So, What’s Your Avatar? 5 Tips For Finding a New You in VR Chat
So you’ve jumped into VRChat and there’s a whole world to explore. But what about you? Choosing what to wear can be a challenge on the best of days. In VR it can be even worse, when you’re left with so many forms to explore! I’d offer to help with that but if anything I’m about to make it worse, much worse. Because today we’re looking at how to find new avatars! The whole world can feel like a giant wardrobe.
1) Exploring Avatar Worlds
Avatar worlds are some of the most popular locations in VR Chat. Their styles and appearances vary greatly but generally they will present you with avatars as objects you can interact with. There’s no easy way to search for individual avatars in a search engine, so a lot of the searching takes a… shall we say, holistic approach. I’ve found some fun avatars hidden in secret locations like a treasure hunt in some avatar worlds before, and finding something unexpected can be half the fun.
2) Understanding Avatar Complexity
Not all VR Rigs are created equal and the same can be said for the computers that run them. This is especially true of the popular Oculus Quest, a standalone VR Rig that can run VRChat without needing to be connected to a computer. Sacrifices have to be made to accomplish that though, and only simpler avatars and worlds can be displayed reliably. It goes both ways, if you’re using a more complex avatar then Quest users won’t be able to see you.
I’ll be honest, I personally don’t worry about my complexity a whole lot. My avatar is fairly complex (high-medium). If someone is unable to gaze upon my radiant figure, then so be it!
3) Cloning Public Avatars
VR chat draws a clear distinction between “Public” and “Private” avatars. Private avatars are generally specific to the user, but public avatars are fair game for anyone to use if they wish! If you see someone wandering around with an avatar you like, it might be worth inspecting them. The button “clone public avatar” will appear on the right hand side. Sometimes it can be fun to check in with friends and share whatever avatars you’ve found during your explorations.
If you don’t like the idea of someone else copying your avatar you can check “disable avatar cloning” in VR Chat’s settings.
4) Uploading a Private Avatar
This step might seem daunting at first but it’s a lot easier than it seems. Uploading your own avatar in VR chat just requires a free program called Unity, which is commonly used in game development and animation. It’s connected to VRChat, to the point that you can connect the program directly and upload it to the servers where it will be freely available!
One of the biggest advantages of using a private avatar is that you never have to worry about running into a copy of yourself! It’s nice to feel unique, and to find your own way to express yourself.
Private avatars on VR Chat are sold all over the internet by creators using websites like Etsy and Gumroad. There are also plenty of free avatars out there too.
5) Building or Customizing an Avatar of Your Own
This is by far the most complicated option, but there are tutorials available and it’s certainly possible to achieve with enough time and know-how. The easy way is to browse the Unity store for assets, especially free assets that you can put together in that program. There are other programs to use for completely building an avatar from scratch, including Blender for modelling and programs like Substance Painter for texturing and colouring. This might be the most daunting way of finding yourself an avatar, but just think of how rewarding it can be!
Speaking of of which, last post I mentioned pooltoys! This is a customized avatar that I’ve gotten working in VR chat recently, and there’s just something about it that makes me feel at peace wherever I go.
As always, your claps and follows are super appreciated! Next post we’ll go back to the beach to talk about interactive writing and roleplaying in VR!