10 Tips to Get the Perfect VRChat Furry Avatar

In the world of VRChat, there are so many different ways to express yourself. From the avatars you choose to your performance and movement, playing as an animal inside a virtual space is just one way for players to stand out from the crowd. That’s why there are so many furry avatars on VRChat!

These users have found a way to express themselves that and transport their community into the game. But what is the best way to get started with this look? You might be intimidated by all of the customization options because they can feel very technical. However, it’s much easier if you know where to begin. In this blog post, we will give you ten excellent tips for getting started with your very own perfect VRChat furry avatar!

What Is A Furry?

Just to clear the air we thought it would be good to explain exactly what a furry is. Furries are individuals who identify as an anthropomorphized animal character, also known as a fursona. Some furries go out of their way to create elaborate costumes called fursuits that accurately depict their fursona. Whilst many others settle for simpler paraphernalia like ears, tails and paws to represent their anthropomorphic animals.

The community is fast growing and has hundreds of meet-ups and conventions all over the world. The furry fandom is vast, with many different subsets like Therians and Otherkin’s but we’ll spare you the deep dive on what a furry is. The main thing is that furries come in all different shapes and sizes, some are wolves and cats whilst others identify as mythical creatures like minotaurs and gryphons. From feathers to scales, furry fandom lovers try to replicate their avatars in VRChat all the time so keep reading for our top tips!

Where To Get VRChat Furry Avatars

It makes a lot of sense why VRChat massively appeals to furries. VRChat gives their players the freedom to design and modify their avatars in almost any way they want. Furries aren’t restricted by any specific parameters in VRChat with the exception of nudity. Meaning they can bring their fursona directly into the game.

A fursona acts almost as a real-life avatar for many furries, so having the chance for it to be their online identity to walk around and socialise within the game is like a dream come true. VTubers also tend to share a similar relationship with VRChat as they too have an alternate identity that can be expressed within the game.

But, enough of the chit-chat. Where can I find furry VRChat avatars?

3D Model Marketplaces

Art marketplaces like Sketchfab and Artstation are great places to find furry avatars. Artists who are part of the furry fandom will create premade VRChat models that are fully functional and ready to go. Most of these avatars will be listed for a reasonable price that doesn’t break the bank. Just make sure to check the licensing that comes with your purchase. Sometimes artists don’t allow editing or the redistribution of their work.

The only downside to using these marketplaces is that you won’t get your own custom furry avatar. A lot of the novelty of having a furry VRChat avatar is the fact that it is made in the likeness of your own fursona. But if you don’t mind bumping into a furry with the same avatar as you then by all means get shopping.

VRChat Commissions

This is one of the best ways to get ahold of a custom VRChat furry avatar. Talented artists who offer VRChat avatar commissions will work alongside their clients to create a furry avatar in line with their customer’s requirements. Avatar commissions can cost anywhere between $200 – $700 depending on the artist that you go with and the complexity of your avatar. Understandably, furry models can be quite different to the normal avatar commission. The additional parts like tails, scales fur and wings can sometimes incur more costs.

Artists that commission these avatars can be found on Twitter, Fiverr, Etsy and even Upwork. When going with a freelancer site make sure that you understand the risks. Sites like Fiverr and Etsy are notorious for scammers trying to rip their customers off by stealing other people’s artwork not to mention the inconsistent pricing. 

At VTuberArt we’ve found a way to eliminate all of this hassle by working with a team of experienced artists and using our standardised commissioning form. So every avatar is exactly what our customers are looking for.

Make One From Scratch

It’s safe to say that most people have no idea how to make a VRChat avatar. Hence the popularity of VRChat commissions. However, many bold individuals like to take matters into their own hands and make an avatar themselves. As the saying goes “You want something done right, you gotta do it yourself!” Unfortunately making a VRChat avatar isn’t as simple as you think.

It requires experience with 3D modelling, animation and rigging which are all specialist skills in their own right. Making a VRChat avatar also requires technical knowledge of the programs to use, what the avatar’s limitations are and any compatibility issues you might run into. After all, you are importing a third-party avatar into a virtual reality video game so there can certainly be some hiccups along the way.

Need A VRChat Avatar?

10 Tips To Make Your VRChat Furry Avatar Perfect

For a detailed explanation on how to make a VRChat avatar, you can take a look at our guide. But, if you insist on making one yourself then here are some of our top tips to get the perfect VRChat furry avatar.

1. Create A Fursona

If you’re starting at square one and you don’t have a furry identity then you’re going to need a fursona. There are plenty of places where you can get one professionally made for you like Fursonafy. When making any avatar artists like to look at a reference sheet to give themselves direction. Luckily, plenty of furry artists provide reference sheets to give a great understanding of the look and personality of the avatar.

