AI Character Chat Glossary: Roleplay, Lorebooks, Memory, and Voice Calls

Compare AI character apps and you run into words like "roleplay," "lorebook," "memory," and "voice call" that sound alike but do different jobs. On top of that, each app leans heavily on proprietary terms such as Candy, Pieces, and Konpeito.

This glossary is organized in two layers.

1. Shared concepts — general terms that apply across apps
2. App-specific terms — the proprietary vocabulary you need to understand a given service

For a cross-service price comparison and help choosing an app, see "AI Voice and Character Chat Compared." To get started with AITOMO, see the "Getting Started Guide."

Editorial policy

Primary sources take priority for official specifications. Practical information drawn from note articles, community wikis, and reviews is clearly labeled as user observation. Prices and limits change, so always confirm against the in-app display. Last checked: August 16, 2026.

Shared concepts

Roleplay (RP)

A format in which the user and the AI agree on roles and settings and converse within them. Romance, school life, fantasy, and game-like scenarios are common, and the situation itself is the point.

• Everyday equivalents: in-character conversation, acting out a role
• Comparable features: AITOMO's Roleplay and RPG modes, Cotomo's Roleplay mode, zeta's in-character play, MiraiMind's Story mode

Narrative text

Prose that describes scenery, action, or thoughts rather than dialogue, such as "She looked out the window." It matters more in apps where you read a story as text than in voice calls.

In-character response

The AI responds in line with a specific character's speech style and personality. Some apps have you pick an existing character; others have you write the settings yourself. AITOMO offers official VOICEVOX characters plus a wizard for creating originals.

Conversation history

A feature that saves past messages so users can read them again later. AITOMO states that conversation history is saved to your account.

Long-term memory

A system that extracts people, plans, preferences, and similar details from past conversations and lets the AI refer to them in other conversations. Stored history alone does not mean an app has long-term memory.

• Replika documents memory-related features by plan (message saving on Ultra, for example)
• MiraiMind officially markets "permanent memory"
• AITOMO's history saving is confirmed, but the FAQ says little that would let us claim long-term memory equivalent to Replika's

Affinity (relationship stages)

A game-like system in which conversation, gifts, and similar actions change your relationship stage and unlock features.

• MiraiMind: Implemented as Relationship Level. Hands-on reports say gifts raise points and Konpeito can speed up unlocks
• AITOMO: Mentioned in third-party reviews, but the current FAQ says little that would let us state the stage conditions definitively (this can also be framed as an FAQ documentation gap)

UGC (user-generated content)

A system in which users create and publish characters or stories. zeta, MiraiMind, Character.AI, and Cotomo's Story Mode all qualify. The counterpart is the official character supplied by the provider.

Plot (as a general term)

A general term for the storyline or the skeleton of a setting. Note, however, that in zeta it is the formal name used in the UI and carries a different meaning (see the app-specific dictionary below). Do not confuse the general term with zeta's usage.

App-specific term dictionary

Each entry is written with three things in mind: which app the term belongs to, an everyday equivalent, and comparable features in other apps.

Cotomo

Candy The spending-side in-app currency. Everyday conversation costs 1 Candy per reply (worth about ¥1), roleplay 10, and Story normally 15 (per the official press release). There are first-time grants and daily programs.

Cotomo Coins The purchase-side currency. You buy coin packs in the store and convert them into Candy and similar, giving a two-layer structure. Packs at the same price can contain different amounts, so your choice at purchase time directly affects value.

Chat Mode Switches between Simple, Everyday Conversation, and Roleplay. Simple is closer to the original free voice chat, while Everyday Conversation and RP are text-based and consume Candy.

Story Mode A UGC feature in which users create and publish stories that others play by conversing with an AI. Treating Cotomo as only a voice chat app is no longer adequate.

Novel Mode / Casual Mode / event features A set of derivative features expanded around Story in the summer of 2026 (based on official announcements). Check the app and official news for details.

Ticket Shop / Item Box A distribution mechanism that resets and restocks weekly (per official announcements).

Things I Remember The semi-official name for the memory feature. Improvements were announced in 2026.

Candy Boost A campaign-style program that increases daily Candy (may be time-limited).

Chara Cotomo Collaboration voice projects with celebrities and similar figures. These are usually time-limited and differ in nature from the permanently available official VOICEVOX voices.

zeta

Pieces The in-app currency, spent on higher-tier models and certain features.

zeta pass / zeta pro The paid membership. zeta pro was discontinued on March 11, 2026 and replaced by zeta pass, an auto-renewing subscription. Includes ad removal, faster replies, unlimited private characters, and bonus Pieces.

koji / luca The names of the higher-tier AI models. Under the August 7, 2026 revision, koji costs 5 Pieces per turn and luca 10 Pieces per turn. The base zeta model is free (with ads).

Plot (zeta term) The formal UI name for a character and its story. It was previously called "character" and was later renamed. It is also the unit to which lorebooks are connected. Keep it distinct from the general sense of "plot" as a storyline.

