Hey! Im a University student currently doing a Bach of Design and Innovation and majoring in Digital Media. I plan to go into level or game design for a future career. I was wondering if someone could point me in the right direction for some 3d map software I could use to start creating a map for future portfolio purposes. Would UT editor be the place to go or not? I think ill be hanging around these forums for a few more years to come now Thanks! :)

with maps do you mean the terrain(moantians,hills etc)? or the complete 3D scene with buildings trees objects etc etc. Either way i wont go with Unreal editor unless you want to specificaly get a job using it (which is valid since alot of studios use the UD Engine) but then again if you can model you can model so switching to new but similiar software is usualy not a problem.

For creating 3D models the 3 options generaly are blender,3ds max and maye.
they are all on the same level but blender is free so its a good idea to start with it. Using one of these three solutions you can model anything including the terrains although you should have a look at procedural terrain generation tools like Terragen to create youre terrains with. procedural terrain generators can create extremely realistic terrains but in some cases it might be abit to random and you might want to scalp the terrain yourself using a model editor like blender.

Ok cool, yeah I have used both 3ds Max and Maya before and I own them so i might give that a go. I was thinking of making a complete map along with buildings and textures and objects.

If you want to get into level design then producing great work with the level constructions toolsets that ship with games really is your best bet. If you're into FPS types of games, then you'll want to work with the Unreal, id Tech, or Source toolsets. If you're interested in RPGs or stategy games then you should check out the tools that ship with the newly released Dragon Age or one of Blizzard's games, such as Warcraft 3. A lot of companies expect a level designer to be able to produce high quality work with at least one of these toolsets. Applying for a job as a level designer at company that uses id Tech when you have an Unreal based portfolio isn't a big deal (few companies are all that picky about specific tech). What is a big deal is that you have levels that kick ass, demonstrating you understand what it takes to produce quality work.

EternityZA, your suggestions make sense if he is interested in environmental modeling, not level design.

Ok thanks for the advice, yeah I think I want to get into level design so I might start working with Unreal then or the other you mentioned. Is there any good site with tutorials on the unreal ed that I could use?

Ok ive downloaded UDK and I think ill be using this to create some maps. I guess im just going to have to experiment and start learning how to use this application

For Unreal www.3dbuzz.com has hours upon hours of video tutorials. They have videos for the Unreal 3 tech and the older Unreal 2k3/2k4, but much of the older stuff is still relevant, too.

For modding communities for Unreal, I suggest hopping onto Epic forums and checking out the Beyond Unreal community as well.