What Is Motion Capture in Unreal Engine 5?

Motion capture (MoCap) is the process of recording real human movement and applying it to a 3D character. In Unreal Engine 5 (UE5), motion capture opens the door to creating realistic animations for films, games, virtual production, and the Metaverse.

UE5 supports both live motion capture and pre-recorded mocap data, making it one of the most powerful real-time engines on the market.

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Why Use Motion Capture in Unreal Engine 5?

• ✅ Realistic character animation
• ✅ Faster production time compared to manual keyframing
• ✅ Compatible with popular mocap suits (Rokoko, Xsens, Perception Neuron)
• ✅ Ideal for indie game devs, VFX artists, and filmmakers

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Types of Motion Capture Compatible with UE5

Mocap Type	Example Gear	Best Use Case
Optical	Vicon, OptiTrack	Film, AAA Games
Inertial	Rokoko, Xsens	Indie dev, VR, Live mocap
Camera-based AI Mocap	Move.ai, Plask, DeepMotion	Budget/No hardware
Facial Mocap	iPhone ARKit, Faceware	Animation, VR avatars

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How to Import Motion Capture Data into Unreal Engine 5

1. Record or download a mocap file (.fbx, .bvh, .anim)
2. Open UE5 → Content Browser → Import
3. Retarget animation to MetaHuman or your own rig using IK Retargeter
4. Adjust smoothing + root motion in the Animation Editor
5. Apply animation to character inside a Level or Sequencer

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Live Motion Capture in UE5 (Real-Time Streaming)

You can stream live mocap directly into Unreal Engine using:

• Live Link (built-in Unreal tool)
• Rokoko Studio Live Plugin
• Xsens MVN Live
• Faceware Live
• ARKit (iPhone Face Capture)

This is perfect for virtual production, VTubing, and live events.

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Best Plugins for Motion Capture in UE5

Plugin	Use
Live Link Face	Facial mocap via iPhone
Rokoko Live Studio	Real-time full body mocap
Move.ai Plugin	Markerless mocap from video
Control Rig	Edit + refine mocap inside UE5
MetaHuman Animator	Extremely realistic face capture

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Tips for Getting the Best Mocap Results in UE5

✅ Use proper calibration before recording
✅ Avoid loose clothing when using inertial suits
✅ Clean noise using filters or animation curves
✅ Combine mocap with Control Rig for fine-tuning

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Common Motion Capture Mistakes

❌ Importing without proper skeleton mapping
❌ Not aligning character scale
❌ Forgetting root motion
❌ Ignoring foot sliding issues

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Free Motion Capture Resources

• CMU Motion Capture Database
• Mixamo (free rigged animations)
• Animating in Unreal Engine 5
• Unreal Engine 5: Achieving Photorealistic Graphics in Real-Time