*DmrVBM v1.5 Pre-Release is Live*

Vertex Buffer Model Exporter and Importer by Sandman13sq

Import/Export tools for loading vertex buffer data out of Blender and in to GameMaker.

.vbm is a custom file format for exporting mesh data, skeleton bones, and action curves.

NOTE: If cloned straight from GitHub not all features are guranteed to work correctly.
For stable versions see the Releases on the GitHub page.

Support me on: Patreon | Ko-fi
Ask questions or share your work on: Twitter/X | Discord (#Sandman13sq6376)

Quick Start Guide

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Blender 4.5 Addon Installation

• In Blender, go to Edit > Preferences > Add-ons
• Click the dropdown arrow on the top right of the Preferences window and click Install from Disk..
• Navigate to the DmrVBM_Blender.zip file (keep this zipped). Select it and click Install Add-on
• Enabled the DmrVBM addon by clicking the checkbox (if not done already.)
• The DmrVBM panel can be found in the Properties > Scene
  • If nothing shows up try Edit > Preferences > Interface > Display > Enable Developer Extras

GameMaker Installation

• With a GameMaker project open, go to Tools > Import Local Package
• Navigate to the DmrVBM_GameMaker.yymps file. Select the file and click Open
• Choose scr_dmrvbm to import into the project
• NOTE: To avoid conflicts when upgrading to v1.5, remove existing DmrVBM scripts before importing.
• NOTE again: v1.5 is NOT backwards compatible with v1.4 models or below. Old models will have to be re-exported.

FEATURES

Blender Addon

• Collection-based workflow
  • Individual collections can be marked as files to export.
    • Each collection holds its own unique settings for the file it creates.
    • Running the export on a parent collection will export marked child collections as individual files.
    • Linked collections (like one containing a model) can be used to export model variants.
    • Non-marked collections have their objects read as part of the file.
• Vertex buffer exports
  • Vertex formats can be defined per collection out of a set of pre-defined attributes.
  • Attributes can be set to export as floats or bytes
  • Pack textures from materials into files.
  • Override materials on export.
  • Apply a python script before and/or after applying mesh modifiers.
• Skeleton exports
  • Bones marked as deform are exported.
  • Parameters for dynamic animation can be set with the Swing Bones panel.
  • Collections not containing an Armature object will treat each object as a bone instead.
• Animation exports
  • Mask out bones to export curves for.
  • Property animations on object are also included in animation.
• Collision geometry exports
  • Objects marked as collision will be exported as a list of triangle vertices for a Prism struct.
• Utilities
  • Pad edges of textures under the 'MTL' tab to fill empty space.

Game Maker Package

• No-fuss Rendering
  • Rendering models takes very few steps.
    • Load model from file > Evaluate Animation > Set Matrices > Submit Model
  • Data relevant to model is stored with model, including vertex format and textures.
• DmrVBM Types
  • Model: Holds data needed to render vertex buffers with materials. Vertex buffer, format, and textures are stored here.
  • Meshdef: Defines the start and number of vertices in vertex buffer to render, as well as a material index.
  • Prism: Holds a list of triangles used for collision testing. Functions are provided to cast rays.
  • Material: Specifies texture index and gpu state for rendering.
  • Bone: Defines matrices for skeletal animation and vertex skinning. Represents object positions on non-character models.
  • Animation: Can be sampled to retrieve values from exported curves. Holds transform and property curves.

Game Maker's native format is [Position 3f, Color 4B, UV 2f]

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