3D Studio Max Importer

#1 There are a few reasons..

the first is that importing a DTS back into max wil not give you a scene as it was created.. much of the information that is in the source file is ignored by the exporter. In the case of a character, the entire conrol rig and IK chains would not be import. Unwrap 3d has a DTS importer, and I have checked it out. What it imports and outputs does not resemble the max scenes from the source file.

Writing a robust importer that would recreate a usuable source file would be a lot of work... and while someone could do it, it is for the most part un-necessary. There are plenty of example files to learn from, and the show tool pro will allow you to view in excruciating detail every setting that the model was exported with.

Many members of the community frown upon an importer as it would make copyright infringment easier (people stealing meshes).. although the format is not secure and it could be done... it is not something the artists want to have happen, as the lack of good importers is a barrier to entry that makes it difficult enough to rip models that only the most committed will find a way.

My own personal stance is that I don't want a really easy way for modders to break our game. As an indie, a few mods that break the assumptions our game has about the shapes can have some big effects to the community that may affect sales.

In most cases, if you want access to a model.. if the artist who created it wants you to have it in .max format, they have released the source.

#2 Makes sense and that being the case are there plans to move to a .wad type package for game artifacts?

Or baring that, some type of one way converter to make all the graphics files and various dod-dads unreadable except by the engine?

#3 In the resources:

Protecting Art Assets With Encryption