Components of Learning Live2D

1. Learning Live2D Processes 2. Learning Animation Principles 3. Learning to Process Live2D Illustrations 4. Learning Live2D Animation Tools 5. Learning Live2D Supplementary Tools 6. Optional - Learning to Draw Live2D Illustration

Factors that affect the difficulty of Learning Live2D

1. Context 2. Logic vs Creativity 3. Compared to 3D Rigging 4. Learning Method

Is Live2D Hard to Learn?

Learning Live2D is surprisingly easy, even if you do not have background in drawing or animation. With dedicated effort and the right approach, you can get the basics within a week.

Let’s break down the key things you will learn for Live2D and see how difficulty they are:

You can pick up Live2D fairly quickly if you learn it the right way, but mastering it takes years. I have been working on Live2D rigging commission for over four years, I will be sharing my own learning experience with you.

I also did a poll on Reddit in r/Live2D to ask other Live2D riggers if learning Live2D is difficult?

Here are the results:

From a pool of 85 voters:

3 find it very easy to learn.
7 find it easy to learn.
39 find it moderately challenging to learn.
33 find it hard to learn.
3 find it very hard to learn.

The majority of people said it was moderately challenging, which lined up with my expectations. But the 33 people who found it hard were a bit of a surprise to me.

Personally, I found it to be moderately challenging, closer to easy. I am able to create my first full-body Live2D model with animations in just one month.

But it seems that others view it as more difficult. Let me explain why below.

What is Live2D?

Before we dive into whether is Live2D hard to learn, it is important to know what Live2D actually is.

Live2D is an animation technique that lets artists animate 2D drawings. They do this by dividing the drawing into different parts and then making those parts move to create animations and show different expressions. It’s used in areas like gaming, VTubing, and interactive apps.

Live2D is NOT EQUAL to Live2D Cubism!

Live2D is the animation technique, while Live2D Cubism is the software used to create the animations. Many people have have mix them up so be careful!

Live2D is the animation technique, while Live2D Cubism is the software used for creating Live2D animation. This distinction is pivotal because understanding Live2D involves mastering both the technique and the tools.

There are also other software like Spine 2D or DragonBones that can be used for 2D animation, but Live2D Cubism is the most common one.

Breaking Down the Live2D Learning Process

A lot of people think learning Live2D is just about learning the software. But from my experience, there’s more to it than meets the eye.

To answer the question “Is Live2D hard to learn?” we need to look at a few key components involved in creating Live2D animations. Let’s break down what learning Live2D really involves.

1. Learning Live2D Processes

Overview

This involves understanding the process to create Live2D animation:

1. Separating an image into different parts (head, body, arms, etc.)
2. Assembling the parts with a skeleton structure
3. Rigging the parts to move
4. Creating animations using rigged movements

Ease of Learning

★☆☆☆☆ (Very Easy, 1/5)

The concept is pretty straightforward.

I am able to grasped it within a few days by watching tutorials.

Time Estimate to Learn

A few days to get the basics.

2. Learning Animation Principles

Overview

Understanding animation principles (like timing, space, and distance) is essential for creating smooth animations. The 12 Principles of Animation are a great starting point.

You might find perspective and timing a bit challenging, particularly if you’re not coming from an art or animation background.

The 12 Principles of Animation

New Live2D learners often overlook or skip on animation principles, but trust me, these principles can seriously boost your animation quality.

However, Live2D animation and traditional animation have some differences. Some traditional techniques don’t translate directly to Live2D, and vice versa.

Ease of Learning

★★☆☆☆ (Easy, 3/5)

The theory behind animation is simple to understand, but applying it to Live2D takes practice.

I studied The Animator’s Survival Kit in two weeks. However, it took me a few months to apply the concepts in Live2D animations.

Time Estimate to Learn

Within a week for a basic grasp, lifelong for mastery.

3. Learning to Process Live2D Illustrations

Overview

To rig an illustration for Live2D animation, you need to make sure that the image is properly separated.

Process Live2D illustrations by separating it into parts

This step is really important for making your Live2D animations look good. And you will need to know how to use image editing software like Photoshop for this.

Ease of Learning

★★★☆☆ (Moderate, 3/5)

Learning to separate an image for Live2D involves understanding the Live2D process, animation principles, and the illustration software itself.

Understanding how to separate things is simple, but actually doing it can be tedious and time-consuming. You also need to be skilled with tools like Photoshop to cut them accurately.

I quickly learned how to separate layers and use Photoshop. However, it took a while to actually separate the image into layers, 1 week to be exact.

Time Estimate to Learn

Within 2 weeks get a good grasp of this, since it builds on other things you’ll be learning.

4. Learning Live2D Animation Tools

Overview

Learning the software that create Live2D animation is a big part of the process, and Live2D Cubism is a really popular choice.

