
GITNUXSOFTWARE ADVICE
Arts Creative ExpressionTop 10 Best 3D Character Creator Software of 2026
Ranked top 10 3d character creator software for modeling, texturing, and rendering, with side-by-side notes on Reallusion, Substance 3D, Blender.
How we ranked these tools
Core product claims cross-referenced against official documentation, changelogs, and independent technical reviews.
Analyzed video reviews and hundreds of written evaluations to capture real-world user experiences with each tool.
AI persona simulations modeled how different user types would experience each tool across common use cases and workflows.
Final rankings reviewed and approved by our editorial team with authority to override AI-generated scores based on domain expertise.
Score: Features 40% · Ease 30% · Value 30%
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MetaHuman Creator is the strongest pick if you’re on an Unreal-focused production team that needs consistent, animation-ready digital humans without manual rig building, whereas Charisma fits teams that want prompt-to-character iteration for interactive renders and exports rather than topology engineering.
Editor’s top 3 picks
Three quick recommendations before you dive into the full comparison below — each one leads on a different dimension.
MetaHuman Creator
Guided generation produces Unreal-ready characters with facial rigging and controls that plug into the engine’s digital human systems.
Built for fits when Unreal-focused teams need consistent, animation-ready digital humans without manual rig building..
Charisma
Editor pickPrompt-to-character generation with iterative refinement controls for consistent character variants.
Built for fits when teams need prompt-to-character iteration for renders and exports, not manual topology engineering..
Avaturn
Editor pickGuided photo-to-3D generation that produces textured characters ready for export-based workflows.
Built for fits when teams need photo-based avatar creation with repeatable textured outputs for production pipelines..
Related reading
Comparison Table
MetaHuman Creator
enterpriseA browser-based system for creating realistic digital humans for Unreal Engine projects.
Guided generation produces Unreal-ready characters with facial rigging and controls that plug into the engine’s digital human systems.
MetaHuman Creator focuses on digital human creation that avoids manual polygon modeling and instead drives shape and expression through curated controls. The tool outputs characters with face rigging and body rigging intended to support animation workflows in Unreal Engine. Facial rigging and facial topology choices are designed to work with blendshape-driven expression and downstream animation systems rather than generic sculpt exports. This creates strong fit for teams building game-ready characters that need consistent facial performance.
A tradeoff is limited control over low-level mesh editing and UV unwrapping details compared with full DCC sculpting workflows. Another tradeoff is that portability to non-Unreal pipelines like custom glTF or FBX character builds depends on export paths and retargeting work. MetaHuman Creator fits best when the end goal is an Unreal Engine scene where facial controls, materials, and animation-ready topology stay intact. It is less suitable for projects that must start from fully custom polygon modeling or require authoring every rig element from scratch.
- +Animation-ready facial rigging aligned to Unreal’s digital human pipeline
- +Consistent facial topology and skin material setups across generated characters
- +Guided controls reduce errors common in manual topology and weighting
- +Direct Unreal Engine integration speeds character customization workflows
- –Less direct control over low-level sculpted mesh edits
- –Non-Unreal pipelines require extra retargeting and asset conversion work
- –Limited authoring depth for custom rig components and deformer logic
- –Workflow constraints can slow teams needing unique topological variants
Character art teams for games
Build a cast of digital humans quickly
Faster character production cycles
Animation teams
Apply facial performance to standard controls
More reliable facial playback
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Studio pipelines
Standardize character customization in Unreal
Reduced setup variability
Use generated character assets as a base for in-engine customization and iteration.
Prototype teams
Create expressive humans for playable builds
Quicker playable character demos
Generate animation-ready characters that render in real time inside Unreal projects.
Best for: Fits when Unreal-focused teams need consistent, animation-ready digital humans without manual rig building.
More related reading
Charisma
API-firstAI character engine combining 3D avatars with conversational AI for interactive narratives.
Prompt-to-character generation with iterative refinement controls for consistent character variants.
Charisma targets teams that need fast character ideation followed by consistent tweaks for production visuals. It provides a prompt-to-character path, which reduces time spent on early design exploration and accelerates iteration cycles. Refinement happens through editing controls that keep the result coherent as appearance changes are applied.
