SpicyChat vs. Character AI vs. DreamGen: We Compare AI Roleplay Platforms
Helpful Summary
- Overview: We compare three leading AI-powered platforms for engaging (SFW and NSFW) roleplay, covering features, pricing, pros, cons, similarities, differences, and more.
- Why listen to us: We are avid AI roleplay fans who have extensively tested tons of platforms to bring you an unbiased and detailed comparison.
- Why this is important: Not every AI roleplay platform is worth your time—this guide is designed to help you choose the best one for your needs and preferences.
- Action points: Consider what aspects of AI roleplay are most important to you, like character customization or creative freedom. Then, base your choice on these preferences.
- Further research: Check out the DreamGen blog for more in-depth, reviews, and tutorials.
SpicyChat, Character AI or DreamGen?
The world is full of AI roleplay platforms.
We’ve reviewed tons on the blog before, but SpicyChat and Character AI consistently stand out due to their developed AI technology and user-friendly interfaces. So, in this guide, we thought we’d give you a detailed breakdown of the features, pros and cons, and pricing options for these two platforms.
Along the way, we’ll also introduce you to DreamGen—our own AI roleplay platform—and show why it’s worth considering as well.
But first…
Why Listen to Us?
DreamGen has been a passion project for us for a long time. We’re avid AI writing and roleplay fans, and we wanted to create the ideal tool for fun, creative expression. In the process, we’ve tested and researched countless AI writing platforms and have a deep understanding of what makes for a successful and enjoyable experience.
The bottom line? We know what we’re talking about when it comes to AI roleplay platforms.
SpicyChat vs. Character AI vs. DreamGen: An Overview
In a rush? No problem.
Before we dive into the in-depth comparison, here’s a quick overview of a few key differences between SpicyChat, Character AI, and DreamGen.
Customization
Out of all the tools, Character AI is the least customizable. Yes, you can create custom characters, but you can’t change much other than their backstory, appearance, and personality traits. There are almost no settings for controlling the AI model or outputs.
SpicyChat offers a bit more customization in this regard. Paid users can dive into a basic settings menu with options for controlling the AI’s output length, temperature, and model.
DreamGen offers the most customization out of the three tools. Our settings menu includes 13+ options for fine-tuning the AI’s behavior, like choosing from several AI models, controlling the randomness of the responses, and adjusting the length of the responses.
But beyond these technical details, what really sets DreamGen apart in terms of customization is the scenario setting. You’re limited to chatting 1-to-1 with a character, you can create and explore an entire world complete with:
- Characters
- Locations
- Items
- Distinct writing styles
- …and more.
Use Cases
Character AI and SpicyChat are both chatbot platforms. SpicyChat’s purpose is to provide engaging (often NSFW) roleplays, while Character AI’s focus is on more SFW roleplays, educational chatbots, and character development.
DreamGen is a bit more versatile. We offer both a roleplay mode and a story-writing mode, and both are designed to enable the full spectrum of creative expression—from vanilla to spicy, from horror to comedy.
Content Restrictions
A related difference between the three tools is their content restrictions.
SpicyChat and DreamGen both offer unrestricted content, allowing for more creative freedom in roleplays (and story-writing in our case). You will of course find policies banning illegal content, but on the whole, these two tools do not limit the type of roleplay or chat that can take place.
However, Character AI has pretty strict “no NSFW” guidelines, which may be a dealbreaker for some users. What exactly do they define as NSFW? It’s a bit vague. In their most recent update, they’ve clarified that explicit content is a definite no and that they’re working on making it easier to create villainous characters without crossing into inappropriate territory.
Overall, if going beyond PG-13 content is something you’re interested in, Character AI is one to skip.
Community
Finally, SpicyChat and Character AI both have massive, established communities. This means that there are plenty of user-generated content and resources available, like pre-made characters, tutorials, and storylines.
DreamGen is a newer platform. We don’t have the same level of user-generated content (yet 😉), but we do have a growing community and are constantly adding new features based on user feedback.
What Is SpicyChat?
SpicyChat is an AI chatbot platform with a ton of great (mostly NSFW) characters to chat with.
The platform itself is nicely organized, with categories to help you find the perfect character for your conversation. Basic customization options allow you to control randomness and temperature (basically fine-tuning the AI’s output).
Finally, there’s an intuitive bot builder that lets you create and publish custom chatbots by defining scenarios and dialogues.
Key Features
- Wide range of chatbots: The platform is home to more than 60,000 user-generated chatbots, covering various genres and personalities. Most are NSFW (or at least suggestive) but you can find chatbots tagged as “Wholesome” or “Drama” that offer SFW roleplays.
- Basic customization:: You can control the level of randomness and temperature of AI output, giving you some control over the chatbot’s responses. This can help create a more realistic and natural conversation.
- Intuitive bot builder: The platform's bot builder feature allows you to easily create and publish custom chatbots. You can define scenarios and dialogues to personalize your chatbot's personality and responses.
- Mobile app: The platform's mobile app allows you to save and access your favorite chatbots on the go. This allows you to easily and conveniently access your chatbot conversations.
Pricing
SpicyChat has a free plan allowing unlimited access to basic features (and unlimited messages). However, you’ll need to wait in a queue to access bots during peak times and you’ll find that both bot memory and responses are shortened.
There are three paid plans that let you overcome these limitations:
- Get a Taste ($5/month): Lets you skip the waiting line.
