dr_bernie posted at 1:48PM Thu, 15 June 2017 - #4307444

The last version of Lightwave was released in August 9, 2015, according to this link. And according to this link, there was a LW 2016 in the works.

If by end of 2017 there is a new LW release, I'd say that it's alive and kicking.

According to the Wiki you linked to, the 2015 version, which is the last version, was released exactly when I said it was. "On November 24, 2014, NewTek released Lightwave 2015." The follow up releases were point releases to fix issues with bugs and add minor features. There was not a new major release since then.

If there is a new major release in 2017, it needs to be quite significant, because LW has fallen far behind the curve of other software in its class. I'd say it's do or die for it at this point.

I don't think we will see the death of major software like C4D or Maya or Max any time soon because of the tablets or mobile devices. Tablets can not render 50,000 frames of animation or do the kind of special effects required these days to replace desktop workstations. Desktop class workstations will exist well into the future, although they will become much more powerful and perhaps look a lot different. Who really knows, we are all just speculating though.