Custom mesh format - yea or nay?
- by Electro
In the process of writing my game prototype, I have found the OBJ format to be insufficient for my needs - it does not support any sort of animation, it doesn't support triangle strips (I'm targeting my ancient hardware). MD2 wouldn't fit the bill because it doesn't have support for named model pieces. MD3 would probably work, but like OBJ, it doesn't have support for triangle strips. Considering the limitations of the formats above, I've come to the conclusion that it may be necessary to write my own format to accommodate my requirements, but that feels like reinventing the wheel.
So, I need a format which can specify indexed tri-strips, supports textures, UV-mapping, collision data, can have multiple named segments and supports animations (have I forgotten anything?). Is there any format like that which already exists, or do I have to write my own?
