Here's your recap of the biggest new features and improvements that we added to Ready Player Me in 2023.
Watch the full recap of 2023 here or on YouTube:
Content tools
Asset Manager
Support for adding custom content was one of the most requested features by developers using Ready Player Me. With the Asset Manager, you can upload, validate, publish, and manage custom avatar outfits in you app or game.
Since Asset Manager's initial launch, we added new organization features, like changing the assets' order and choosing the default options.
Modular outfits & Hero characters
Ready Player Me now supports modular outfits, letting users individually select outfit's top, bottom, and shoes.
We also added support for Hero Characters – fully custom avatars, from head to toe.
Asset Designer & AI texture
Asset Designer makes custom content creation accessible to anyone. You no longer need 3D design tools like Blender to make Ready Player Me avatar outfits .
You can upload custom textures designed in a graphics design software or use our AI texture feature by specifying a style or using a prompt.
Premium Skins & monetization tools
Currently available to selected partners in a limited alpha release, the new monetization tools will allow you to sell custom avatar outfits in your app.
We also partnered with Warner Music Group, Universal Music Group’s Bravado, Rovio’s Angry Birds, McLaren Racing, and The Voice to offer premium assets for sale.
UI/UX
Account Linking & Guest Accounts
The advanced user management tools help you reduce friction for your users and get them creating avatars even faster:
- Use Account Linking to let users link their Ready Player Me account to your app or game. No more double-login needed;
- Guest Accounts let you create a Ready Player Me account on user's behalf, improving onboarding.
Custom Avatar Creator theme
The custom theme lets you fully change the appearance of the Avatar Creator in your app or game. You can customize:
- Colors of the background, individual interface elements, and text;
- Pick from nine different fonts;
- Toggle the shape of buttons between rounded and square.
Avatar Creator 2.0
Now live in all apps and games, Avatar Creator 2.0 brought a new, streamlined avatar creation experience with fewer steps and improved loading times and stability thanks to the Avatar API.
Developer tools & resources
Free Animation Library
Animation Library is a collection of 200+ high-quality, game-ready animations for locomotion, idles, expressions, and dances (with weapon animations are coming soon).
The library is fully compatible with Ready Player Me avatars and available for free. Learn how to use the animations in Unity.
Native Avatar Creator in Unity & Unreal
You now have even more flexibility when integrating Ready Player Me avatars in your game! Use the new tools provided with the Unity and Unreal SDKs for engine-native Avatar Creator integration.
Learn how to integrate the custom Avatar Creator in Unity.
Revamped Render API
Render API now renders 2D avatars 3x faster, significantly reducing load times.
We also upgraded the visual quality of 2D avatar renders, and added improvements like ability to control camera, expressions, and scene background.
Performance
Avatar API improvements
New texture format options and a new lod parameter for the Avatar API bring major improvements to avatars file size and the triangle count.
- Texture encoding now supports JPEG, PNG, and WEBP, allowing for up to 40% smaller files. KTX is coming in the future too;
- The new lod parameter lets you reduce the triangle count by up to 75% by reducing triangles in an avatar's head model.
Avatar API in Avatar Creator
The Ready Player Me Avatar Creator is now powered by the Avatar REST API. This brings major performance improvements, allows for animated avatars, and sets ground for some big changes to come soon.
- New Avatar Creator uses 5-10x less bandwidth;
- Characters are now animated;
- Enabling future updates.
Get started with Ready Player Me
Are you building an app or game that could use some avatars? You can integrate Ready Player Me for free, even in commercial applications. Sign up here to get started.