Originally posted on 4 November 2022. Scroll down for details of the Silo 2023.1 update.

Nevercenter has released Silo 2023, the latest version of its lightweight 3D modelling software, and Milo 2023, its Unreal Engine-based real-time renderer.

The Silo 2023.0 update brings procedural modelling to Silo, adding a new set of modifiers to make it possible to perform operations like extrusions and edge bevels non-destructively.

Milo 2023.0 updates the software to Unreal Engine 5, and adds two new lighting rigs designed to mimic real-world studio lighting set-ups.

A lightweight sub-D modeller now being actively developed again
First released in 2003, Silo built up a reputation as an efficient, focused modelling package.

It has a streamlined set of polygonal and subdivision surface modelling tools, a topology brush for drawing new topology over a reference object, and interactive real-time UV unwrapping.

As well as creating low-poly assets for games or real-time applications, it can be used to rough out base models for sculpting in ZBrush, and supports Pixologic’s GoZ bridge system.

Although development stalled during the 2010s, the pace picked up again with the release of Silo 2021, with Nevercenter also launching Milo, a new standalone Unreal-Engine-based real-time renderer and VR viewer.

Silo 2023.0: new modifier stack brings non-destructive procedural modelling to Silo
Silo 2023.0 is something of a jump in version numbering, given that Silo 2021.5 was only released in March, meaning that Nevercenter has gone through its entire set of 2022 releases in just six months.

The shift to Venusian years notwithstanding, Silo 2023.0 is a significant update, bringing procedural modelling to the software.

The release introduces a modifier stack, enabling users to modify geometry non-destructively, toggling individual modifiers on and off or changing the order in which they are applied without affecting other edits.

There are currently six modifiers: Bevel, Crease Edges, Extrude, Numerical Deform, Shell and Triangulate.

Numerical Deform is a combined twist and taper modifier; the others are self-explanatory – or at least will be familiar to users of other 3D modelling software.

Users can also bake modifiers to convert a mesh to standard non-procedural geometry, with the option to do so automatically when exporting a model.

 
Milo 2023.0: now based on Unreal Engine 5
The key change in Milo 2023.0 is that the software’s core has been upgraded from Unreal Engine 4 to Unreal Engine 5, which should improve rendering performance and visual fidelity.

The update also introduces two new lighting rigs intended to mimic real-world studio lighting set-ups, Ring Light and Lightbox, both designed for use with ray tracing.