Topic: Lights and shadows in gmax

[Turling]

Okay, I posted this at the gmax forums, but they just don't have the traffic that these boards do, so I'm posting here as well to get you guy's opinions.  I think that some folks here are giving gmax a try like I am.

I can't get shadows to display in gmax.  The shadows are there as an option in for each light you create, but I can't get them to display.  I checked the help files for gmax, but they say that "shadows will not display in viewports".  Well, what the hell does THAT mean?  If they don't display in viewports, then where the hell do they display?  I created a camera and set one of the viewports to display that camera view, but still no go.  If the shadows don't display in viewports, and gmax has no renderer, then just where do they display?  Please don't tell me "in game", because just how in the hell are you supposed to check if the shadows are right if they don't show up in gmax?  You would have to compile your model, import it to the game, and then play the [censored] game just to check your work!  And yes, I understand that naturally you're going to want to do that eventually, but if shadows don't show up in viewports it sounds like exporting the model to the game is the only way to check how the shadows look.

Somebody please tell me that there is some way to display shadows in the gmax software.  I'm trying to use gmax as a learning version of 3dsMax, as well as to build models for games, and this kind of crap is getting a little frustrating.

I posted this in the OT forum as well, but it's kinda a modeling question as well, so it goes here too.  (I'm greedy for advice.)