Panda3D

Panda3D is a free 3D Engine.

Panda3D is designed to reduce the time and cost of game development. It features an unusually short learning curve, an extremely straightforward API, and strong resilience to user error.

It is ideal for projects where the amount of time is limited, especially for game development houses that have to produce games quickly, or for instructors who want their students to be able to finish a game in a few weeks.

Features:

• Short learning curve
• Rapid development
• Library callable from C++ or Python
• Rock solid stability
• Free software license
• Support for Windows and Linux
• Simple installation
• Collection of free models and artwork
• Multiple active development teams
• Disney Imagineering
• Entertainment Technology Center
• Lots of documentation
• Extensive manual
• Collection of code samples
• API Reference materials

What is new in this release:

• Web plugin, shadow mapping
• geometry shaders
• SSAO
• parallax maps

What is new in version 1.7.0:

• Support for running Panda3D apps in a browser via web plugin
• Fully automatic shadow mapping
• Easy to use distribution and packaging framework
• Integrated support for NVIDIA PhysX
• Support for GLSL shaders
• Geometry shaders, both in Cg and GLSL
• Improved Cg support
• Hardware geometry instancing support
• Runtime fullscreen toggle
• Unix/X11 resolution querying/switching support
• Experimental Unix/X11 support for relative mouse mode (via xf86dga)
• New, cleaner import conventions, replacing PandaModules
• Parallax mapping
• Support for OpenGL ES 1 and 2
• Experimental Screen Space Ambient Occlusion
• New collision solid: box
• Working FreeBSD support
• Blur / Sharpen postprocessing filter
• Many improvements to the Shader Generator
• Fixes and improvements to DistributedObject network system
• New AI libraries
• Added MeshDrawer2D
• Most Panda objects now work with the pickle/cPickle and copy modules.
• Windows build now compiled for Python 2.6
• Tons of new features and bugfixes

What is new in version 1.6.2:

• Fixed a static-init issue in ptloader on Windows
• Fixed texture scaling issue when using buffers
• x2egg is no longer broken
• Threading in OSX build fixed
• Fixed issue with flickering colours in Shader Generator
• Eggcacher now uses less RAM
• Missing 'models' dirs in packpanda games fixed
• Eggcacher step in Panda3D installer is now optional
• Fixes broken shortcut links in Start Menu on Windows
• Shader Generator now supports clip planes
• Bug with combine modes in Shader Generator fixed
• Fixed bug with Texture::make_copy()
• Bug with Actor LOD fixed
• Fixed bug with missing geometry in Collada converter
• OdeUtil.collide instability fixed
• OdeBody setData/getData methods exposed to Python

What is new in version 1.6.1:

• Threading layer is now enabled by default
• cTrav.showCollisions fixed
• Fixed broken MovieTexture
• OpenAL is now stable on Linux, too
• OpenAL now supports dynamic playrate changing
• MayaPandaTool now handles NURBS correctly
• Fixed particle panel and directtools bugs
• Fix crash with collada exporter on Windows
• ARToolkit jittering fixed
• Now possible to override shader vertex/fragment profiles
• Maya exporter fixed on OSX
• Fixed depth texture crash for padded textures
• Fixed bug that made OdeUtil.collide return empty geoms
• Fixed crash with render.flattenStrong() when using trackball
• Several improvements to the ODE layer
• Performance improvements to GeoMipTerrain
• GeoMipTerrain.setBorderStitching to fix seams between terrains
• installpanda.py for installing Panda on Linux without deb/rpm
• Several other minor bugfixes

What is new in version 1.5.4:

• Fixes packpanda crash
• Linux build accidentally got configured for OpenAL
• EggTexture now writes wrap modes and types correctly.
• Fixes an occasional crash in TextureAttrib
• DirectEntry no longer crashes when moving cursor in a full box
• Several bugs in RigidBodyCombiner fixed
• Normals generated by GeoMipTerrain are now correct
• Bugs fixed in DirectGrid
• Linux users can now use WindowProperties.setParentWindow
• Fmod now compiles on 64-bits
• Fixed several bugs in the API reference generator
• EggNurbsSurface is now exposed to Python
• Fixes a bug in PGButton
• GeoMipTerrain set_heightfield fixed
• Several bugs in the Max exporter fixed
• Several other bugs not listed above