About AYAstorm
AYAstorm is a derivative viewer based on the Firestorm Viewer. For most that means, when launched, it looks almost identical to Firestorm. Technically it means they modified a copy of Firestorm’s code. It appears they added their code creating a new branch of Firestorm rather than creating a new viewer. So…
- AYAstorm is a new Third Party Viewer forked from the Firestorm codebase, so the UI and workflow will feel familiar (think 90+% identical) to existing Firestorm users.
- It is focused on enhanced visuals and lighting tweaks, with a particular emphasis on fixing long‑standing rendering issues in Second Life.
- The viewer is NOT listed in the Linden’s Third-Party Viewer Directory, as of 6/5/2026.
Features
- The headline feature is that it fixes the classic hair alpha glitch, greatly improving how hair, plants, trees, and other alpha‑textured objects render, especially for photography and dense nature scenes.
- It includes extra options for motion blur and screen‑space reflections (SSR); these can be toggled in the AYAstorm options in the top menu to help with motion sickness or water shadow glitches.
- Since it is Firestorm‑based, most layout, menus, and general behavior match what you know from Firestorm, easing migration. Low learning curve.
- It can use Firestorm’s Settings Backup files.
Features, Not So Much
- I am not sure if the Settings Backup works going from AYAstorn to Firestorm. I suspect it does. Just test it before you need it.
- This viewer is obviously farther behind in the update cue. SL updates from the Lab have to make it into Firestorm, adding some delay as they integrate the code and fix bugs. AYAstorm will likely not update until after FS. The GitHub is active, so probably not far behind. I’ll have to watch and see what they do.
- Other than GitHub I do not find a website nor blog. There is tonton’s main GitHub page for the viewer. (Definitely check it out.) There are a few X/Twitter threads;
People on X Primarily Posting About AYAstorm Viewer
Primary Posters
- @VAyastorm (viewer ayastorm): Official account for the AYAstorm Viewer project, sharing updates, release notes, GitHub links, and development insights as the main developer/promoter.
- @aya_tokyo_sl (- AYA – tokyo): Creator of AYAstorm Viewer; posts announcements, release info, and reflections on user feedback for this SL viewer fork.
- @chisa1st: Active Second Life user who wrote and shared a detailed note positioning AYAstorm as a potential new standard viewer due to its alpha bug fix and Firestorm compatibility.
- @Hka_Hunkaa (Hunkaa): Frequently shares in-world experiences, dance attempts, and visuals captured in AYAstorm Viewer.
- @TiaRungray: Promotes AYAstorm for music/live streaming events in SL, highlighting features like 3D spatial audio support and providing download links.
- @nikaidoux: Shares selfies and avatar photos specifically noting use of the AYAstorm Viewer.
Sub-list: Accounts with Significant Interest
- Gogo (associated with juicybomb.com): Strong advocacy in blog posts urging immediate downloads due to the alpha fix and other features, with calls to thank the creator.
Note: These accounts are the most visible and active within the Second Life community. Interest is still emerging as the viewer is relatively new.
There is more… page links below.