RuneScape’s been around for 25 years, and let’s be honest, the player avatar has gone through a lot over that time. Updating it and bringing it in line with more modern standards has been something the community’s wanted for ages, and later this month we’re finally taking that big first step. Before that, though, we want to give you an opportunity to have a sneak peek at what’s coming and even let you get hands-on with how your character will look when the project formally launches!
To do this we are running a beta. This will take place in a temporary alternate world that hosts our work-in-progress player avatar.
As a quick reminder, the player avatar is the character underneath the armour that you created when you started the account. Those foundational customizations (gender, hair style, top, legs, shoes and facial hair as well as the colour variations that are available to each of these aspects) that you picked when you first step foot on Gielinor are the focus today. There won't be an overhaul to every piece of gear or armour you could be wearing or to NPCs so please focus your preview on the avatar.
It being a beta, you can expect that there are going to be a few bugs and unfinished placeholders, as this project is still very much in full motion and has not yet been completed. While there may be things missing or not finalized, we are still polishing everything to a mirror shine for release, so please don't get too hung up on something being out of place or missing at this stage.
This beta will kick off today, May 6th, at 15:00 BST and will be available until Tuesday May 12th.
Take some time to hop in and get a feel for how the avatar will look!
How do I join?
Joining the beta is a relatively simple process:
- If you're using the Jagex Launcher
- Click this link.
- The link will load the Jagex launcher then start loading the Beta, logging you in automatically.
- If you're not using the Jagex Launcher (just the RuneScape Client)
- Click this link, then log in as normal.
When you first login, your live save will be imported into the Beta world. You can re-import your save into the Beta once per hour. From here you will be able to access your account as normal and engage with the avatar update.
How do I leave?
To re-access the regular live worlds you simply need to close both the game and the launcher (you may need to close the process in your task manager) and then relaunch how you normally log in to get back to the game!
What to expect:
Once you're in the beta you will be transported to the town square of Wendlewick and be surrounded with a variety of NPCs dressed in base customizations for the player avatar. You should be able to get a good look at different styles and characters in motion and you will also find the Makeover Mage and Thessalia if you want to update your look and try out some new base kit clothes.
We strongly recommend unequipping any items and cosmetic overrides at this stage of the project so that you can focus on the base avatar itself.
As a reminder, our intent is that players should notice a sensible transition from their old avatar onto the new one when we launch the first avatar update. Relaunched model aspects should either be the same (if upgraded models exist) or roughly similar (if a choice has been removed and a suitable alternative can be identified). As not all aspects of the old avatar are being carried over, you may find that certain parts look different.
In this beta you will have access to the following.
- Both the male and female avatar are included.
- All base clothing that the avatar project will launch with is included, though some of its animations may still be improved between the beta and launch.
- The vast majority of items overrides will look as they will once the update is released, but there may be a few that are still work in progress.
- While 34 female hairstyles are included, we would like to draw your attention to trying out the following 10, which are representative of our final quality target. The other hairstyles may still lack some final polishing at this stage.
- Ponytail spiked
- Curls
- Side-part long
- Long
- Pigtails with fringe
- Bun with fringe
- Half up, Half down
- Long hair with fringe
- Pinned Bun
- Long Braids
- We focused on these 10 hairstyles first as they represent a variety of commonly used hairstyles.
- While 29 male hairstyles are included, we would like to draw your attention to trying out the following 10, which are representative of our final quality target. The other hairstyles may still lack some final polishing at this stage.
- Side-part spiky
- Short
- Bald
- Curtains
- Samurai
- Dreadlocks
- Medium Hair
- Curtains Long
- Long Hair
- Wind Braids
- We focused on these 10 hairstyles first as they represent a variety of commonly used hairstyles.
- 19 beards are available to in the beta, but these too are not completely finalized.
It's up to you to check out how you look while roaming around your local haunts, doing some of your daily routine and generally seeing how things fit. Feel free to also roam around the world taking screenshots with your new avatar - whatever takes your fancy!
How to provide feedback:
While we naturally expect a good amount of discussion in online spaces around your experiences, the most helpful thing for our team is for you to engage with the Avatar Beta Host and click-through to the survey link they provide once you feel like you've got a good grasp of the new player avatar. This is the best way for everyone to have an equal voice in providing feedback on the player avatar beta at this stage.
Known Issues list:
Below is a list of issues that we are aware can occur during this beta. These have all been reported and are actively being resolved for the full release. You can also check the list of known issues associated with the beta by talking to the Avatar Beta Host.
- Hats and Headwear cause the new avatar head to be replaced by the old avatar head.
- Eyebrows and eyes seem to be misshapen and positioned incorrectly with some walk animations.
- Torso can be invisible/missing.
- Feet can be invisible/missing.
- Legs can become misshapen and bend backwards.
- Gaps and seams between parts of the avatar - such as on the neck or around the waist.
- Positioning issues where the torso and legs are disconnected.
- Hair can either be floating away from the head or positioned incorrectly/stretching.
- Neck position can be incorrect, with the neck being too far forward.
- Issues where the torso is positioned incorrectly and floats down near the player's knees.
- Hair can clip with the avatar's head.
- Some hairstyles are currently untextured/look flat.
- Some hairstyles are stretching when the player moves.
- Some worn items clip through the head.
- Some hats and tiaras force the old head model on top of the new one.
- Facial hair on male characters can result in them being broken, positioned incorrectly.
- Worn items and cosmetic overrides that show skin on the avatar will show skin from the old model.
- Head slot worn items and cosmetics may cause issues with animations/clipping.
- The appearance of the character within interfaces may not look representative.
- Textures on hairstyles are not final.
- While using freecam there can be flickering on hair and outfits.
That's it for now - thank you very much for taking part in the beta and helping make the player avatar update the best it possibly can be.
Please remember to fill out the feedback survey via the in-game Avatar Beta Host before you join the official discussions on Reddit and Discord Threads!