Rigby2D vs DragonBones
Keep your DragonBones characters alive, in a free desktop editor
Rigby2D opens DragonBones projects directly, nested weapons and effects included, checked against the DragonBones runtime itself. Keep editing on a free, open-source desktop editor and ship to modern engines.
| Rigby2D | DragonBones | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free, forever | Free |
| Desktop editor | Windows, macOS and Linux, updated with every release | DragonBones Pro is no longer updated; its team now makes LoongBones, a web editor |
| Your DragonBones files | Opens _ske.json with its atlas: bones, meshes and weights, IK, skins, nested armatures and every animation | - |
| Accuracy | Checked against the DragonBones runtime on its demo characters: bones, images and colors match within rounding | - |
| Rigging | Bones, weighted meshes, IK, transform, path, physics and slider constraints, clipping, skins | Bones, meshes and weights, IK, skins |
| Animation and film | Film workspace: camera, audio tracks, renders to PNG sequences, WebM with alpha and MP4 at 4K | Exports images and sequences |
| Runtimes | Godot, Unity, Phaser, JavaScript and Rust, free and open source | DragonBones runtimes for several engines |
| Automation | Python scripting, add-ons, and a built-in MCP server for AI assistants | - |
DragonBones details from its own site, October 2026. Prices and features change; check there before you decide.
Why switch to Rigby2D
- A desktop editor that keeps moving. New features every release on Windows, macOS and Linux.
- Your characters, exactly. Checked against the DragonBones runtime: bones, weapons, effects, images and colors match.
- Modern runtimes. Ship to Godot, Unity, Phaser, the web and Rust, all free and open source.
- More than you had. Physics, clipping, AutoRig, a film workspace and lip-sync on top of what DragonBones did.
- Free and open source. No account, no lock-in, MIT OR Apache-2.0.
Switching
Open the _ske.json in Rigby2D with File ▸ Open, with its _tex.json and _tex.png next to it. The character becomes a Rigby2D project; export it to any Rigby2D runtime.
Questions
Does Rigby2D open DragonBones projects?
Yes: DragonBones 4.5 and 5.x data with its texture atlas, including meshes, weights, IK, skins, nested armatures (weapons and effects in slots) and every animation timeline.
How close is the result?
Rigby2D was compared with the official DragonBones runtime on DragonBones' demo characters: across 55 animations every bone, nested bone, image and color matches within rounding.
Why move from DragonBones Pro?
The DragonBones Pro desktop editor is no longer updated. Rigby2D gives your DragonBones projects a desktop editor that keeps moving forward, with physics, AutoRig, film output and modern engine runtimes on top.
Questions about switching? Ask on r/rigby2d: people who made the move answer there.
Join r/rigby2dAlso: Rigby2D vs Spine · Rigby2D vs Moho · Rigby2D vs Toon Boom Harmony