Why We Use GLTF

We use GLTF (GL Transmission Format) for several reasons:

Industry Standard: GLTF is widely adopted in the industry as a standard format for 3D models, making it easier to share and collaborate on assets across different platforms and tools.
Efficiency: GLTF is designed for efficient loading and rendering, which is crucial for real-time applications like games. It supports binary data, reducing file size and improving performance.
Version Control: GLTF files are text-based JSON files, which makes them easier to version control. This is particularly important for collaborative projects where multiple contributors may be working on the same assets.
Human-Readable: The text-based nature of GLTF files allows for easier debugging and manual editing. This is beneficial for developers who need to make quick adjustments or troubleshoot issues without relying on specialized tools.
Compatibility: GLTF is compatible with a wide range of 3D software and game engines, including Godot, Unreal Engine, and others. This allows for seamless integration of assets created in different tools.
Material and Animation Support: GLTF supports advanced features like PBR (Physically Based Rendering) materials, animations, and skinning, which are essential for creating high-quality 3D content. This puts more control in the hands of artists and designers, allowing them to create visually appealing assets without needing extensive programming knowledge.

Proprietary Format: FBX is a proprietary format owned by Autodesk, which can lead to compatibility issues and limitations in terms of accessibility and openness.
version control challenges: FBX files are binary, making them difficult to version control effectively. This can lead to issues when multiple contributors are working on the same assets.
Conversion Overhead: Converting FBX files to other formats can introduce additional overhead and potential loss of data, especially when dealing with complex animations or materials.
Material Limitations: FBX has limitations in terms of material support and may not translate well across different engines or software, leading to inconsistencies in appearance.
Lack of Transparency: FBX files can be opaque, making it difficult to understand the structure and content of the file without specialized tools.

Duplicate files when imported: When importing GLB files into Godot, they are converted to GLTF format, which means that the original GLB file is not used directly in the project. This causes texture files to be duplicated. Textures are a significant amount of the storage space in builds. Keeping build size down is important for game load times and being able to upload a web build to Itch. See this conversation, for example
Version Control: While GLB files are binary, they can still be version controlled effectively if the project uses a system that supports binary files. However, it is generally easier to work with GLTF for version control due to its text-based nature.
Single File: GLB is the binary version of GLTF, which combines the JSON data and binary data into a single file. It is useful for reducing the number of files needed for a 3D asset, making it easier to manage and distribute.
Redability: GLB files are not human-readable like GLTF files, which can make debugging and manual editing more challenging.
Performance: GLB files are optimized for performance, as they can individually be loaded more quickly than multiple separate files. This is particularly beneficial for real-time applications like games. However, because textures are packed, you can end up with larger file sizes than GLTF files, which can impact load times and storage space.

Please reach out if you have any questions or suggestions for improvements.