A key tradeoff is that Charisma is not a full DCC for deep sculpting, edge flow surgery, and manual facial topology work. It fits best when character variability matters, like creating many similar avatars for marketing renders or game onboarding scenes, rather than when a single hero character needs manual retopology control.
- +Prompt-driven generation accelerates early character exploration cycles.
- +Iteration controls help keep edits consistent across multiple generations.
- +Export-ready characters reduce handoff friction to render workflows.
- +Good fit for batch creation of visually related character sets.
- –Limited manual topology and edge flow control versus full DCC tools.
- –Deep rigging and facial sculpt workflows require external authoring steps.
- –Complex art direction can take multiple iterations to converge.
- –Advanced material and shader authoring depth is not the core focus.
Marketing and creative production teams
Generate themed avatar set for campaigns
Faster concept-to-render turnaround
Game studios and avatar teams
Batch avatars for onboarding scenes
More character options per sprint
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Indie developers
Prototype a cast with minimal tooling
Prototype-ready characters in days
Use generation and refinement to reach usable character assets quickly.
3D art coordinators
Create consistent stand-ins for approvals
Reduced waiting on art drafts
Generate coherent character drafts that speed up review and feedback cycles.
Best for: Fits when teams need prompt-to-character iteration for renders and exports, not manual topology engineering.
Avaturn
API-firstA digital avatar platform that creates customizable 3D characters from selfies or built-in customization tools.
Guided photo-to-3D generation that produces textured characters ready for export-based workflows.
Avaturn’s core workflow is centered on uploading reference imagery and producing a textured 3D character derived from that input. The character output is designed to be practical for downstream use, with export formats that fit common DCC and engine workflows. This approach reduces manual polygon modeling time compared with starting from sculpting and retopology. The tradeoff is reduced control over deep topology decisions compared with a full DCC sculpting workflow.
Avaturn is a better fit when production needs a high volume of consistent face likeness updates rather than bespoke modeling. Teams that require custom blendshape authoring, facial rigging refinement, or edge flow control beyond the generator’s outputs may find the workflow constrained. It also suits teams that need repeatable character customization system behavior without building internal tooling around the creation steps.
- +Photo-to-character workflow reduces manual modeling time
- +Texture output is geared toward immediate downstream asset use
- +Export formats support integration with external pipelines
- +Consistent avatar generation helps maintain visual identity
- –Limited control over facial topology and edge flow
- –Advanced rigging customization can be constrained by generator outputs
- –Hair and grooming control is less direct than specialist tools
- –Best results depend on quality and variety of input images
Customer support teams
Rapid avatar updates from new photos
Faster content refresh cycles
Character art production teams
Face likeness pass for asset handoff
Reduced prep time for artists
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Game studios
Bulk avatar creation for player experiences
More characters with less manual effort
Turns user photos into avatar-ready assets for near-real-time content needs.
Media and marketing teams
Personalized characters for campaigns
Reusable characters across assets
Produces consistent textured characters from portrait imagery for campaign variations.
Best for: Fits when teams need photo-based avatar creation with repeatable textured outputs for production pipelines.
More related reading
Reallusion Character Creator
professionalA desktop character design system for creating, editing, rigging, and exporting digital humans.
Character Creator’s face and body morph authoring stays coupled to its rig and animation systems.
Reallusion Character Creator is a 3D character creation tool focused on fast human setup with a character pipeline aimed at animation-ready assets. It provides body and facial authoring workflows, material and texture controls, and export paths for interchange into common DCC and real-time pipelines. The tool also integrates with Reallusion’s animation ecosystem to speed up character rigging and motion workflows using prebuilt systems.
- +Facial and body authoring workflows target animation-ready character results
- +Built-in rigging and morph systems reduce manual setup for common characters
- +Material and texture controls support consistent look development across assets
- +Export options support DCC interchange for downstream editing and rendering
- –Character customization can hit limits for fully custom polygon modeling
- –Hair and cloth workflows depend on content packs for variety
- –High-detail outputs may require external refinement in downstream tools
- –Custom facial setups can require careful rework to preserve rig behavior
Best for: Fits when production teams need animation-ready digital humans with quick rigging and interchange exports.
Daz Studio
professionalA character creation and posing application built around customizable 3D humans, figures, clothing, and assets.
