There’s a problem with how thumbnails are generated for UGC accessories. The thumbnail lighting often does not match the way the item looks inside Studio, even if no changes are made to the model, camera, or lighting setup.
Accessories appear much darker in thumbnails than they do in Studio.
Sometimes the lighting direction is reversed or shifted, so shadows look unnatural.
Old items that previously had correct thumbnails can suddenly change when thumbnails regenerate.
Creators have no way to preview or edit thumbnails before or after upload, meaning they must pay 750R$ multiple times if they want to try again.
This creates a situation where creators lose money and items end up looking worse in the Marketplace than intended.
Reproduction
The issue is easy to observe:
Create or import a UGC accessory in Studio.
Position it, set lighting, and check how it looks in Studio.
Upload the accessory.
Compare the Marketplace thumbnail to the Studio view.
In most cases, the Marketplace thumbnail is noticeably darker or has incorrect lighting compared to Studio.
Expected Behavior
Thumbnails should look the same as the accessory setup in Studio, with correct lighting and brightness.
Actual Behavior
Thumbnails frequently:
Appear darker than in Studio.
Show shadows or highlights in the wrong direction.
Change later without the creator doing anything.
Impact
Creators waste Robux re-uploading items to try and get a decent thumbnail.
Items look worse on the Marketplace, lowering sales and visibility.
It discourages creators from experimenting since they can’t control how their item will appear.
Expected behavior
I expect the accessory thumbnails on the Marketplace to look exactly the same as they do in Studio, with the same brightness, shadows, and lighting direction that I set up.