then, go to the list of materials and hover the pointer over the material you need;
● click on the first icon (double squares with plus), that you will see.
The duplicated material will have the same name, but with number 2 or with the following number (if this name is already taken). Now you may apply changes to the duplicated material.
Delete materials
If for some reason you need to delete materials, simply go to the Material library. The list of created and existing materials will appear after clicking on the 3-dot menu which is on the right top of the Material Panel. To delete the material:
● go to the Inspector Panel and click on the Material Tab
● click on the 3-dot Menu (which is to the right of the material name). After that, the list of materials will open
● hover over the material that needs to be deleted
● click on the "Delete" icon (trash can) next to the material
The deleted material will be removed from the Material library.
When you try to delete the material that has already been applied to some objects in the scene, you will receive a notification (a popup window) that this operation is irreversible. The notification shows how many objects have this material. Therefore, the removal of the tag must be authorized.
How to create a new material in MANU?
We can create a material and assign it to other objects. In MANU, we don't have to create materials for each object every time. We can reuse materials.
If we change the material settings on one object, then these changes are applied to other objects to which this particular material is applied.
If we want to change the texture for only one object, we will need to duplicate the material and then change the settings for the duplicated material.
Types of shaders (materials) in MANU
There are several types of shaders in MANU:
Basic
Glass
PBR
MatCap
Glow
How to assign a shader to a material?
To assign a shader to the material, use the Shader drop-down menu in the Material Panel. Just click on the shader you need, and it will be applied immediately.
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