Brekel Body / v2
Brekel Body v2
Markerless body motion capture with a single Kinect v2 sensor
Brekel Body v2 is a Windows application for real-time markerless body motion capture with a single Kinect v2 sensor (Kinect for Xbox One or Kinect for Windows v2). It tracks up to 6 people at once, no suits, markers or calibration needed, and records the result as skeleton animation or streams it live into MotionBuilder, Unity and Unreal Engine.
The Kinect v2 dates from 2013 and Microsoft ended production in 2017, so it is second-hand only now, but it still works and so does this app on Windows 10/11. This is the cheaper option if a single Kinect v2 is what you have. One sensor per machine is the limit, a Microsoft driver restriction, and an Xbox One unit needs the separately sold USB 3.0 adapter to reach a PC.
The sensor is fussier about the PC than the app is. It needs a USB 3.0 port on an Intel or Renesas chipset, since other brands may or may not work, which is the thing most likely to trip up an otherwise fine machine. Beyond that a DirectX 11 capable GPU is enough (even old ones like an Intel HD4000 or GeForce 610M), along with a dual core i5 or i7 around 3.1 GHz; slower CPUs run but may drop frames.
If the sensor keeps dropping out and reconnecting a few seconds into a capture on Windows 11, that is a Windows audio setting rather than the sensor, the cable or the port: see Kinect v2 keeps disconnecting on Windows 11.
Starting fresh? Look at Brekel Body v3 instead: it is in active development and supports Kinect v2 alongside modern sensors and webcams, including multi-sensor setups.
Installs like any other app. No subscription, no cloud processing, no login. All data stays on your machine.
Windows 8 / 8.1 / 10 / 11 (64-bit). Windows 7 and older are not supported, their USB stack cannot handle the sensor bandwidth · from $99 (excl tax)
Tracking
Tracking starts with joint positions from the Microsoft Kinect SDK, with custom algorithms built on top to improve quality, especially joint rotations and additional joints. It uses the full depth fidelity of the v2 sensor to better solve rotations, with controls to tune the result.
- Works in real time, no offline processing
- No calibration: stand in front of the sensor and record
- Automatic floor alignment (optional)
- Smoothing and filtering with real-time feedback
- Detects 3 finger poses (open / closed / lasso), with control over which poses drive the skeleton
- Shows Color, InfraRed, Depth, 3D pointcloud, skeletons and hand states live in the 3D viewport
- Preview option to review data after recording
Recording and export
Recordings export to FBX (including extras like 2D face tracking data, hand states, lean and clipping info), BVH in Generic / Autodesk HumanIK, 3ds Max Biped and Poser / DAZ flavors, plus TXT and CSV. Audio records in sync from the Kinect microphone or any other audio source, saved as WAV.
Other export options: a mathematical T-pose, and resampling the 30 fps sensor data to custom frame rates. Recording can be synced between multiple Brekel apps on the same machine or across machines on the same network, and pointcloud data can be recorded in sync for use in Brekel PointCloud v2.
Want to see the output before buying? Grab the sample data.
Live streaming
The app comes with plugins for Autodesk MotionBuilder (up to 2026) for live streaming and recording directly in MotionBuilder, an example C# script and scene for Unity, and an example scene for Unreal Engine 4.x and 5.x via Live Link. Joint data can also stream over TCP/UDP or OSC, including Synapse and OSCeleton emulation modes for apps like Kinectar.
Licensing
The free trial is the full application with two limits: recordings stop at 10 seconds, and live streaming is disabled, both into MotionBuilder, Unity and Unreal Engine and over TCP/UDP/OSC. Recording, export and every tracking feature work, so you can judge the data on your own machine before buying.
A license is perpetual: it never expires and updates within the v2 branch are free. There is no maintenance plan for Body v2. How trials, evaluations and licenses work in general: see licensing.
Videos
More videos
Supported sensors
- Kinect for Xbox One / Kinect for Windows v2 (one sensor per machine, a Microsoft driver/SDK restriction; the Xbox One version needs the separately sold USB 3.0 adapter)
Full specs for these, and 91 sensors in all: depth sensor comparison.
Exports
- Recording: FBX, BVH, TXT, CSV, WAV
Requirements
- Windows 8 / 8.1 / 10 / 11 (64-bit). Windows 7 and older are not supported, their USB stack cannot handle the sensor bandwidth
- USB 3.0 port, Intel or Renesas chipset (other brands may or may not work)
- DirectX 11 capable GPU (even older ones like Intel HD4000 or GeForce 610M work)
- Dual core i5/i7 CPU around 3.1 GHz (slower works but may drop frames)
- 4 GB RAM or more
- 1280x1024 screen (1920x1080 or higher recommended)
Compare versions
| Body v3 latest | Body v2 | Body v1 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Supported sensors | Azure Kinect, Kinect v1/v2, Orbbec, ZED, RealSense, webcams | Kinect v2 (Xbox One / Kinect for Windows v2) | Kinect v1 (Xbox 360 / Kinect for Windows) |
| Multiple sensors (alignment + fusion) | yes | no | no |
| Deep-learning tracker | yes | no | no |
| Face tracking | yes | no | no |
| Live streaming | MotionBuilder, Unity, Unreal Live Link, TCP/UDP, OSC | MotionBuilder, Unity, Unreal Live Link, TCP/UDP, OSC | MotionBuilder, Unity, Unreal, OSC |
| Recording formats | FBX, BVH, TXT, CSV, BPC, WAV | FBX, BVH, TXT, CSV, WAV | FBX, BVH, TXT |
| Still updated | yes | no | no |
| Price (excl tax) | $149 Single Sensor $299 Multi Sensor | $99 | $49 |
scroll sideways for every version, the labels stay put
Trial / Buy
Free trial
Trial restrictions Limited to 10 seconds of recording, no live streaming into MotionBuilder/Unity/UnrealEngine or over TCP/UDP/OSC.
The documentation PDF ships inside the installer, and is also a separate download (zip).
Buy a license
- License $99 Shop
prices excl tax · perpetual license · free v2 updates
How licensing works (trials, evaluation licenses, delivery).