I know what you're thinking, "Holy crap, Terragen 3?". Yes, it's true. If you're here, you've probably already seen the news of the upcoming release and the major new features, and no doubt you have some questions. If you're still in the dark, be sure to check
terragen3.com before continuing!
Now, about those questions. We put together an FAQ to try to answer as much as we could up-front. Ok, technically these are not all "frequently" asked questions, most of them haven't been asked before at all in fact, but we figure they soon will be. So we're preemptively striking with some answers to non-frequently asked questions too.
How much will Terragen 3 Professional cost?
Final pricing will be announced soon. For now we can tell you it will be an increase over Terragen 2, but will still be very competitively priced.
Is that the complete feature list?No, we're still fine tuning the feature set and we'll announce the complete list of features a little later. There are also many smaller features, new shaders, performance improvements, and bug fixes too small to mention in the initial announcement, but many of which are still very cool, for example a Vortex Shader!
What happened to Terragen "Deep"?
We decided that this was a product that occupied an awkward space in the market in terms of pricing and features, so Terragen Deep has been retired. The high-end functions have been expanded and moved into Terragen 3 Professional, while the core functionality will be available at a lower price point in Terragen 3 Creative.
Terragen 3 Creative - What's that?
Terragen 3 Creative is a new product that will make Terragen's powerful core tools and technology available at a lower price than was possible with Terragen 2. Of course it will not have all the features of the Professional version, but we have done our best to create a product that is of maximum use and value to non-professional users. The full feature set will be announced in a future update on
Terragen3.com.
Will I be able to use Terragen 3 Creative for commercial purposes?
Yes you will, we do not intend to explicitly limit this use, although Terragen 3 Professional will be the ideal product for serious commercial work.
Why the name "Creative"?This is a product made to appeal to the artist, people who are creating and rendering in Terragen because it's exciting, fun, and expressive. It is not a super limited "basic" or "light" version, and so that naming didn't fit. It's also not intended for high-end professional use, even though it's still a very powerful product, and commercial use will not be explicitly prohibited. We felt like "Creative" was a fitting name, even if it is a bit unusual.
Will all the features in the Terragen 3 announcement be available in Terragen 3 Creative?
No, there are several features that will only be available in Terragen 3 Professional, for example Render Layers and Elements. However a good majority of these features will be included in Terragen 3 Creative.
Will there be a different (simpler) interface in Terragen 3 Creative?
Not at this time, no. We see Terragen 3 Creative as a product that enthusiastic, dedicated artists can use to create imagery that is as complex, detailed, and realistic as they want. We are trying to limit that as little as possible, and we feel that the node-based approach to scene construction and the powerful but sometimes complex tools that Terragen users are familiar with are an important part of that capability. We intend for Terragen 3 Creative to bring the core capabilities of Terragen to an even broader audience than ever before.
I own Terragen 2 Deep (with or without Animation). How much will it cost to upgrade?
We will be providing very affordable upgrade pricing. Our existing customers are a top priority and we want to see as many people as possible being able to use the new features of Terragen 3 and create better and better work. Specific upgrade pricing will be available closer to the release in July.
What version should I upgrade to if I own Terragen 2 Deep?
You should upgrade to Terragen 3 Professional when it is available as it will maintain all of your existing feature set, and add many new tools and capabilities. Terragen Creative would be somewhat of a downgrade in a couple areas, so we won't be providing a migration path to it for owners of Terragen 2.
How many products are in the Terragen 3 line-up?
Just the two, Terragen 3 Professional and Terragen 3 Creative.
What are all the features of each Terragen 3 version? How do they compare?
We'll be releasing a full feature comparison closer to the release date (but definitely before release day).
Are animation capabilities still being sold at separate price points?
Yes, we feel that animation is an important feature, but one that not every user needs so we'll continue to offer both non-animation and animation versions of Terragen 3 products.
Will there be an animation option for Terragen 3 Creative?
Yes, there will be.
Will there still be a free version of Terragen 3?
Yes, absolutely. We have found this approach to be very beneficial both to us as a business and to the community and we plan to continue it.
Update 1:Will the interface be significantly different than Terragen 2?No, the overall interface remains largely the same, with some enhancements and new tools of course. We will make UI changes as needed to facilitate important new functionality or improve workflow, but we want to avoid confusion and retraining as much as possible.
Update 2:Will there be a "grace period" for those who purchase Terragen 2 close to the release of Terragen 3?Yes, we will provide upgrades for those who purchased after the June 12th initial announcement. We will contact qualifying buyers directly, following the release of Terragen 3.
I have some other question, will you answer it?
We are happy to answer any questions we can, but we have shared pretty much everything we're able to discuss at this point. You are welcome to post questions, just keep in mind we may not be able to give you much more detail until a bit later. We will add important new questions and answers to this FAQ as they come up.Terragen3.com will be the best source of new information through to the release, so keep checking back on a regular basis, subscribe to the RSS, or better yet sign up for the newsletter (and a chance to win a free copy of Terragen 3 Professional!).
- Oshyan