Lorebook A system that pairs keywords (triggers) with descriptions and recalls settings mid-conversation. The official beta announcement described an initial period limited to koji and applied at random. Sharing lets you connect other users' lorebooks, with an announced expansion to a maximum of 5 per Plot. The official guidance warns that edits propagate to every connected Plot and that deletion removes it from all of them.

User observations (not official specifications)

Community guides share practical warnings: there are limits on the number of entries and characters per lorebook, triggers only fire if the keyword actually appears in conversation, and contents are visible as public information. Limits can change, so give priority to what the creation screen displays.

Lorebook sharing Implemented in March 2026. Lets you connect another user's world settings to your own Plot.

Intro / situation examples / info box / narrator / style / difficulty The main fields when creating a character (Plot). Many creation guides say difficulty has tiers ranging from easy to extreme. Some observers note that the info box is limited to paid plans (this may change over time).

Talk Profile The protagonist settings prepared by the author (guides mention multiple slots).

Macaron art style An art-style name sometimes introduced as a free and effectively unlimited AI image generation style (user and community information; confirm in the app whether it is a permanent official feature).

MiraiMind

Konpeito (金平糖) The in-app currency. User reports put it at roughly ¥1 each when purchased (slightly cheaper with bonuses). Login bonuses and similar grants exist.

Shukou features (趣向機能) MiraiMind's distinctive experience design, letting you peek at a character's social feed and phone. It breaks down as follows.

• Social: Social-media-style posts (hands-on reports say refreshing consumes Konpeito)
• Schedule: A diary-style log of the day's activities
• Inner Voice: A look at what the character is thinking
• Album / History: Variant images, a log of inner-voice entries, and similar

Addictive / Long-form / Platinum / Story mode The types of chat mode. A multi-layered structure with different prose styles and costs (hands-on reports).

Relationship Level / gifts MiraiMind's implementation of affinity. Observers report that sending gifts raises points and that replies are generated in response to the gift.

Scenario A feature for playing UGC stories with the same character.

Permanent memory / empathy Official marketing terms. Some users say fully exploiting memory requires paying.

Group chat Simultaneous conversation with several characters (check the in-app display for the maximum).

Talk suggestions / quick replies Features that generate candidate replies or action-oriented suggestions.

VTuber streaming An in-app path to streams by official VTubers.

Membership (MMPro and similar) The paid membership bundling Konpeito grants, memory discounts, roleplay settings, ad removal, expanded character slots, and more. The official guidance is to check specific prices in the app.

Character.AI

Charms An in-app item. Bonuses on pack purchases are advertised for c.ai+.

go-ons / swipes Actions for continuing a response ("go on") and replacing it (swiping to an alternative). Plus is advertised as raising these limits.

slow mode A speed restriction applied at busy times. Removed by Plus's "No slow mode."

Character Calls Two-way voice conversation. It is described as available on the free tier, but unlimited voice calls are a c.ai+ benefit. Do not read "free" as "unlimited."

AvatarFX / Imagine Chat / Feed / Scenes The main feature set, including features beyond chat. For under-18 experiences from 2025 onward, some creative features are described as remaining even after open-ended chat was discontinued.

Parental Insights A safety feature for guardians.

c.ai+ The paid subscription. Official pricing is $9.99 per month or $94.99 per year (discounted for annual payment).

Replika

Coins & Gems A two-layer currency. Daily gems are sometimes advertised as a Pro benefit.

Training Mode A Platinum benefit, with a cap on uses per week (per the official weekly limit guidance).

Read Replika's Mind A Platinum benefit, with a weekly message cap.

self-reflections A self-reflection feature advertised as an Ultra benefit.

save messages to memory The feature, explicitly listed for Ultra, that saves messages into memory. If long-term memory matters to you, checking the plan differences is essential.

Practical character-creation terms

These terms come mainly from zeta creation guides, but they apply equally to "how to write settings" in other apps.

Term	Meaning
Prompt	The base instruction text that conveys personality, speech style, and world setting to the AI
Intro	The opening text and scene setting shown at the start of a conversation
Situation examples	Samples of the scenes you have in mind
Trigger word	The keyword that a lorebook or similar system responds to
Narrator	The designated voice handling narrative text and story progression
Info box	A display frame for supplementary information (observed to be plan-restricted)
Style	Tendencies in prose and description
Difficulty	How demanding the scenario is and how heavy its developments become
Hashtags / description	Metadata for discoverability. Character limits are common

User observations

For zeta, practical tips circulate: character limits are strict, avoid a mismatch between illustration and prompt, image review is strict, and there is a period of increased exposure right after publishing. This information is not in the official documentation, so give priority to the current UI of the creation screen.

Billing terms

Metered billing A model in which currency is consumed per message or per feature use (Cotomo Candy, zeta Pieces, AITOMO points, and so on).

