Adobe has acquired Allegorithmic, developer of the Substance range of software tools for creating 3D textures and materials. The company says that has bought Allegorithmic to add new features to its apps for creators of 3D, VFX and "immersive" (ie VR and AR) projects.

The Surface line of apps include Surface Painter for painting on 3D models (with live feedback in game and animation environments such as Unreal Engine 4 and Unity), Surface Designer for creating materials for use in a wide range of 3D tools (including Adobe Dimension) and the hopefully still-forthcoming Substance Alchemist, which uses machine learning to produce materials from a mix of procedurally generated and scanned media. Plugins connect the apps to 3D suites including Cinema 4D, Maya, 3ds Max and Modo.

The apps have been used in the creation of high-profile games such as Call of Duty and Forza – and films including Blade Runner 2049.

As well as Dimension, Adobe notes Substance apps are used alongside Photoshop, After Effects and the private beta AR design tool Project Aero.

However, Adobe has released only a vague statement as whether some or all of the Substance apps will become part of a Creative Cloud subscription – and whether the technology underpinning it will be used for new features in future releases of apps like After Effects.

"Later this year, Adobe will announce an update on new offerings that will bring the full power of Allegorithmic technology and Adobe Creative Cloud together," the company said.