Genesis morph-based character customization with pose-focused animation workflow and DAZ asset integration.
Daz Studio builds posed 3D characters from its Genesis figure ecosystem, with morph-driven body and face shaping as the center of the workflow. It includes full scene assembly for outfits, materials, hair, and lighting, then renders through its built-in render engine or external render paths.
Character interchange is supported via common interchange formats such as FBX, and assets from the DAZ content library can be reused across projects. For animation, it provides pose libraries and rigged deformation driven by morph targets rather than polygon editing tools.
- +Genesis figure rig and morph system speeds up repeatable character variations
- +Pose library and timeline-based posing support quick character animation blocking
- +Built-in material and lighting workflow reduces scene setup round-trips
- +Large built-in asset ecosystem supports clothing, hair, and accessories reuse
- –Limited sculpting workflow compared with dedicated sculpting and topology tools
- –Advanced deformation editing requires external DCC steps for many pipelines
- –Character-quality results depend heavily on starting from existing morph rigs
- –Complex scenes can slow interaction due to asset and shading load
Best for: Fits when generating posed, animation-ready characters quickly using Genesis-based assets.
Blender
professionalAn open-source 3D creation suite that supports character modeling, sculpting, rigging, animation, and rendering.
Nonlinear node editor plus Cycles and Eevee render targets lets one character material graph feed multiple output styles.
Blender suits character artists who need one tool for modeling, sculpting, and shading without leaving the DCC. It supports polygon modeling tools, UV unwrapping, node-based materials, and texture baking for production-ready assets.
Rendering can target both offline photoreal output and real-time style previews through multiple engine options. For interchange and pipeline work, Blender includes FBX and glTF export plus a broad add-on ecosystem for character-specific workflows.
- +End-to-end character pipeline from sculpt to rigging to shading
- +Node-based material system with procedural and image-texture workflows
- +Texture baking tools for normal maps, AO, and optimized asset details
- +Extensive add-ons expand character creation, rendering, and export paths
- –Character rigging workflows require careful setup for consistent deformation
- –Animation and rig evaluation can feel less focused than specialist character tools
- –Many production workflows depend on add-ons that vary by maintenance quality
- –High-quality results demand navigation through Blender’s dense feature set
Best for: Fits when character artists need one DCC for sculpting, texturing, and rendering with export to other tools.
More related reading
VRoid Studio
vertical specialistA character maker focused on customizable anime-style 3D humans and avatars.
Hair creation uses a dedicated VRoid hair editor that generates editable hair meshes from sculptable parameters.
VRoid Studio differentiates itself with a character-first workflow designed around fast, consistent avatar creation for stylized looks. It provides parametric body customization, automated hair creation, and a material system aimed at producing animation-ready characters.
The tool supports export to common pipelines with blendshape-oriented facial and body rigging data, along with FBX and glTF outputs for downstream editing. Asset organization and reuse revolve around VRoid projects and reusable components like clothing and hair.
- +Parametric sliders make consistent proportions and style control fast
- +Hair builder workflow creates strand meshes with edit-friendly parameters
- +Built-in auto-setup includes rigging and face blendshape structures
- +Exports to FBX and glTF for DCC and real-time rendering pipelines
- –Limited depth for manual edge flow control versus full polygon modeling tools
- –Clothing and material customization can hit limits without external DCC edits
- –Advanced facial rigging customization is less granular than DCC-native rigging
- –Round-tripping with other character systems can require cleanup work
Best for: Fits when teams need stylized, animation-ready avatars with quick authoring and standard export to DCC tools.
Hero Forge
vertical specialistA browser-based character builder for designing customizable 3D tabletop miniatures.
Guided part-based character builder that updates materials and accessories in real time for immediate avatar iteration.
Hero Forge turns browser-based character customization into an exportable 3D character, with heavy emphasis on preset parts and guided adjustments. The workflow is designed around creating an anatomy-ready avatar look without manual sculpting, UV work, or topology management.
It supports character variation through selectable meshes, colors, and accessory layering that changes the rendered result immediately. Output is geared toward avatar use cases, not a full DCC round-trip for custom facial topology or production-grade rig authoring.