Two-layer currency A structure separating what you purchase from what you spend (for example, Cotomo Coins converting into Candy, and Replika's Coins & Gems).

Subscription (flat rate) A model granting benefits for a fixed monthly or annual fee (c.ai+, zeta pass, AITOMO Premium Plus, MiraiMind membership, and Replika's plans).

Bonus grants / daily bonuses Mechanisms that distribute currency through logins and campaigns. They strongly shape how far you feel you can get for free.

Pack selection The situation where products at the same price grant different amounts. The value gap shows up most clearly with things like Cotomo Coins.

Voice and VOICEVOX terms

Voice messages versus voice calls

• Voice message: A format that plays the AI's reply as audio (it does not necessarily mean the user speaks)
• Voice call: A two-way conversation. Offered by AITOMO, Cotomo, MiraiMind, Character.AI, and others. Free time allowances and costs differ by app

VOICEVOX

Free voice-synthesis software. It includes character voices such as Zundamon, Shikoku Metan, and Kasukabe Tsumugi that are established fixtures of Japanese internet culture.

Key points in its terms of use:

1. Usable for both commercial and non-commercial purposes
2. Credit indicating that VOICEVOX was used is required
3. Each voice library has its own separate terms, so conditions differ by character

AITOMO's value proposition lies less in "talking to an original AI" than in talking with the official voices of characters you already know. For details on credit requirements and individual terms, see the official VOICEVOX terms of use and the guidance for each voice library. The credits page lists the speakers available on this site.

UltraVoice

AITOMO's high-quality voice option. The FAQ gives a guideline of 15pt per message. Premium Plus is described as including unlimited ULTRAVOICE. The basic approach is to use it alongside VoiceVox (10pt, oriented toward official Japanese characters).

Voice cloning

A feature that creates a synthetic voice from registered audio samples. On AITOMO, creation costs 300pt, with Free allowing up to 10 clones stored for 7 days and Premium Plus up to 30 stored for 21 days.

Rights and consent

Confirm the rights to the audio you use and the consent of the person it belongs to. Reproducing the voice of a favorite creator or celebrity without permission can create likeness, publicity, and contractual risks. Since the FAQ mentions "the voice of someone you love or a celebrity-style voice," the warning has to come with it.

Safety terms

Age rating The suggested audience age shown by the App Store and Google Play. It varies widely by app.

Age assurance Character.AI combines its own age-estimation model with third-party tools such as Persona, and since November 2025 has phased out open-ended chat for users under 18. Hands-on reports say MiraiMind's onboarding collects detailed age information.

Content review Pre-publication checks on character images and settings. Strictness and the clarity of criteria vary greatly by service, as does whether an appeals process exists.

Data retention period AITOMO's FAQ states that chat audio is auto-deleted after 7 days and chat and AI-generated images after 30 days. Avatars and similar assets are described as retained.

Transmission to external AI AITOMO states clearly that it uses OpenAI and Google Gemini for chat and image generation, and that input text is sent to those providers. See the privacy policy for details.

Use for AI training Whether conversations are used to train models depends on each company's and each provider's policy. Do not assume; check the latest official documents.

Choosing an app by the terms that matter

What you value	Candidates	Conditions and caveats
Voice conversation with existing VOICEVOX characters	AITOMO	Comes with understanding credit requirements and individual terms
Free, snappy everyday voice	Cotomo (Simple)	RP and Story raise metered costs
Sharing worlds through lorebooks and Plots	zeta	Users observe strict character limits and review
Enjoying slice-of-life through Shukou features	MiraiMind	Konpeito costs and member pricing are in-app
Discovering and creating in large-scale UGC	Character.AI	18 and over required (minors cannot use open chat)
Memory and a lasting bond with one companion	Replika	Verify Japanese quality. Memory sits on higher plans
Heavy use at a flat rate	c.ai+ / AITOMO Premium Plus	Check current exchange rates and benefits
A cross-service comparison of these terms	Comparison article	Includes unit-price and safety tables

Look beyond whether a feature exists: check the free allowance, data storage, character rights, and age limits too.

Sources and revision history

Primary sources

• AITOMO FAQ, pricing, and privacy
• Cotomo Chat Mode (PR TIMES) and Story Mode (PR TIMES)
• zeta Lorebook beta, lorebook sharing, zeta pass, and the koji and luca revision
• MiraiMind official site and membership revamp (PR TIMES)
• Character.AI subscriptions and changes for under-18 users
• Replika plan guide
• VOICEVOX terms of use

Secondary sources (with attributions)

• MiraiMind hands-on report (Mohe, PR invitation disclosed)
• zeta creation guide (Zenryoku Haisou)
• Using zeta lorebooks (ysingknsdeep)

Revision history

• 2026-08-16: Split into two layers, shared concepts plus an app-specific dictionary. Corrected the Plot and Lorebook entries and expanded the billing, VOICEVOX, and safety terminology
• 2026-07-25: First published

Last checked: August 16, 2026.