character walkcycle

[Monsieur OUXX]

The base sprite is this one :

[imgzoom]https://www.dropbox.com/s/m7o99ubmc3s6har/progzmax.png?raw=1[/imgzoom]

I  made this walkcycle, based on "the dig":
[imgzoom]https://www.dropbox.com/s/xt2c3kdh2d0plce/thedig_side_height54_slimtrousers_00.gif?raw=1[/imgzoom]

I think it's ... OK (well I hope), but I'm bothered by the fact that the head is very static. However that was already like that in The Dig and didn't look weird.

Source Photoshop file : https://www.dropbox.com/s/s33dyvj2y6ed24j/thedig_side_height54_slimtrousers.psd?dl=0

[CaesarCub]

Usually once it's moving the effect is less evident, but you might want to give it a little bounce to the head and the torso as well.

When the legs are apart the character is usually a little lower (1 or 2 pixels tops) lower than when one of the legs is fully extended.

Here is a classic walk cycle, you can see how the torso (and the head) bounce:



This is one I did myself (the style is more cartoony, but you can see how in all directions he bounces up and down).

[imgzoom]http://i.imgur.com/iiDHNAW.gif[/imgzoom]

[Cassiebsg]

Adding the bounce would make it a lot better, and solve the "problem" with the legs. Because right now I feel liken the the knees bend too little and the foot that's up going forward barely leaves the floor. We would probably ruin the tip of the shoes walking like that.

However, it's a WC that works, and we probably won't noticed it in game.

[Monsieur OUXX]

I tried to add the bounce before posting, BUT the whole body is not properly positioned, pixel-wise, which makes the head bump too visible. It looks like the character gets hammered on the head twice in every cycle

[Monsieur OUXX]

I've tried moving down the torso as well, and flexing the leg slightly more.
It hink it's better, don't you think?
I still have no idea how they made the characters literally "glide" in The Dig without it looking awful.

Here:
[imgzoom]https://www.dropbox.com/s/k0tzip8g6cd0p0n/thedig_side_height54_slimtrousers_01.gif?raw=1[/imgzoom]

[Danvzare]

It looks nice, although maybe it's just me, but he seems to go way too much to the side during his walk cycle.
I get the feeling that will make him look all jumpy ingame, although I could be wrong.

[Monsieur OUXX]

way too much to the side

Explain: you mean his steps are too long?

[Cassiebsg]

I think he means his torso, but that isn't unrealistic, since some people do that. It adds character and personality. I've seen my son do that on occasions...
His leg still doesn't lift high enough when returning forward, but it doesn't really bother me that much.
Did The Dig had character shadow? Been a long while since I played it.

[CaesarCub]

Try having more than one frame with the head down. When I do an 8 frame walk cycle I usually have the head and torso move up and down constantly (0 -1 -2 -1 0 -1 -2 -1) which gives it a rhythm.
If you just make it 0 0 0 -1 0 0 0 -1 it looks odd, try making something more like 0 0 -1 -1 0 0 -1 -1

Well, in your case you have a 12 frame animation, so I would try something like this:

[imgzoom]http://i.imgur.com/19SxjbP.gif[/imgzoom]

I made the low points last 2 frames, and added a couple of frames that have the character get taller just to give it more bounce.

[Danvzare]

Explain: you mean his steps are too long?

Like Cassie said, I meant his torso and head.
To me it looks like it's constantly jumping to the right, just a tad too much.

[Monsieur OUXX]

Well, in your case you have a 12 frame animation, so I would try something like this:
[imgzoom]http://i.imgur.com/19SxjbP.gif[/imgzoom]

I made the low points last 2 frames, and added a couple of frames that have the character get taller just to give it more bounce.

Thanks!

[Monsieur OUXX]

Moving forward: you could believe that just ripping an walkcycle from a commercial game is easy, but no. Look at these: what do you say?

The "back" one looks like the character is hopping isn't it?

[imgzoom]https://www.dropbox.com/s/9btfb3dfipim6g4/thedig_back_height61-%28orig%29.gif?raw=1[/imgzoom]

[imgzoom]https://www.dropbox.com/s/l369cgabo8c205g/thedig_front_height61-%28orig%29.gif?raw=1[/imgzoom]

[Danvzare]

However my attemps at adding the bumping have failed because it's only 6 frames, which means 3 frames for each side, which means the bumping can be only one frame long and looks too short.

I actually rather like it, and don't think it's too short.
Besides, in an adventure game you almost always only see the side walk views anyway.
Usually because most of the walking takes place horizontally, rather than vertically.

[Monsieur OUXX]

[imgzoom]http://i.imgur.com/19SxjbP.gif[/imgzoom]

Hey would you mind sharing the Photoshop file? I don't know how to extract the frames. (you can send in PM if you want)

[CaesarCub]

I'm afraid there is none, I just opened your gif file with aseprite and edited and saved it as a new gif file.
All I did was select and move down (and up) some parts of the image, you can even see how I forgot to fill out the parts moved in one of the frames.
Can't Photoshop open gifs?