- +Browser UI makes character assembly and material swaps fast to iterate
- +Accessory layering supports coherent variations without manual modeling work
- +Exports are oriented toward downstream avatar use instead of DCC editing
- +Consistent part library yields predictable visual results
- –Limited control over facial topology and rig construction compared to DCC tools
- –Customization depth is bounded by available meshes and appearance options
- –No authoring workflow for custom blendshapes or skin-weight painting tools
- –Scene and render controls are not designed for production look development
Best for: Fits when teams need quick, consistent character variants for avatars, casting, or lightweight asset pipelines.
More related reading
Sloyd
API-firstProcedural 3D character and asset generation via API for real-time applications.
Generation pipeline that outputs export-ready character assets from prompt and reference inputs with auto materials.
Sloyd generates 3D character assets from text or reference inputs and focuses the workflow on producing meshes and materials that can be exported.
The editing experience prioritizes iteration over sculpt-level precision, so it works best for concepting and style exploration rather than frame-perfect topology work.
Downstream use is practical when the goal is to obtain usable assets for rendering, review, or integration into broader production tools.
- +Prompt and reference based generation shortens the path to first usable 3D character assets.
- +Export outputs support downstream use in common asset pipelines without extra rework steps.
- +Material and texture generation reduces manual setup time for early look development.
- +Repeatable parameter changes support fast variation cycles for consistent character sets.
- –Topological control for facial edge flow and topology level editing is limited versus DCC sculpting tools.
- –Rigging customization and blendshape authoring workflows are not the primary strength.
- –Complex clothing and grooming often needs follow-up fixes to match intended design intent.
- –Deep workflow automation and API-based extensibility are limited compared with tools that expose full automation surfaces.
Best for: Fits when teams need quick 3D character concepts that can move into rendering or game asset pipelines fast.
In3D
API-firstPhone-based 3D body scanning and avatar creation API for integrations.
Reference-to-character creation in a guided web workflow that prioritizes fast avatar outputs over DCC-grade authoring.
In3D is a web-based 3D character creator focused on turning reference inputs into a character that can be used in real-time workflows. Character creation centers on generating and customizing a mesh with materials, clothing, and visible features suitable for quick iteration.
The output emphasis favors avatar-style models that can be moved into downstream pipelines through common interchange exports rather than deep DCC authoring. Compared with DCC-first tools, In3D provides less control over edge flow, rig topology, and custom facial systems.
- +Fast web workflow for generating character concepts from reference inputs
- +Material and styling controls support quick visual iteration
- +Clothing and accessory customization targets avatar-like outcomes
- +Export-oriented pipeline supports downstream use in common 3D tools
- –Limited control over topology planning and edge flow for advanced characters
- –Rigging depth for facial rigging and custom control schemes is constrained
- –Automation and scripting surface is minimal for production pipelines
- –Deep DCC interoperability can require manual cleanup after export
Best for: Fits when small teams need quick avatar-style character creation with exportable results for real-time use.
Conclusion
After evaluating 10 arts creative expression, MetaHuman Creator stands out as our overall top pick — it scored highest across our combined criteria of features, ease of use, and value, which is why it sits at #1 in the rankings above.
Use the comparison table and detailed reviews above to validate the fit against your own requirements before committing to a tool.
How to Choose the Right 3d character creator software
This guide covers 3d character creator software for character modeling, texturing, and rendering across MetaHuman Creator, Reallusion Character Creator, Substance 3D, and Blender, plus Charisma, Avaturn, Daz Studio, VRoid Studio, Hero Forge, Sloyd, and In3D.
The included tools split between guided generation that produces Unreal-ready or export-ready characters and DCC-centric workflows that combine sculpting, material authoring, and rigging in one place.
3D character creator software for character modeling, rig-ready faces, and material authoring
3d character creator software turns sculptable inputs, reference photos, or prompts into textured character assets with animation-ready topology and rig structures.
MetaHuman Creator focuses on generating Unreal-ready digital humans with facial rigging and controls aligned to Unreal’s digital human pipeline, which reduces manual rig building for teams standardizing on that ecosystem.
Blender covers end-to-end character production with a node-based material system and export to other tools, while Reallusion Character Creator keeps face and body morph authoring coupled to its rig and animation systems for quick animation-ready results.
