Update yt-dlp to 2026.02.21 to resolve YouTube playback issues
WubTheCaptain
A new upstream release yt-dlp 2026.02.21 uses ejs 0.5.0, which fixes YouTube sig extraction in main variant of player. (yt-dlp/ejs commit 1b648c3 by ToddyTheNoobDud)
VRChat's yt-dlp 2026.02.04 fork uses an older ejs 0.4.0 which may cause "Sign in to confirm you're not a bot" errors for some users when attempting to play YouTube videos in VRChat. Current yt-dlp version:
PS C:\Users\linda.LINDALAP\AppData\LocalLow\VRChat\VRChat\Tools> .\yt-dlp.exe --version
2026.02.04
Full upstream changelogs diff between VRChat's yt-dlp and upstream yt-dlp are there:
I recommend updating to the latest yt-dlp version (updating to yt-dlp 2026.02.21 pulls/includes the new yt-dlp-ejs 0.5.0 version).
Resolves (hopefully): https://feedback.vrchat.com/bug-reports/p/video-player-error-4
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DarkSwordsman
At least while this gets fixed, users can use VRCVideoCacher for PC to temporarily solve the issue.
WubTheCaptain
DarkSwordsman VRChat strongly recommends against replacing yt-dlp for safety reasons. https://ask.vrchat.com/t/video-players-having-issues/34472/13
DarkSwordsman
WubTheCaptain Then it's more urgent for them to fix it :P
WubTheCaptain
Supersedes a former feature request: Update yt-dlp to 2026.02.04 to resolve YouTube playback issues (implemented)