Importing from blender can slow down a lot with certain files. I’m working with a 2012 Mac Air and I have just measured the time it takes to import one of our animated models:
- 12K tris
- 70 bones
- 18 objects attached to the armature
- 4 animations (maybe 100~250 keyframes)
The model takes over 5 minutes to (re)import.
The model is not very optimised because it is not finished.
I’m trying to pinpoint the factors that can cause the importer to slow down so much, hoping that somebody out there might provide useful tips.
I’m not exactly sure about this, but I think Unity will convert your .BLEND file into an .FBX internally, and only then will it import the mesh. (It works like this with .MAX files and it is implied for Blender here too)
You could try exporting your mesh as an .FBX file instead and see if it works faster.
I have done a bit of testing using both animated models (original case) and static geometry.
My findings:
- There is a significant overhead per object. Merge objects if possible.
- Collapse modifier stacks.
- Avoid multiple objects using same armature.
- Avoid large models.
- Shared meshes in Blender may not result in speedier import.
Keeping in mind that import overheads only apply when data is changed/re-saved.
Still looking for good tips, will up-vote anything helpful.