UVAAssetCollection

The VA Asset Collection is the core asset type in the Vertex Animation Studio that manages and stores all data required for vertex animations. It serves as a container that holds meshes, animations, and their associated data.

VA Asset Collection

For step-by-step instructions on creating a VA Asset Collection, see our Getting Started guide.

Overview

A VA Asset Collection contains:

Source skeletal meshes and their build settings

Source animations that were used to make the VA Asset

Built vertex animation meshes

Animation data stored in textures

Material configurations

Per-mesh custom data

VA Asset Editor

Double-click a VA Asset Collection to open the editor window where you can configure settings and preview animations.

VA Asset Editor Interface

1. Rebuild Asset Button

This button reconstructs your mesh and materials. Use this after making any adjustments in the details panel to ensure your changes are properly applied.

2. Preview Mesh Selection

For Bone VA Asset Collections that contain multiple meshes, this dropdown menu allows you to switch between different meshes in the preview window. This is particularly useful when working with collections that include variations of the same character or object.

3. Reapply Custom Data

This button applies custom data changes to your materials. Custom data allows you to pass per-instance float values (like color variations, roughness, etc.) to materials for visual diversity between instances. See Custom Data for setup instructions.

4. Details Panel

The right-side panel contains crucial settings divided into several categories:

Animation Settings: Configure animation build options and view runtime animation data

Mesh Settings: Configure mesh build options and view runtime mesh data

Custom Data: Configure per-instance custom data for material variations

These settings allow you to fine-tune various aspects of your vertex animation.

5. Animation Preview

The timeline area displays your currently selected preview animation. You can switch between different animations to visualize how your asset will appear in-game.

6. Animation Timeline

The bottom panel provides standard timeline controls for previewing your animations. Use these controls to play, pause, and scrub through your animation sequences.

Remember to click "Rebuild Asset" after making changes to apply them.

Technical Details

Storage Format

Animations are stored as texture-based vertex data

Positions and rotations/normals are split into separate textures

Each mesh maintains its own vertex layout and UV configuration

Build hashes track asset changes and dependencies