I am reaching out to seek clarification regarding the End User License Agreement (EULA) for Character Creator (CC4), specifically concerning the use of CC Avatars, morphs, and related packs in a game with a character customization system. I want to ensure that my intended workflow complies with the terms outlined in the EULA (Reallusion End User License Agreement (EULA) for Animation Tools).
My planned workflow is as follows:
Use the base CC Avatar in Character Creator 4, along with morphs from packs such as âUltimate Morphs,â âHuman Essentials Bundle,â and âHair Builder,â as a starting point to create characters, leveraging the rigging and pipeline flexibility of CC4.
Export these characters to ZBrush for extensive mesh editing, significantly modifying the models and morphs to create unique designs that do not resemble the original CC Avatar or pack assets âas is.â
Create entirely custom accessories, clothing, and other assets in ZBrush or Maya, which will be applied to the characters and not derived from any Reallusion content.
Further refine textures for the modified characters using Substance Painter to ensure they are distinct from Reallusionâs original assets.
Re-import the edited meshes and custom assets back into Character Creator 4 to utilize the rigging and pipeline capabilities.
Export the final, extensively modified characters (including custom accessories and clothing) to a game engine for use in a game that includes a character customization and creation system, where players can further personalize these characters.
To clarify, I do not intend to use or distribute Reallusionâs original assets, models, morphs, textures, or content from packs like âUltimate Morphs,â âHuman Essentials Bundle,â or âHair Builderâ âas is.â All assets will be heavily customized in ZBrush, Maya, and Substance Painter to create original characters and accessories. My goal is to leverage the CC4 pipeline and base rig for flexibility, using Reallusionâs morphs and hair tools only as a starting point for extensive modifications.
Given the EULAâs definition of âOriginal Character Creationâ in Section 1.3 and the licensing terms in Section 5.1.2, particularly the restriction in 5.1.2(A) regarding character generation systems, I would like to confirm whether this workflow is permissible under the standard CC4 license. Specifically:
Does the extensive modification of CC Avatars and morphs from packs like âUltimate Morphs,â âHuman Essentials Bundle,â and âHair Builderâ in ZBrush and Substance Painter, resulting in unique meshes and textures that do not incorporate Reallusionâs original assets âas is,â qualify as an âOriginal Character Creationâ under the EULA?
Is it permissible to use these extensively modified characters (rigged via CC4) and fully custom accessories and clothing (created in ZBrush or Maya) in a gameâs character customization system, provided no original Reallusion assets (e.g., models, morphs, textures, or hair) are distributed or used directly?
If this use case requires an extended or enterprise license, could you provide details on the appropriate licensing option?
I greatly appreciate your guidance to ensure compliance with the EULA. If needed, I can provide additional details about my project or workflow. Please let me know if there are specific terms or conditions I should be aware.
Thank you for your time and assistance. I look forward to your response.
Unfortunately you canât use any Reallusion content, modified or otherwise, in an in-software or online character generation or customization system unless you have a negotiated Enterprise license. You can find out more about what is permitted with each License HERE.
Please feel free to let us know if you have any other questions.
Thanks for replying, but I think you really have to be more specific on this topic as it is so important to many of us game developers.
The only legally binding document is the EULA linked above. But the description of forbidden use âFor any character generation systemâ is absolutely unclear.
What is a character generation system? Modifying a character by applying different clothes is not the same as generating completely new chars.
And what are the technical limitations? If I export two versions of the same character, but with different clothes, and then use the exported files in my game. Is that allowed?
What if I create 10 completely different chars with CC and let the end user playing my game choose one of them for his next fight. Would that count as âcharacter generationâ? What if these 10 chars would only differ by the weapon they are holding? Or only differ by the armor they are wearing?
What about mass usage? Suppose the user can select how many characters he wants to fight simultaneously. Then my game would âgenerateâ that number of opponents by using multiple instances of one CC avatar. Would that type of character generation be ok?
And - please - while I would appreciate an answer here very much, this sort of clarification has to be put into EULA or at least directly linked to the EULA to be of real use.
Many thanks!
A Character Generation system is any in-game character generator or customizer that uses Reallusion content such as hair, clothing, morphs, accessories etc. This is not permitted under the EULA.
Selectable complete characters in the game is fine providing you have the Extended License for any content that was used to create the characters.
So for example, if your game features different regions and different climates, the player could select pre-created characters in the appropriate attire for that region or climate. However, you canât allow the player to mix and match clothing or hairstyles to create an outfit for a region.
So basically, allowing the player to create or customize a character in-game using Reallusion assets is not permitted. Using complete characters that canât be modified in-game by the player is permitted.