Once you know the essential colour palette, attributes and design of your furry it’ll make the process much easier.

2. Create a Very Basic Avatar First

The best way to get started with creating your furry avatar is to create a very basic avatar first. This is an extremely important step because you want to create a blank slate to which you can add your furry features. You don’t want to be bogged down by designing intricate features that you might end up removing later, so start with a simple base of the body shape. 

3. Use The Eyedropper Tool to Get The Perfect Colour

When you are choosing the colour for your fur, it can be difficult to find the exact shade you want. Whether you are choosing the colour for your ears, tail, or body fur, you may be feeling a little overwhelmed with all of the options. Luckily, VRChat has an eyedropper tool that will make it much easier to select the perfect colour. The eyedropper tool samples the colour of your avatar’s body. You can select any part of your body that has the colour you want to use. From there, you can select the colour you want your fur to be. This is an excellent way to ensure you select the perfect colour without even having to think about hex codes.

4. Choose Your Fur Length

When you are creating your furry avatar, one of the first things you should decide on is the length of your fur. This will ultimately determine the textures and bulk of the work that you will have to do on your avatar. Obviously, the longer the fur the harder the work can be, as some like to include sway physics and bone dynamics to give a more realistic look. With that being said sometimes scales and shorter fur can also be challenging so your skin is something you want to put a lot of thought into.

5. Find The Perfect Spot For Your Eyes

You will want to find the perfect spot for your eyes. As strange as this sounds eye positioning is crucial in the design of a furry character. Eye’s are one of the main parts of the human body that we use to recognise our own. So getting this wrong can really take away from the anthropomorphic look that furries want. Experiment with the type of eyes and the positioning to get the perfect balance between animal and human.

6. Decide On Expressions

Another important part of creating your furry avatar is deciding on an expression. The expression you choose will help convey your emotions and personality. Again having a good reference sheet will help to decipher this. You’ll be pleased to know that you can change between multiple different expressions within the game and is a great way to communicate with others.

If your character is timid and shy then you may well want to have different blushing or scared emotes to display this. If your furry is a bit of a hot head then a couple of angry faces won’t go amiss.

7. Add Shading To Your Avatar

Now that you have added all of your facial features to your furry avatar, you may notice that it doesn’t look very realistic. This is because your avatar only has a very small amount of shading. To make your avatar look more realistic, you will want to add some shading. Although your avatar is already 3D we want to give it some texturing that will separate the decent avatars from the amazing ones.

Designing in Unity is a great idea as they allow you to shine a light on your avatar from different angles. Adding shading and detail to the face, limbs and body can really make your avatar pop!

8. Add A Little Bit of Lip Colour

Another easy way to make your furry avatar look more lifelike is to add a little bit of lip colour. This is a great way to accentuate the human-like facial features. It’s a common trick used by animators at every level. Take Sully from Monsters Inc for example. The gloss and shading on the lips of the big blue monster help to make him more of a friendly face.

Furthermore, female furry characters might want to use this to get more of a feminine look. It’s not uncommon for avatars to utilise blush, eyelashes and lip colour to create the illusion of a face of makeup. A great example of this is the dragon from Shrek. 

9. Don’t Forget To Add Some Adornments!

Another great way to personalise your furry avatar is to add some adornments. Adornments are small accessories that you can add to your avatar. There are plenty of different adornments to choose from, that really represents your personality. For example, if you’re an avid gamer it might be an idea to have a gaming headset around your neck. If you’re sporty maybe a basketball jersey would help to show this.

The best thing about your VRChat furry avatar is that it can be whoever you want it to be. Exaggerating the favourite parts of your personality can help to create a really interesting character that others will want to know.

10. And Finally, Have Fun!

Although you want your avatar to be perfect enjoying the process is extremely important. Putting love into your avatar sparks creativity compared to angrily slogging away. The purpose of your furry avatar is to give the best representation of your fursona to socialise with friends. If you’re really stuck then it might be an idea to join some furry communities like Reddit or even browse some VRChat worlds dedicated to furries. Seeing all the cool avatars that others are using can really help to inspire your own creations.

Conclusion

Being a part of the furry community on VRChat can be an awesome way to meet like-minded individuals. Thus it’s important to have a great furry avatar so they can identify you. There are numerous methods to getting a furry avatar at all different pricepoints. If you’re looking for a cheaper solution it’s best to buy one off of an art marketplace or make one yourself. Alternatively if you want to go all out, getting an artist to commission one is also a valid option. 

Uploading your avatar into the game isn’t the most intuitive process. So if you’re having trouble take a look at our guide on how to upload a VRChat avatar.