About hego

Houdini Engine in Godot

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peterprickarz

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README.md

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HEGo - Houdini Engine in Godot

A C++ GDExtension that integrates Houdini Engine into Godot 4, enabling procedural content generation using Houdini Digital Assets (HDAs) with a scriptable API.

🚀 Getting Started

📦 Download Latest Release - Pre-built binaries for Windows
📖 Documentation - Documentation and guides
💬 Discord - Chat with other users and contributors
🎥 Introduction Video - Visual walkthrough(outdated)

Quick Install

Option 1: Git Submodule (Recommended)

# Add HEGo as a submodule in your Godot project
git submodule add -b release https://github.com/peterprickarz/hego.git addons/hego
git submodule update --init --recursive

Option 2: Manual Download

Download the latest release
Extract to your Godot project's addons/ folder
Enable the plugin in Project Settings

Note: The release branch is automatically updated with each commit to main and contains only the addon files, making it perfect for submodule use.

Features

Scriptable API: Built with GDScript integration in mind for maximum flexibility
Multiple Node Types: Support for geometry input, curve input, heightfield input and HDA asset nodes
Session Management: Multiple session types (in-process, TCP, named pipes, shared memory)
Bidirectional Data Flow: Convert between Godot and Houdini geometry formats
Parameter Management: Automatic type conversion between Godot Variant and HAPI types
Mesh Generation: Generate Godot meshes, instances, and scene nodes from Houdini
Terrain3D Bridge: Generate Terrain3D terrains, use Terrain3D instancing, Terrain3D heightfield inputs

Requirements

Houdini 21.0.631 - No license needed for building, active commercial(FX,Core or Houdini Engine) license required for runtime
Godot 4.4+ - Stable or newer versions supported

Developer Setup

If you're interested in contributing read on, otherwise check out the Releases section for the latest version

Prerequisites

Python 3.8+ with SCons: python -m pip install scons
Visual Studio 2022 Community edition or higher
Git for cloning and submodules

Quick Setup

Clone the repository

git clone https://github.com/peterprickarz/hego.git
cd hego

Initialize submodules
```
git submodule update --init --recursive
```

Set Houdini environment (optional)

set HFS=C:\Program Files\Side Effects Software\Houdini 20.5.654

Building

Option 1: VS Code (Recommended)

Use Ctrl+Shift+P → "Tasks: Run Task" → "build"

Option 2: Command Line

From VS2022 Developer Command Prompt: scons
Or any terminal: scons (if VS2022 is in PATH)

Build Options

scons target=template_debug    # Debug build
scons target=template_release  # Release build  
scons -c                       # Clean build

VS Code Configuration

If the build task fails, update .vscode/tasks.json:

{
  "version": "2.0.0",
  "tasks": [
    {
      "label": "build",
      "group": "build",
      "type": "shell",
      "command": "cmd",
      "args": [
        "/c",
        "\"C:\\Program Files\\Microsoft Visual Studio\\2022\\Community\\VC\\Auxiliary\\Build\\vcvarsall.bat\" x64 && scons"
      ],
      "problemMatcher": "$msCompile"
    }
  ]
}

Output: Built library appears in demo/addons/hego/bin/

Get Help

Join the 💬Discord where other users or contributors can help you.

If you don't have discord, feel free to message me on X where I will try to help as much as I can.

Shoutouts

Big thanks to https://ambientcg.com/ and https://freestylized.com/ for providing CC0 textures I used in the demo project.
There's also a houdini2godot plugin made by Mandrake0 which allows to export Godot scenes directly from Houdini.

hego