Open Brush 2.10 adds ‘multiplayer’ VR painting
Icosa Foundation has updated Open Brush, its open-source 3D painting software, used to create concept designs in virtual reality.
Open Brush 2.10 adds a new Multiplayer mode, making it possible for users to create designs collaboratively, and support for Logitech’s MX Ink stylus.
A community-run open-source successor to Google’s Tilt Brush
Open Brush is based on Tilt Brush, the room-scale 3D painting and sketching tool previously developed by Google, and open-sourced in 2021.
Like its predecessor, Open Brush enables artists to paint coloured strokes that function both as paint strokes and 3D geometry, either in virtual reality or on a desktop system.
Users can control the form of each stroke by curving or lathing it, and it is possible to constrain strokes to straight lines or use grid or angle snapping to sketch geometric objects.
Once created, strokes can be mirrored, recoloured or erased, and users can set up lights, cameras and a background environment for the resulting 3D sketch.
Completed sketches can be exported in glTF, FBX, USD or JSON format, or used directly as VR assets in game engines: Open Brush has a dedicated Unity SDK.
Open Brush 2.10: new Multiplayer mode for collaborative painting
The main new feature in Open Brush 2.10 is the new Multiplayer mode.
Previously available in beta, it enables artists to work together in a shared VR space, either to create drawings collaboratively, or simply to showcase their work.
Users create their own ‘rooms’ in which to collaborate, sharing the room name with anyone they want to join, with options to mute or kick participants, or set them to view-only mode.
The initial implementation supports Open Brush’s core painting tools, but more features will be added in future: you can find a list of current limitations in the online documentation.
Other new features
Other changes in Open Brush 2.10 include support for the MX Ink, Logitech’s new mixed reality stylus for Meta Quest hardware.
It is also now possible to erase ‘widgets‘ – including imported images and 3D models – as well as brush strokes, and to switch experimental brushes on and off without restarting.
Licensing and system requirements
Open Brush 2.10 is available free on Windows, Linux and macOS. It is compatible with most current VR headsets including HTC, Meta, Pico and Windows Mixed Reality headsets.
The source code is available under an Apache 2.0 licence.
Read a full list of new features in Open Brush in the online documentation
Download compiled builds of Open Brush
Download the source code for Open Brush
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