- True Supporter ($14.95/month): 4K token memory, semantic memory, image generation
- I’m All In ($24.95/mo): Priority generation, access to 70b model, 8k token memory
Pros
- Offers rich and realistic roleplays
- Large library of characters
- Massive community
Cons
- Clear focus on NSFW content (even SFW chatbots tend to skew towards adult topics)
- Often long waiting time, even for paying users
- Short conversation context limits quality in long conversations
What Is Character AI?
Character AI is another chatbot platform—this time focusing on vanilla role-play with one character at a time.
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Like SpicyChat, Character AI lets you access tens of thousands of user-generated characters organized by category. You’ll find everything from language tutors to virtual pets to AI girlfriends or boyfriends here, so the platform is quite versatile.
However, as mentioned, Character AI imposes strict guardrails to ensure conversations don’t contain any violent or overtly romantic content, making it a great option for younger users or those who prefer a more PG experience.
Key Features
- Massive character library: Start chatting instantly with hundreds of thousands of user-generated chatbots spanning all kinds of scenarios and personalities.
- Customizable characters: Create your own character with unique traits, interests, and conversation topics.
- Chat narration: Choose AI voices to represent your characters (or create your own) and have them speak out loud during conversations.
- Solid generations: Character AI’s proprietary model is known for producing high-quality and consistent responses.
Pricing
Character AI offers a paid subscription tier known as Character AI Plus (c.ai+), which enhances the user experience beyond the free version. The cost for this subscription is $9.99 per month ($120 annually), and here are some of the benefits you’ll receive:
- Skip queues for popular chatbots
- Faster response times
- Early access to new features
- Exclusive community access
Pros
- Simple AI character creation process
- User-friendly interface
- Tons of existing bots
Cons
- No advanced customization options
- Restrictive conversation filters
Best SpicyChat & Character AI Alternative: DreamGen
DreamGen is an AI roleplay and story-writing platform that improves on many of the best aspects of SpicyChat and Character AI.
Our focus is on giving you an unrestricted AI experience—you’re free to create whatever scenarios or stories you want, no matter how spicy or NSFW they may be. Our models are fine-tuned for both roleplay and longer-form narratives, so they can respond in a more natural and engaging way.
While we don’t have a massive library of user-generated content like SpicyChat or Character AI, our role-play and story scenario library is growing, plus we have tools that make it super easy to generate scenarios from short prompts, or to import scenarios from other websites. We also have an intuitive editor to create your own scenarios from scratch.
Key Features
- Unrestricted creative freedom: We offer an environment where you can explore any narrative, no matter how daring or bold, without constraints or content filters.
- Story steering: Take control of the direction of your stories and roleplays by giving the AI instructions or editing messages.
- In-depth customization: Access more than 13 settings and controls for AI outputs along with options for customizing characters, settings, personalities, and more.
- Diverse predefined scenarios: We offer various pre-defined scenarios, such as fantasy worlds, vampire bloodlines, and magical realms, providing a rich starting point for users to jump into role-play or story writing.
- Story bible: Store important information and details about your characters and stories in one central location for easy reference.
- Direct character control: Users can play as a director, making decisions for the characters and steering the plot in any direction, offering a personalized narrative experience.
- Generous free tier: Start using DreamGen for free and gain instant access to all our current models. Upgrade if you decide you want unlimited access or more completion credits.
Pricing
DreamGen offers a generous, no-strings-attached free tier for users to get started with their role-playing and story-writing. This tier includes access to all our current models, settings, and characters for users to use in their narratives.
We also offer three paid plans for users looking for more:
- Starter ($7.83/month): Access to all current models, 200 monthly completion credits
- Advanced ($19.35/month): Unlimited access to small models, 1500 monthly completion credits
- Pro ($48.30/month): Unlimited access to large models, 3500 monthly credits
Pros
- Contextual understanding
- AI awareness
- Advanced scenario crafting
- Multi-character role-plays and stories
- Enhanced editing
- Unrestricted freedom
- Supports casual interactions and tooling
- Open-source accessibility available on HuggingFace
- API Access
Cons
- It may require a slight learning curve
- Has a slightly smaller character development feature set
SpicyChat vs. Character AI vs. DreamGen: Feature Comparision
| Feature | SpicyChat | Character AI | DreamGen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Character Customization | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Model Customization | 🟠 | ❌ | ✅ |
| Multiple Models | ✅ | ❌ | ✅ |
| Open Source | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
| Use Cases | NSFW roleplays | SFW roleplays | SFW and NSFW roleplays; story writing |
| Unrestricted Content | ✅ | ❌ | ✅ |
| No Wait Times | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
| Chatbot Library | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| API Access | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
| Long-Form Editor | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
| Monthly Pricing | $5, $14.95, $24.95 | $9.99 | $7.83, $19.35, $48.30 |
| Free Plan | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
Conclusion
Ultimately, the choice between SpicyChat, Character AI, and DreamGen comes down to what elements of role-play and chatbot interaction matter the most to you. Each platform brings a different flavor to the table, catering to a broad spectrum of creators and players.
DreamGen shines as a beacon for storytellers and role-players, offering an open canvas for the imagination. Our open-source models and user-directed plots control empower you to become the architect of your own stories, creating worlds as boundless as your creativity.
Don’t just imagine the possibilities—experience them. Try DreamGen for free and see how well our platform aligns with your vision and create AI-powered narratives.