This Unusual Combination of 3D and Live2D Was Ahead of Its Time

It seems that lately, the line between 3D and 2D has become increasingly blurred, with 3D Artists replicating 2D looks through clever combinations of shaders, outlines, and painting techniques and 2D Artists creating full-body 3D character models with the help of the Live2D method.

The latest example was shared just a few days ago by Live2Doll, who showcased a convincingly 3D-looking 2D hand created with 12 Live2D deformers. The "Live3D" model was so convincing, in fact, that some creators even half-jokingly suggested the community might as well create a new category of Live2D rigs called "That's cool, but you might as well start using Blender."

But as we all know, there is nothing new under the sun except what has been forgotten, and experiments blending 2D and 3D have been attempted for years. Recently, Live2D Specialist Ran unearthed one such experiment, responding to the aforementioned suggestion with a proposal to combine the best of both worlds and showcasing this peculiar piece of creative thought unveiled all the way back in 2017:

The first thought that comes to your mind might be, "What in the name of all that is holy am I looking at?", and the answer is quite straightforward. This project, showcased by Twitter user rukusu20XX, combines a 3D body model with a Live2D head, resulting in what seems like a normal anime-style character when viewed from a certain angle.

However, from any other angle, all the layers of the head become visible simultaneously, transforming the character from a cute girl into a chaotic glitch. As for the software, the creator employed a character model from Live2D Euclid, a program that allowed the creation of 3D models from 2D illustrations and was discontinued in 2018, and Unity.

For comparison, here's how the same model looks in its native viewport:

Unfortunately, rukusu20XX's Twitter account has been inactive since 2019, so it is unknown whether their experiments eventually flourished into something bigger. To learn more about Live2D, we highly recommend checking out the pages of Digital Artists Ran, FaeriSami, and Live2Doll mentioned in this article.

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