Turbo Squid Announces AfterBurn 3 Max Plug-in

Turbo Squid announced AfterBurn 3.0 as the latest offering in the Discreet Certified 3ds max Plug-in program. AfterBurn enables rendering of realistic effects ranging from clouds, pyroclastic smoke, dust, and explosions, to liquid metals, water and various procedurally defined "hard" objects. New features in AfterBurn 3 include:

AFC - AfterBurn uses Animation Flow Curves to vary parameters over particle age. Besides corner and smooth knot types, AFC now supports bezier key type, which allows more control over the curve shape. Bezier knots and handles can be animated over the time.

Gradients - Along with linear interpolation, Gradients now support TCB interpolation as well. With this new addition, animators can more easily achieve non-linear color transitions between keys. When using TCB gradient type, each color key uses Tension, Continuity, Bias, Ease To and Ease From to control color interpolation.

Interpolation Controllers - Both AFCs and Gradients have many new ways of interpolation. Users are able to choose between particle age, particle velocity, distance from emitter, distance from any object and expression editor. By using these new controllers, it is possible to create animations that were previously impossible.

Xplode Daemon -New color blending types for better control and realism.

Improved architecture provides up to 40% rendering time reduction. AfterBurn 3 is priced at $495, with an introductory special of $395 for a limited time.