Maxon releases ZBrush 2024
See the new features in ZBrush 2024 in the recording of this Maxon livestream.
Maxon has released ZBrush 2024, the latest version of its digital sculpting software.
Key changes include Repeat to Similar Feature, a versatile new system for making a change to one mesh, then automatically applying that change to all other meshes with similar topology.
There are also updates to the Anchors brush and Transpose system for posing sculpts, a new DragStamp stroke type, and the option to use any stroke type with Insert Mesh brushes.
In addition, all of the native noise types from Cinema 4D have been added to ZBrush.
However, the release is only available to subscribers: Maxon has announced that ZBrush 2024 will not be available as a perpetual licence, making the new features subscription-only.
New Repeat to Similar Feature system transfers changes between meshesy
Key changes in ZBrush 2024 include a time-saving new Repeat to Similar Feature.
It enables users to make a change to one mesh, then automatically apply the same change to all other meshes with similar topology.
As well as transferring sculpted details, it works with changes to Polypaint or Polygroups, and can even replace each mesh with a different mesh.
Updates to character posing with the Anchors brush and Transpose
The Anchors brush added in ZBrush 2023.2 also gets an update, making it possible to use it to repose part of a sculpt without the need to manually create a mask to isolate the part.
In addition, the older Transpose feature has been improved, with the option to snap the Transpose line to the center of a mask, so stays positioned correctly when the mask is updated.
Insert Mesh brushes support all stroke types, including the new DragStamp stroke
It is also now possible to use every ZBrush stroke type with Insert Mesh brushes, making it possible to control the position of the inserted meshes more precisely.
Suggested uses include using the DragDot stroke to position individual meshes added by InsertMultiMesh brushes.
There is also a new stroke type, DragStamp, intended as a more controllable alternative to the existing DragRect stroke.
Other changes: updates to the Knife brush, masking, and new noise types from Cinema 4D
In addition, the Knife brush has been updated to make it possible to split a mesh into pieces.
Other changes include new Grow All and Shrink All options for masks, and new Crease Unmasked and Uncreasaed Unmasked options for creasing the unmasked areas of a model.
Finally, 25 noise types from Cinema 4D, Maxon’s 3D modeling and animation software, have been added to the ZBrush Surface Noise library.
The change should open up new options for adding random surface variation to models when sculpting details on their surfaces, or painting them inside ZBrush.
No longer available as a perpetual licence: only via subscription
Another key change in ZBrush 2024 is that it is only available via subscription.
Although Maxon ended the old policy of perpetual free updates to ZBrush when it acquired Pixologic in 2021, perpetual licences themselves remained available until ZBrush 2023.
According to its new online FAQs, ZBrush 2024 is not available as a perpetual licence, although perpetual licences of ZBrush 2023 will remain available until the end of the 2024 release cycle.
That also means that holders of perpetual licences will need to switch to a subscription to get the new features introduced in ZBrush 2023.1 and ZBrush 2023.2.
Maxon’s website previously stated that the new features would be “reserved for the next paid upgrade”, but it confirmed that it isn’t possible to update a perpetual licence to ZBrush 2024.
Price and system requirements
ZBrush 2024 is compatible with Windows 10+ and macOS 11.5+. It is only available through subscription. ZBrush subscriptions cost $39/month or $359/year.
Read a full list of new features in ZBrush 2024 in the online release notes
Read Maxon’s FAQs about ZBrush 2024 not being available as a perpetual licence
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Homepage image: the ZBrush 2024 promo image was created by Stephen Davidian.