Modern BSP compilation tools for Quake engine mapping
Formerly ericw-tools, now with extra sparkle ✨🎧🛠️
Download | Documentation | Wiki | Changelog
| vmt-bsp | Compile .map to .bsp |
| vmt-vis | Calculate PVS visibility |
| vmt-light | Calculate lightmaps with GPU acceleration |
| vmt-bspinfo | BSP information utility |
| vmt-bsputil | BSP manipulation utility |
| vmt-maputil | Lua scripting for .map workflows |
| vmt-preview | Realtime lighting preview (Qt) |
Same bones, new polish. If you used qbsp/vis/light before, your muscle memory still works. Flags and map formats are familiar. VMT adds modern build + packaging and a pile of shiny upgrades. 🧃🛠️
Rename cheat sheet (old -> new):
| ericw-tools | VibeyMapTools |
|---|---|
qbsp |
vmt-bsp |
vis |
vmt-vis |
light |
vmt-light |
bspinfo |
vmt-bspinfo |
bsputil |
vmt-bsputil |
maputil |
vmt-maputil |
lightpreview |
vmt-preview |
What stayed the same (cozy mode):
- Classic compile flow:
bsp -> vis -> light - Quake II + Remaster support is still here (
-q2bsp,-lightgrid,-world_units_per_luxel) 🧠🎮 - CLI flag vocabulary, map formats, and output expectations
- Upstream docs still apply: ericw-tools docs 📚
What is new & shiny (and yes it is a lot):
-
vmt-prefix on every binary so ericw-tools can live side-by-side 🧹✨ -
Semantic versioning + tag-driven releases with CI-built packages 📦🚀
-
Build metadata +
version.hhfor scripting and diagnostics 🧾🛠️ -
Improved Half-Life support (updated behavior + smoother compatibility) ??
-
Numerous bug fixes and improvements across the toolchain ?????
# Standard compilation (classic flow ✨)
vmt-bsp mymap.map
vmt-vis mymap.bsp
vmt-light mymap.bsp
# High-quality with GPU acceleration (laser bounces 🔥)
vmt-light -gpu -extra4 -bounce 2 -denoise mymap.bsp- 🧠 GPU raytracing via OptiX (
-gpu) for modern lighting speed - 🤖 AI denoising with Intel OIDN (
-denoise) - 🎛️ Stochastic sampling (
-stochastic) for complex scenes - 🔁 Incremental lighting (
-incremental) for fast iteration loops - 🌈 HDR lightmaps (
-hdr) for engines that support it
| Platform | Package |
|---|---|
vibeymaptools-windows-*.zip |
|
vibeymaptools-linux-*.tar.gz |
|
vibeymaptools-macos-*.tar.gz |
git clone --recursive https://github.com/themuffinator/VibeyMapTools.git
cd VibeyMapTools && cmake -B build -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release
cmake --build buildmacOS 10.15+ prep: brew install cmake embree tbb qt@6 (Qt6 only needed for vmt-preview)
Requirements
- CMake 3.14+
- C++20 compiler (MSVC 2019+, GCC 9+, Clang 10+)
- macOS 10.15+ (Catalina) recommended for Apple builds
- Embree 4.x + oneTBB (required for
vmt-light)
Optional extras:
- Qt6 (for
vmt-preview) - CUDA + OptiX SDK (GPU raytracing)
- Intel OIDN (AI denoising)
See BUILDING.md for detailed instructions.
| Document | Description |
|---|---|
| BUILDING.md | Build instructions, versioning, CI/CD |
| CHANGELOG.md | Version history and release notes |
| WIKI.md | Documentation hub and quick reference |
| docs/ | Full tutorials and reference |
GPL v3 - See COPYING