Indeed there is no "best". Do you think anything else would survive in the market if one program was "best" in such a way that it alone was suitable for anything and everything?
At most there may be a "best" program for a specific task in a specific environment for use by people with specific training.
But most likely even that is not the case and there's a host of applications to choose from that all will do an adequate job, the choice depending on personal preference of those making the decisions.
I like 3D Studio Max best, my friend prefers Maya. It basically comes down to which package we've invested our time in learning. Pretty much most packages are capable of the same things. I know a lot of independent developers that will use Anim8er or Blender because the high end packages can be quite expensive. And as long as you have the skills, those cheap or free programs can still produce great results, and I've seen them do it.
This is a more complicated question than just "what can I use to create my 3D objects?". You've got to keep the whole system in mind, and have a VERY good understand of how the content creation software (3DSMax, Maya, Blender, etc.) represents objects vs. how your rendering engine (i.e. OGRE, etc.) see them. One prime example: which axis is the "verticle" axis. We're using OGRE as our graphics engine in our project, which sees the Y axis as "up". Some of the content creation packages see Z as "up". You've gotta know these things, or your characters are going to appear face- or back-up.
I agree with some of the other replies that state that there is no real "best". There's a group of very good software packages, some even FREE, out there for use on these types of projects. The approach I would take is this: choose your 3D graphics engine first (we knew from the start we'd be using OGRE), then browse your selection's website to see what content creation software works well with your engine. Compatibility is the key... this will prevent headaches in the future.
Either the thread starter or a moderator has marked this thread as solved. You can most likely trust the responses and answers given. There is most likely no reason for any further responses to be posted here. If you have a related question, please start a new thread in this forum instead.
This thread is more than three months old
No one has posted to this discussion for at least three months. Please let old threads die and do not reply to them unless you feel you have something new and valuable to contribute that absolutely must be added to make the discussion complete. Otherwise, please start a new thread in this forum instead.
Previous Thread in Game Development Forum Timeline:Rotating w/ trig
Marked Solved 
Offline 
Online 
