Owners Manual on G8.1

DDCreate

Is there a thread somewhere that outlines the main differences/limitations/improvements that make 8.1 special?

I ask because I've been loath to jump into 8.1 characters because I know they're different than G8 but I don't know how. So far, I've found that facial expressions aren't compatible. I've had decent success with hair but I see hair coming out for 8/8.1 so that makes me wonder if ALL my G8 hair will work. Clothing and posing are also a concern. I basically was just hoping to know what to expect. Should I come across a G8.1 that I love, I'd like to know ahead of time that I might as well shop for expressions, specific hair and that I won't be able to pose him nude unless I want him to have female genetalia with no gen maps. (for some reason G8m and G8.1F for G8.1 are my only options.) So yeah, I was trying stuff on my own and still have all these questions.

margrave

https://www.daz3d.com/genesis-8-1

https://blog.daz3d.com/genesis-8-1/

Long story short, the base mesh is exactly the same, so all your G8 morphs, materials, wardrobes should work fine. Sometimes they throw up errors, but I presume that's a metadata issue rather than a true incompatability. Daz3D added a new material zone for the neck and the back of the head, so there's no longer an ugly, jarring quality difference between the head and neck. G8.1 still contains the legacy UVs, so you can use G8 materials with no problems. Geoshells don't work quite right, but people on these forums have developed some (convoluted) workarounds for it.

The eyes, eyelashes, and facial rigging have been adjusted. It uses a new FACS-based rig, which is why old expressions don't work.

At the same time, Daz3D also premiered a new skin shader that's used by a lot of G8.1 figures, but is not necessarily part of G8.1. Not all 8.1 figures use it, and you can apply it to G8 figures if you want.

PerttiA

margrave said:

The eyes, eyelashes, and facial rigging have been adjusted. It uses a new FACS-based rig, which is why old expressions don't work.

The old G8 expressions don't work by default because they have been 'disabled' for G8.1, Getting them to work is quite easy though.