"Bitmoji's 3D redesign in 2023 allowed Snapchat to launch new body types and deliver faster on top fashion requests, from low-rise jeans to saris, says Swetha Dhamodharan, a senior product director at Snapchat. But there's been growing calls to bring back the old 2D comic style. One online petition to bring back the style has racked up nearly 100,000 signatures."
"Also key are the wide variability of customizable traits, from hair styles to clothes, which make a friend's or family member's Bitmoji, though cartoonish and exaggerated, so easy to clock. That same volume of variability, though, also makes the redesign projects from 2D to 3D and back again technically complex. The design process included iteration across a range of body shapes and sizes and fashion items."
"Bitmoji are central to the Snapchat experience and show up across the app in different ways, like as the avatar of the person you're talking to instead of just initials, or on the app's Snap Map, which reached 400 million users this year. That means animations had to look right as both a profile picture and full body. The team made tweaks to get the proportions, shading, and the thickness of outlines just right."
Snapchat will offer a classic 2D Comic Bitmoji option to Snapchat+ subscribers, restoring the nostalgic comic-style avatar look. The 2023 3D Bitmoji redesign introduced new body types and faster delivery of fashion items, but users have called for the return of the 2D style, including a petition nearing 100,000 signatures. The Bitmoji system supports a large, variable set of customizable traits that help users recognize friends and family. Translating that trait volume between 2D and 3D required complex design iterations across body shapes, sizes, and fashions, with careful tweaks to proportions, shading, and outline thickness. Bitmoji appear throughout Snapchat, including Snap Map (400 million users).
Read at Fast Company
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