Unlike traditional keyframe-heavy software (looking at you, Blender and Maya), iClone 5.5 Pro treats you like a director, not a stop-motion puppet wrangler.
The Motion Director system in 5.5 was a game changer. Instead of moving rig controls frame-by-frame, you control your character with keyboard keys or a gamepad in real-time. You literally act out the scene, and iClone records it. For 5.5, Reallusion perfected the latency, making it feel tight and responsive. You can block out a 30-second dialogue scene in ten minutes.
If you have iClone 5.5 Pro with the 3D Connect plugin for Unreal Engine, you hold a superpower.
The workflow is seamless:
Version 5.5 was the sweet spot where this pipeline stopped being buggy and started being bulletproof.
For many studios, the true value of iClone 5.5 Pro was the Pipeline version. It bridged the gap between iClone and other industry-standard software like Unity, Unreal Engine, Maya, and 3ds Max.
The ability to export characters and animations with full bone structures and morph targets meant that iClone became a powerful pre-viz tool. Directors could block out scenes in iClone in a matter of hours and then export that data to a game engine or a high-end renderer, saving massive amounts of production time.
Reallusion iClone 5.5 Pro stands as a testament to the philosophy of "accessible creativity." It removed the steep learning curve usually associated with 3D animation while retaining enough depth for professional workflows. While newer versions have introduced higher fidelity graphics and AI-driven tools, version 5.5 was the solid foundation that proved real-time animation didn't have to compromise on quality.
For many animators, it was the software that turned a dream of making a 3D movie into a tangible reality.
Reallusion iClone 5.5 Pro , released in August 2013, was a landmark update for the platform, primarily known for introducing the official 64-bit version Reallusion iClone 5.5 Pro with
. This transition allowed the software to access more than 3GB of RAM, enabling users to build significantly larger scenes with more complex characters and textures. Reallusion Key Features & Enhancements
The 5.5 update focused on streamlining the animation pipeline and improving real-time visual performance: MotionPlus Format:
A revolutionary single-file format that consolidates facial animation, body motion, accessory data, spring effects, and sound into one file for easy reuse across different characters. Height Map Terrain:
Introduced the ability to customize landscapes directly in iClone. It included Level-of-Detail (LOD)
options to maintain fast real-time playback while ensuring high-quality results during export. Enhanced Facial Creation:
Improved the "Create Face" function with better head shapes, optimized control points for facial fitting, and the addition of an animated tongue for more realistic talking performances. H.264 Video Export: The 64-bit version added support for MP4 (H.264) WMV (VC-1)
output. Users reported up to 300% better efficiency in file size compared to traditional AVI RAW formats. Advanced Physics:
Enhanced terrain physics settings for collision margin, friction, and elasticity, allowing objects like wheels to react naturally to the custom height map environments. Stretch Bone Options:
Added a "Translate (Stretch) Bone" option to Motion Layer Editing, enabling animators to create squash-and-stretch effects for props and accessories. System Requirements Version 5
To run iClone 5.5 Pro effectively, Reallusion provided the following specifications: Minimum Requirement Recommended (for 5.5 Pro) Pentium4 2GHz Dual Core CPU or higher 2GB or higher DirectX 9.0c / Shader Model 3.0 NVIDIA GeForce 8 Series / ATI HD 3000 Series 512MB or higher Windows XP SP2 / Vista / 7 / 8 Windows 7 or 8 (64-bit recommended) Disk Space 2GB free space 2GB or higher Professional Use & Limitations
iClone 5.5 Pro was positioned as a total real-time solution for pre-visualization and independent filmmaking. While highly regarded for its integration and Kinect mocap support, users noted some drawbacks: Reallusion Auto-Keying:
The inability to disable the auto-keying feature was a common point of frustration for some animators. Transitions:
Animation transitions could occasionally suffer from glitches, requiring manual cleanup in the timeline. Camera Tools:
It lacked specific real-world camera backs and lens presets, which limited some advanced filmmaking workflows. Reallusion Further Exploration Official Reallusion 5.5 Update Log
for a technical breakdown of every minor fix and enhancement. Explore the iClone 5.5 Community Discussion
to see real-world performance tests and feedback from early adopters. MotionPlus Tutorial
to understand how to use the consolidated animation format for cross-character rigging. , or are you looking for compatibility help for a specific plugin? iClone Pro 5.5 - Reallusion
If you meant "with Faceware" (facial mocap): Replace the Unreal Engine section with a paragraph about how 5.5 Pro handles standard webcam tracking better than most modern apps, allowing for real-time lip sync without cleanup. released in August 2013
If you meant "with 3DXchange": Focus on how you can import any free asset from Mixamo or Daz3D and immediately rig them in 5.5 for animation.
Reallusion iClone 5.5 Pro was a milestone release for the software, widely regarded by the community as a "five-point-five star update" that significantly modernized the real-time animation pipeline. Released in 2013, it transitioned the software from a 32-bit hobbyist tool into a more robust 64-bit professional environment. Key Features in Version 5.5
64-Bit Architecture: The most requested feature, this update officially introduced a 64-bit version of iClone, allowing the software to bypass the 3GB RAM limit. This enabled users to work on much larger scenes with more complex textures and characters without frequent crashes.
MotionPlus Format: This innovative format consolidated multiple animation data types—including facial expressions, body motions, accessory movements, and even sounds—into a single file. This streamlined the animation pipeline by making it easy to reuse and retarget comprehensive performances across different characters.
Enhanced H.264 Exporting: The update introduced H.264 rendering support, which provided a massive boost in efficiency. Users reported nearly 300% better space usage and significantly higher frame rates during rendering compared to standard AVI exports.
Height Map Terrain: Users gained the ability to create custom landscapes using grayscale height maps. This feature included Level-of-Detail (LOD) options, which optimized real-time playback by reducing system load for distant terrain.
Create Face Improvements: The "Create Face" tool was enhanced to better handle 2D-to-3D conversions, offering improved head shapes, better texture wrapping, and more accurate lip-syncing for custom characters. Applications & Usage
Professional & Educational Use: iClone 5.5 was adopted as a teaching aid for film craft courses, helping students learn lighting, camera functions, and storyboarding.
Rapid Prototyping: It remained a favorite for pre-visualization (pre-viz) and indie filmmaking due to its "what you see is what you get" real-time engine, which eliminated long wait times for renders.
Interoperability: While version 5.5 enhanced internal tools, it also strengthened the bridge to other software like 3DXchange, allowing characters to be imported from other 3D tools and exported back in FBX format for final cinematic rendering. Legacy in the iClone Series
While iClone has since evolved to version 8 with more advanced features like the AccuFace tool and Unreal Engine Live Link, version 5.5 is still remembered for establishing the core 64-bit stability and standardized motion data formats that the platform relies on today. iClone5 What's New - Real-time 3D Animation - Reallusion