Epic Games launched MetaHuman Creator this week. It's a videogame character creation tool, essentially, but it's free, it isn't followed by a 140-hour RPG, it runs in your browser (actually in the omnipresent "cloud"), and it can export ready-to-use character models for Unreal Engine projects. To try it, you have to sign up here, and it might take a little while to get your invite.I'm probably never going to use one of my "MetaHumans" for an Unreal Engine project (which is all you're allowed to use them for), because that seems hard, but MetaHuman Creator itself is easy to use. And fun. Who doesn't love a good character creator? You can sculpt features by clicking and dragging parts of the face, as well as blend the features of included faces together, which is so effortless that it seems obvious—I'm sure the trigonometry under the hood is no big deal, right?There are also granular options for eyes (how do you feel about sclera vascularity?) and teeth (plaque slider confirmed), skin and makeup options, a handful of hairstyles to choose from, and a few facial hair options.

Epic Games, maker of the video game'Fornite,' has released a sneak peek of its browser-based software tool that lets developers create'digital humans.' Powered by the firm's Unreal Engine, the MetaHuman Creator provides dozens of hairstyles, ear types, lip shades and more, allowing users to mix and match to create 3D characters that move and speak as if they were humans - all of which can be completed in less than an hour. The system works by pulling human appearance and motion from a massive library of variants, which are used as a starting point for developers who can then mix and match the given presets. Epic says that'when you are happy with your human,' you can download the digital creation to use in films, video games and a variety of apps. Epic Games, maker of the video game'Fornite,' has released a sneak peek of its browser-based software tool called MetaHuman that lets developers create'digital humans' Creating digital humans is not a breakthrough, as there are a number applications capable of the task, but Epic says MetaHuman allows users to design 3D characters in less than one hour – others can take weeks to months.

A new tool from the studio behind "Fortnite" will make it easier for developers to create photorealistic digital humans for projects including video games. Epic Games unveiled its MetaHuman Creator, a cloud-streamed app allowing developers to create a digital human complete with hair and clothing in a matter of minutes. Epic also owns Unreal Engine, a platform used to create some of the most popular video games as well as in other industries including automotive, film and TV. "Bringing compelling real-time digital humans to life is incredibly challenging and time-consuming," reads a description on the website for MetaHuman Creator. "It can take months of research, costly scanning equipment, and an army of tech artists. What if we could make the process radically simpler, faster, and more scalable – without compromising on quality?"