Core evaluation signals for 3D character creator software
A 3d character creator tool should decide characters in a way that downstream animation and rendering can consume without hand fixes. The evaluation signals below focus on integration depth, automation surface, and how tightly authoring stays connected to rigging and materials.
Workflow speed matters only when the output carries the right structure. MetaHuman Creator prioritizes Unreal-aligned facial rigging, Blender prioritizes material graph reuse through Cycles and Eevee, and Reallusion Character Creator prioritizes morph authoring tied to its animation-ready rig systems.
Engine-aligned rigging outputs
MetaHuman Creator generates Unreal-ready characters with facial rigging and controls designed to plug into Unreal digital human systems. This reduces manual rig building for teams that stay inside the Unreal pipeline.
Coupled morph and rig authoring for animation-ready characters
Reallusion Character Creator keeps face and body morph authoring coupled to its rig and morph systems. This pairing helps produce animation-ready characters without splitting work across disconnected tools.
Prompt and reference iteration with controlled consistency
Charisma supports prompt-to-character generation with iterative refinement controls that keep variants consistent across generations. Avaturn uses guided photo-to-3D generation that emphasizes textured exports for pipelines that want fast repeatable outputs.
End-to-end DCC pipeline inside one tool
Blender covers sculpting, rigging, shading, and rendering in one workspace and supports node-based material authoring through its material editor. This lets one character workflow feed multiple output styles using Cycles and Eevee.
Hair and styling authoring depth
VRoid Studio uses a dedicated VRoid hair editor that generates editable hair meshes from sculptable parameters. This targets consistent stylized hair creation without requiring full manual polygon hair grooming.
Part-based assembly for fast avatar customization
Hero Forge updates materials and accessories in real time using a browser interface for immediate avatar iteration. This supports quick character variants when rig construction and facial topology control are secondary.
How to choose 3D character creator software for real production work
The right selection depends on where character correctness lives in the workflow. Some tools prioritize engine-ready rigs and animation controls, while others prioritize DCC authorship depth like sculpting and material graph control.
Use the steps below to pick the philosophy that matches the team’s asset handoff points and the level of manual topology control required for facial deformation and shading.
Pick the pipeline anchor: Unreal digital humans or general DCC handoff
If the target is Unreal character animation, MetaHuman Creator is the most direct anchor because it produces Unreal-ready facial rigging and controls aligned to Unreal digital human systems. If the target is cross-tool flexibility inside a DCC workflow, Blender is the more practical anchor because it unifies sculpting, rigging, and node-based material authoring.
Choose between guided generation and DCC-grade manual topology control
If character iteration begins with prompts or reference inputs and prioritizes repeatable outputs, Charisma, Avaturn, Sloyd, and In3D are built around guided generation and export-ready assets. If the job needs low-level control over mesh edits and consistent facial deformation, Blender is the safer choice because it supports direct sculpting and rigging setup work.
Match facial authoring and deformation workflow to your rig expectations
If animation-ready face and body variation must stay tied to rig and morph systems, Reallusion Character Creator is designed for that coupled authoring workflow. If Genesis-based variation and posing is the focus, Daz Studio fits because it uses Genesis figure rig and morph systems plus a pose library timeline workflow.
Validate hair and clothing variability against your asset library plan
For stylized avatars where hair quality comes from a parameter-driven editor, VRoid Studio’s VRoid hair editor provides edit-friendly hair meshes without full polygon grooming. If hair and cloth variety must come from wider options, Reallusion Character Creator and Blender both depend on external content packs or authored assets more than purely internal generators.
Decide how much rigging and blendshape work must happen inside the tool
If facial sculpt workflows and deep rigging customization must happen in your authoring environment, MetaHuman Creator is strong for Unreal-aligned controls and Reallusion Character Creator is strong for its coupled morph systems. If facial edge flow and blendshape authoring are required at a deep level, Charisma, Avaturn, Sloyd, and In3D are likely to require external authoring steps.
Confirm export and rendering needs match the tool’s material and shading model
If you need one character material graph to drive multiple output styles, Blender’s node-based material system supports procedural and image-texture workflows feeding Cycles and Eevee. If the workflow is geared toward immediate textured outputs for downstream use, Avaturn emphasizes texture output geared toward export-based pipelines.