[Monsieur OUXX]

Still not satisifed with the side one: the steps are huge, and the trousers' shading is awful.
[imgzoom]https://www.dropbox.com/s/1bx5vze3uahlg4z/thedig_side_height54_slimtrousers_02_AGSpaintover.gif?raw=1[/imgzoom]


[imgzoom]https://www.dropbox.com/s/9rj6bo4b3pa36l9/thedig_front_height54_slimtrousers-slimshoulders.gif?raw=1[/imgzoom]

the arm on the right is a bit wobbly
[imgzoom]https://www.dropbox.com/s/60g1fu88xbuvtz3/thedig_back_height54_shorterlegs_slimtrousers-slimshoulders.gif?raw=1[/imgzoom]

[Cassiebsg]

If you want smaller steps, don't extend his leg full out.
Ah, yes I can see the problem on the arm.

[Trample Pie]

I spent a little time editing your walk I hope you like it!



I accidentally destroyed the shadows though, whoops...

I do all my animating in Aseprite but I tried turning it into a photoshop file for you here.

[BunnyDeFluff]

Good job Trample Pie. You made the whole walking sequence looks far smoother now. I think that op animation looks wrong because the centre of the character was not placed correctly inside the frame box.

[Danvzare]

Wow, that looks a LOT better Trample Pie.
And you've fixed the one problem I noticed in the walk animation regarding the jitteriness of the torso.

I love it.

[Monsieur OUXX]

I think it looks a lot better indeed, but I have to tell you a secret : the yellow tshirt will not be a tshirt in the final animation. It will be a thick leather jacket. Which means that what appears here as flesh is actually the jacket itself (with a thinner guy inside). the final character will be much less beefy. Therefore the head moving forward and back is a bit disturbing with that goal in mind, because now the character has a very heavy walk. What says you?

[Trample Pie]

It's hard for me to say without seeing the jacket, but if you don't want a heavy walk I've gotten rid of the head movement in this gif:

[imgzoom]http://i.imgur.com/2oWMQJT.gif[/imgzoom]

Edit by Andail: added zoom to image.

[Andail]

Why are his head and torso moving back and forth?
Humans typically proceed with uniform speed as we walk, we don't pulsate forward.

[Snarky]

Indeed:

Spoiler

[embed=640,480]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBp6lfPy5wU[/embed]

[close]

(See how the shoulders are only moving up and down, without almost any backwards/forwards motion.)

In a sneaking walk someone might be bending forward on the step, but this uneven forward motion of the whole body just doesn't appear warranted. (And doesn't it make animation a whole lot easier that you don't have to deal with back-and-forth motion in the frame?)

[Monsieur OUXX]

Men with broad heavy shoulders have more inertia in their shoulders, therefore the whole upper body slightly twists when they walk, and the shoulders move slightly back and forth; that was the case of the character with the yellow t-shirt, but that's not the type of weight that we want the final character to have.

@Trample pie: your latest edit is just perfect.

[Snarky]

I wasn't talking about the twisting of the shoulders, which is fine, but the point Andail made about the whole torso and head moving left and right in the frame. In your animations the effect is so enormous that it looks like some sort of mistake, while in Trample Pie's edit it's much reduced, to the point where someone might wonder if that's indeed how the torso and head move while walking (slowing down and speeding up the forward movement on each step). The video demonstrates that it is not. There's perhaps some slight variation in the motion of the hips, but the upper torso moves forward at a steady pace (or on a treadmill, stands still), as can be seen in the video by focusing on the motion of the shoulders.

[Danvzare]

Why didn't you just draw him with a jacket to start with?
Wouldn't it be easier to animate him if you did?

[Monsieur OUXX]

@Snarky : I'll try to fix it but I'm not sure I see it. EDIT: are you talking about the fact that the torso+head move one pixel to the left during a few frames?
@Danvzare: because I'm a bad animator and I had to start from something relatively fluid: namely, "The Dig" character walkcycle. And in that game all the male characters look like stereotypical bodybuilders.

[Monsieur OUXX]

So how about this?

[imgzoom]http://www.dropbox.com/s/38gv0ozvq7ohf86/side2.gif?raw=1[/imgzoom]

[selmiak]

looks elegantly goofy. The legs are okay, but the shoulders swing too much. Or he would tilt his head when moving the shoulders so much, which means more different pixels for the face. also not desireable.

[Monsieur OUXX]

Current progress :

[imgzoom]http://www.dropbox.com/s/77h819nh99b041p/side3.gif?raw=1[/imgzoom]

I think I've reduced and smoothed the shoulder move a lot, but let me know if you still find it awkward.
Also, some people have told me that the character looks like a shorty with big hair. do you have this feeling?

[[delete}]

the character looks like a shorty with big hair

"It's not the height, Honey. It's the mileage."

[Monsieur OUXX]

Current progress :

SIDE
[imgzoom]http://www.dropbox.com/s/jzq71tphhqk3t2t/side4_smallersteps.gif?raw=1[/imgzoom]

I think I've reduced and smoothed the shoulder move a lot, but let me know if you still find it awkward. I've reduced the size of the steps as well.
Also, some people have told me that the character looks like a shorty with big hair. do you have this feeling?

FRONT
[imgzoom]http://www.dropbox.com/s/1snud9ty8mb53q9/front3.gif?raw=1[/imgzoom]

BACK
[imgzoom]http://www.dropbox.com/s/0g6ie9m5eq3x4nq/back2.gif?raw=1[/imgzoom]