But before you dive into learning the software, it’s very important to know what you your Live2D animation will be using for. For example, I want to create animation for VTuber, then Live2D Cubism or Inochi2D will be your choice. But for game model, Spine 2D is a more popular choice.

When people ask “Is Live2D hard to learn?”, they’re usually thinking about how hard it is to learn the software itself.

Afterwards, be sure to carefully follow a detailed tutorial/guide (very important), and you can learn the tools fast.

I picked up Live2D Cubism pretty fast, in just a week or two, because I’m good at learning new software. I have done this by following the Live2D rigging tutorial and reading the Live2D Cubism manual.

Live2D rigging tutorial by Brain Tsui

Ease of Learning

★★★☆☆ (Moderate, 3/5)

Choosing the right software to start with is important, but since most Live2D programs work in similar ways, you don’t have to worry too much about picking the “wrong” one. Once you learn one, switching to another is much easier.

Time Estimate to Learn

Within a month for a simple Live2D model, lifelong for mastery.

5. Learning Live2D Supplementary Tools

Overview

Live2D model often works together with other programs, depending on what you’re using it for, such as face-tracking engines (eg. VTube Studio) or visual novel tools (Ren’Py). So, you will also need to know how to use these programs.

Live2D Supplementary Tool - VTuber Studio

Ease of Learning

★★★☆☆ (Moderate, 3/5)

The difficulty will depends on what programs you are using with it. Sometimes, you might need to know a little bit of coding.

Let’s say you are using Live2D in Ren’Py (which is a game engine). In that case, knowing a bit of Python is a big plus.

So, my first face-tracking engine was with FaceRig. It took me a couple of hours to wrap my head around it, but, oh boy, the real struggle come after that. I’m willing to bet this thing will be haunting riggers from early days for the rest of their lives.

But hey, let’s not dwell on the bad memories! There are lots of better options available now.

Time Estimate to Learn

Within a week for a basic grasp.

6. Optional – Learning to Draw Live2D Illustration

Overview

Being a Live2D animator doesn’t necessarily require drawing skills, this makes it easier for people to get started. But, if you can draw, it definitely helps and can make learning easier and faster.

From what I have seen, people who can draw are usually really good at animating character perspectives, which is probably the trickiest part to master for me.

Since I can’t draw, it took me almost a year to get to a point where I was happy with how I rigged character perspectives. And even then, it was just okay, not amazing.

Being able to draw also helps a lot when you’re separating parts of the image. It makes it easier to fill in gaps and redraw things if needed, which saves a lot of time talking back and forth with other artists.

When you need additional assets, having drawing skills enables you to create them independently. Plus, if you can draw and rig, you can offer both as commission services.

Ease of Learning

Since I can’t draw, I can’t really say how easy it is to learn this.

Time Estimate to Learn

I don’t know.

What Affect the Learning Difficulty of Live2D?

To really answer “Is Live2D Hard to Learn?”, we need to consider a few different things. Here they are:

1. Context

Back when I started with Live2D in around 2018, this field was still pretty new. There weren’t many tutorials or helpful resources, and even the official Live2D Cubism manual was badly translated (worse than Google Translate!).

Learning was way harder back then. But now that VTubers are so popular, Live2D is much more well-known. There are tons of learning resources online, and everything is much better, making it way easier to learn.

2. Logic vs Creativity

Live2D isn’t just about artsy and being creative, you also know how to use the program and tools, which means using logic. Artists who are more on creativity side might have a harder time, because logical thinking is also a big part of it.

If logical reasoning isn’t your strong suit, learning the software for Live2D animation can be tough. People who know coding will probably find Live2D easier because it uses similar logic.

3. Compared to 3D Rigging

Generally, Live2D is less complicated and easier to learn than 3D rigging. If you have done 3D rigging before, 2D rigging will probably be a breeze.

4. Learning Method

In my opinion, this is probably the biggest thing that affects how easy or hard learning is. Learning is a mix of science and art—there’s actually a science behind the art of learning (see what I did there!).

There’s no one perfect way to learn for everyone. Everyone is different, you just have to find what works best for you. Choosing the wrong learning method can make things way harder, and the right method can make things way easier. I have some tips on how to learn Live2D and master it in 3 months.

Final verdict: Is Live2D Hard to Learn?

Personally, I think the difficulty of learning Live2D as moderately challenging, leaning towards easy. However, it seems other riggers see it as moderately challenging, leaning towards difficult. Having an artistic or animation background is not a prerequisite.

Once again, is Live2D hard to learn? The answer is no!

And, of course, if there’s anything I said was wrong, I’m sorry. I must’ve stupefied, please knock me out of it.

Is Live2D Hard to Learn?