Who needs this type of 3D character creator software
Different teams need different points of control. Production pipelines that must land animation-ready characters in a specific runtime often need Unreal-aligned rigging or tightly coupled morph and rig systems.
Teams doing rapid concepting and avatar iteration typically prefer guided generation that reduces manual sculpting time and produces exportable assets quickly.
Unreal-focused character teams standardizing on digital humans
MetaHuman Creator fits when Unreal-ready characters with facial rigging and controls aligned to Unreal digital human systems reduce manual rig building time and consistency issues.
Animation pipelines that rely on morph-based variation inside one ecosystem
Reallusion Character Creator fits teams that want face and body morph authoring coupled to its rig and animation systems for animation-ready results.
Character artists who need sculpting and shading control in one DCC
Blender fits when sculpting, rigging, and node-based material authoring must be authored together using Cycles and Eevee for rendering outcomes.
Avatar teams iterating from prompts or reference photos
Charisma and Avaturn fit when prompt-to-character iteration or photo-to-3D workflows produce textured characters geared toward immediate downstream asset use.
Stylized character creators emphasizing parameter-driven hair authoring
VRoid Studio fits when the hair editor creates editable hair meshes from sculptable parameters and the workflow targets quick stylized avatar output.
Common pitfalls when adopting 3D character creator software
Most failed adoptions happen when the workflow assumptions do not match the output structure. Guided generation tools can speed early production, but facial topology and rigging customization can land outside the constraints of generator outputs.
DCC-centric tools can handle detailed authoring, but rigging consistency and deformation evaluation require deliberate setup work to avoid deformation artifacts across poses and animations.
Assuming prompt-to-character tools deliver DCC-grade facial topology control
Charisma and Avaturn prioritize prompt-driven iteration and textured outputs, which limits manual topology and edge flow control and can push deep facial sculpt work to external authoring.
Building an end-to-end Unreal pipeline without validating rig control expectations
MetaHuman Creator aligns with Unreal digital human systems via facial rigging and controls, while Blender and most guided generators may still require extra retargeting and asset conversion work to match Unreal expectations.
Treating hair and clothing variety as guaranteed without content planning
Reallusion Character Creator and VRoid Studio both rely on workflow-specific limitations such as hair editor parameters or content pack variety, so relying on built-in variety alone can block production styling targets.
Expecting fast rigging to reduce deformation setup effort in DCC tools
Blender can cover sculpting, rigging, and shading in one place, but consistent facial rigging workflows require careful setup for deformation reliability across animation.
Using a part-based avatar builder for high-fidelity facial rig and topology work
Hero Forge supports accessory layering and real-time material updates in a browser UI, but limited control over facial topology and rig construction makes it a poor fit for advanced facial rig requirements.
How We Selected and Ranked These Tools
We evaluated each tool on how directly its character authoring outputs connect to rigging and downstream rendering. Features carried the largest weight because Blender’s node-based material system and MetaHuman Creator’s Unreal-ready facial rigging both materially change production throughput.
Ease of use and value carried equal weight to separate tools that reduce manual work from tools that require careful setup for consistent deformation. MetaHuman Creator separated itself by generating Unreal-ready characters with facial rigging and controls aligned to Unreal digital human systems, which reduces manual rig building effort compared with tools that prioritize prompt or reference generation first.
Frequently Asked Questions About 3d character creator software
How does MetaHuman Creator differ from Blender for digital human production workflows?
Which tool supports prompt-to-character iteration while keeping outputs editable for later refinement?
How do Reallusion Character Creator and Daz Studio handle facial and body customization for animation?
When teams need photo-based likeness, how do Avaturn and In3D compare for output intent?
What breaks if a project requires deep facial topology control and rig authoring instead of guided presets?
How do VRoid Studio and Blender differ in hair authoring workflow and editability?
When exports must land in Unreal Engine or match Unreal digital human conventions, which tool fits best?
How do Blender and Reallusion Character Creator compare for texture baking and material graph control?
Which tool provides extensibility via an add-on ecosystem for character-specific workflows?
How should teams plan data migration between character creation and downstream DCC or game tools?
Tools reviewed
Primary sources checked during evaluation.
Referenced in the comparison table and product reviews above.
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