Hi, I've heard that 3ds Max and Maya particle systems can be exported to be used in games. I'm wondering what format these particle systems are exported in? are they converted straight to C++ code (or some other programming language) and OpenGL/DirectX, or are they just exported to something like an XML file where the game developers would need to build an API to import the particle system into the engine that they are using? And if this is the case, then I'm assuming that all of the features available in Maya/Max wouldn't be useful unless the game developer's particle engine also had the same features available in it. Does anybody know of any game/particle engines that support importing Max/Maya particle systems?

Also, are the particle systems developed in Max/Maya only useful for cinematic particle effects, or can they be used in real-time gameplay? I know that the Max/Maya particle system tools are very powerful, have tons of features, and can generate amazing effects. But since Max/Maya are offline renderers, I'm wondering if these particle systems can be generated in real-time or not, and hence, be used in video games during gameplay.

Any comments/input would be appreciated. Thanks.

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