Hytale Emotes & Avatar Customization: Complete Guide to Every Option

Character expression is a core part of any multiplayer game, and Hytale gives you several ways to personalize your avatar and communicate without typing. From the five built-in emotes to the expanded hairstyle options and the growing library of CurseForge emote mods, there is more to explore than most players realize. This guide covers every emote and customization option currently available, how to use the emote wheel system, and how server owners and modders are expanding the system even further. The Emote Wheel You access the emote wheel by pressing the X key on your keyboard. This opens a radial menu where you can select from your available emotes. The wheel supports pagination via the mouse scroll wheel, so if you have more emotes than fit on a single page (either through future updates or CurseForge mods), you can scroll through additional pages. To perform an emote, open the wheel with X, move your mouse toward the emote you want, and click. Your character will immediately begin the animation. Some emotes play once and stop, while others loop continuously until you move or perform another action. All Five Emotes Hytale currently ships with five built-in emotes. Here is what each one does: EmoteAnimationLoops?Notes ChickenFlaps arms like a chickenYesThe classic taunt. Loops until you move. KillThroat-slash gestureNoQuick intimidation emote, plays once. LaughCharacter laughs and bends overYesLoops with a repeating laugh animation. PunchPunches the airNoSingle punch animation, good for celebrations. TongueSticks tongue outNoPlayful taunt, plays once and returns to idle. The looping emotes (Chicken and Laugh) are particularly useful for social situations and roleplaying. Your character will keep performing the animation indefinitely until you interrupt it by moving, jumping, or pressing another input. The non-looping emotes play their animation once and then return to the normal idle pose. Avatar Customization: Hairstyles Update 4 added a significant batch of new hairstyle options and updated several existing ones. Character customization happens in the avatar creation screen, which you access when creating a new character or editing an existing one. Seven New Hairstyles The following hairstyles were added in Update 4: Afro - A classic rounded afro style Big Afro - A larger, more voluminous version of the standard afro Frizzy Buns - Textured buns with a frizzy, natural look Long Dreadlocks - Dreadlocks that extend past the shoulders Puffy Twin Dreads - Two puffy dreadlock sections on either side Dreads Fade - Dreadlocks with a faded cut on the sides Star Puffs - Rounded puff sections styled in a star-like arrangement Three Updated Hairstyles In addition to the new options, three existing hairstyles received visual updates: Puffy Bubble Braids - Refined bubble braid geometry and textures Afro Puffs - Updated puff shape and proportions Puffy Bun - Improved bun shape and texture detail These hairstyle additions are part of Hypixel Studios' ongoing effort to make the avatar customization system more inclusive and representative. All hairstyles work with every skin tone and body type option in the character creator. Cosmetic Renames Update 4 also renamed several cosmetic items to better reflect their appearance and make the inventory easier to browse. Two notable renames: Leather Sandals (previously had a different internal name) - Clarified as sandals rather than a generic footwear label Cotton Tunic (previously had a more generic label) - Now clearly identified by its material type These renames do not change how items look or function. They just make it easier to find specific cosmetics when browsing the customization menu. Expect more renaming passes in future updates as the cosmetic library continues to grow. Custom Emote Mods on CurseForge The official emote selection is intentionally small at launch, but the modding community has already started expanding it. The most popular emote mod is Emotale, which has accumulated over 12,000 downloads on CurseForge since its release. Emotale adds a collection of community-created emote animations that integrate with Hytale's existing emote wheel system. Server owners can install it as a server-side mod, making the new emotes available to everyone who joins without requiring players to download anything themselves. How Custom Emotes Work Custom emote mods use Hytale's animation framework to define new character animations. The process involves: Creating the animation in Blockbench using the Hytale plugin, which supports keyframe-based character animation Defining the emote metadata in a JSON configuration file (name, icon, whether it loops, wheel position) Packaging as a mod with the standard manifest.json structure Publishing to CurseForge for distribution The emote wheel's scroll wheel pagination was designed with modding in mind. Even with dozens of custom emotes installed, players can page through them smoothly in the radial menu. Tips for Server Owners If you run a Hytale server and want to enhance the social and customization experience for your community: Install Emotale or similar emote mods to give players more expression options. Server-side installation means zero friction for your players. Create custom emotes for your server using Blockbench. Server-specific emotes (like a victory dance or server mascot animation) can become a defining part of your community identity. Feature emotes in your server description. Players looking for social and roleplay servers often search for this kind of detail. Mention custom emotes in your HytaleCharts listing to attract the right audience. Set up emote-friendly spaces. Build stages, amphitheaters, or social gathering spots where emotes feel natural. Roleplay servers especially benefit from designated areas designed for character interaction. What to Expect Next Hypixel Studios has indicated that more emotes and customization options will arrive in future updates. The emote wheel's pagination system and the modding community's early momentum suggest that Hytale's expression system is designed to grow significantly over time. For server owners looking to build communities around social features, investing early in custom emotes and cosmetic systems is a strong way to differentiate your server. Check the CurseForge Hytale section regularly for new emote mods, and list your server on HytaleCharts with details about your customization options to attract players who care about this side of the game.