Charios review
A focused 2D animation workflow with mocap, rigging, variants, and game-engine exports.
Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
Charios is a browser-based 2D character animation tool for indie game developers and animators. It takes uploaded character artwork through layer separation, humanoid rigging, motion application, preview, and export. AI-generated character variants and single-layer regeneration support iteration, while motion-capture retargeting lets users apply bundled or imported movement to characters. The product is particularly suited to teams creating game-ready character assets for Unity, Godot, or Unreal Engine workflows.
The Free plan includes all editor features, 13 bundled mocap clips, drag-and-drop BVH/FBX import, an Anim-check 3×3 grid, and community support. Pro costs $20 per month and adds unlimited projects, priority asset processing, a higher upload size cap, PNG sequence and JSON export, and email support. Studio costs $45 per seat per month, adding self-serve seat management, teammate invitations, a shared team invoice, and priority support. The Lifetime option costs $50 one time and includes current Pro features, a 30-day refund, 5,000 one-shot credits, and a 25% discount on top-up packs.
Charios fits a game-production pipeline through Unity, Godot, Unreal Engine 5, CMU Motion Capture, Mixamo, Truebones, and Rokoko integrations. Its exports include GIF, PNG sequence, JSON, Unity prefab, Godot .tscn scene, and Unreal Engine actor formats. A headless WebSocket API supports CI workflows, while browser play testing, live deformation preview, per-layer editing, and motion retargeting cover the core animation loop. Choose Charios for character-focused 2D production with game-engine delivery; teams seeking a broader animation tool should consider a different category fit.
Charios pros and cons
- Where it wins
- Automatic layer separation and humanoid bone rigging
- Mocap import, retargeting, and bundled animation clips
- Exports for Unity, Godot, Unreal, GIF, PNG, and JSON
- Where it doesn't
- Focused on 2D character animation rather than broader animation workflows
- Studio collaboration features require the per-seat plan
- The CI workflow uses a headless WebSocket API
Charios fact sheet, pricing and score →
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