Many thanks for clarifying! (Why is this kind of detail not in the EULA?)
So, if I understand you correctly the forbidden char customization applies to RL assets only. Then it would be fine to provide e.g. a pair of sunglasses as in-game award, if the sunglasses are not RL property, but came from somewhere else?
Yes the restrictions only apply to Reallusion content. If you are using content from other stores, then you would need to refer to that stores licensing terms. And of course if you are creating the content yourself, then you are free to use it as you wish.
Many thanks for taking the time to reply! I would have loved to jump on the RL train, but as an independent developer I feel the risk is too high because of the unclear EULA. Also, as we are building on top of our custom engine, there is not enough detailed tech info available to allow us implementing our own char rendering path. So, sadly, I will look elsewhere.
Maybe the situation changes on your side someday, then we will be happy to reconsider.
@clemensfehr Over your last couple of posts it sounds like you would need an Enterprise license with what you are trying to do. You would need to negotiate that with Reallusion because that isnât covered by the standard license.
With the standard license you can basically load Reallusion characters in your game, but players arenât allowed to customize them arbitrarily.
Right, that would be an option for bigger studios. For an indie dev like me, who neither has the time nor the money to do so, the risk is too high to get into a lawsuit with this kind of unclear EULA.
If it is even unclear if I can put a pair of (externally created) sunglasses to my RL char or not the EULA just isnât good enough. I donât complain abour RL restricting the use of their product - itâs their products and they can do whatever they want. What I complain about is that it is so vague what you are allowed to do. It all comes down to the term character generation system. That is just too fluffy. Everybody understands something different under a character generation system.
For clarification purposes. If one is to export a character from RL to UE, letâs say, that doesnât include clothes, hair, and accessories, they can be still used in a âcharacter generation systemâ if the clothes, hair, and accessories in this system arenât RL content. Is that correct?
Also, what about color modifications (letâs say eye color). Will texture changes be considered a breach of âcharacter generationâ limitations?
Finally, not as a part of a character generation system, but within the game narrative, if a character change is required (letâs say, a character gets dirty i.e. texture changes, or takes off their armor, i.e. visibility changes), is this acceptable under the EULA, or will complete characters for each scenario be required?
So this thread is frustrating and filled with contradictions. Based on how Iâm reading the licenses, it should be fine to take a CC character and allow the player in a game to swap outfits, accessories, weapons, etc, as long as those are non-RL content. I would not be allowed to let the player change morphs (ie body shape), parts of RL textures (skin color), and hair if itâs a RL asset without getting enterprise licenses.
If that isnât the case then how in the world are we supposed to do even simple things like change a weapon if anything attached to the character canât be changed on the fly?
In a previous reply of his, he said: âSo basically, allowing the player to create or customize a character in-game using Reallusion assets is not permitted. Using complete characters that canât be modified in-game by the player is permitted.â
The only way I can interpret this is that if you have PC_Option1 and PC_Option2 which is PC_Option1 with a RL marketplace hat with an Extended License, these two separate, complete characters could be used as part of a character creation/selection system (a wasteful one, but optimization is not what weâre talking about).
My further question specifically on the first point is whether, once you have a complete RL character in the engine (bald and unclothed, as it were), you can attach non-RL assets to the character via a âcharacter creation systemâ or during gameplay, which makes sense to me, but would love a confirmation.
Iâm not seeing anything in the EULA that ties the character creation restriction to any âCC Componentâ directly. Only âContentâ and âDerivative Contentâ are mentioned in that restriction and those are just defined as assets in the RL Stores or assets derived from RL assets. In my scenario, the only piece that would fit into those definitions is the base character and itâs not changing at all, only what custom items are attached to it changes. The base character is just a prop used to stage the clothing and could just as easily be replaced by something else completely in the UI.
That part of the line is a continuation of the examples of included formats for items in the store, not a separate entry. So, yes, ccShoes I purchased from the store would be included but shoes I made and then imported into CC wouldnât be based on the wording since it didnât come from their store.
This is one of the reason why RL should be more clear on what is covered and what isnât.
You yourself mentioned that the 3d character mesh canât be used as part of a customization system. So my question has been what defines being âusedâ. I think we all agree that changing the mesh proportions, colors, etc, would be a no but some of the posts in here (and elsewhere) imply that just having it be a base that isnât modified during the customization is a violation. If we can, where is the line? For example, can we use RL assets like underwear as long as they canât be swapped out or modified but then allow custom clothing on top?
Yes, itâs not allowed, because it would be part of a character generation system even if you donât modify the mesh itself during the customizing process.