Walk animation

[Arne]

This is probably my first 8 frame walk animation. I've never really animated more than a few frames before.

I used the Space Quest 1 space suit for reference...
http://www.mobygames.com/game/amiga/space-quest-the-sarien-encounter/screenshots/gameShotId,266177/

... and a tutorial page on walk animations.
http://www.idleworm.com/how/anm/02w/walk1.shtml



So, here are my problems:

- Too big steps, almost a half run. This is probably easy to remedy though.
- While I did go for somewhat female proportions on the figure, the animation is not very feminine. Perhaps the figure is too hunched for that.
- The hands jerk. I could not quite figure out how to smooth recoil->passing, but I think the elbow needs to straighten out. (Marked them with color, they should be skin tone.) (Are they in the most extreme position during contact?)
- I don't know which frames the head should turn, or if it should turn at all.
- Needs more subpixel movement.
- backback/jetpack is too static.
- Should anything be done with horizontal movement (Head? Leaning the torso?).

So, I'm guessing, smaller steps, head back with dignity. Hands attached more loosely so they follow the arms rather than lead them. Less bobbing/stomping. More torso twist (although I'd need to mark the hip and shoulder with a detail to do that more effectively).

[ptoing]

Looking pretty good so far.

- I don't know which frames the head should turn, or if it should turn at all.

Only thing you have to do is try and walk a bit yourself and consciously observe how you move, or watch other people walk.
In most cases you surely would not move your head because you are looking where you are walking, which is straight ahead in most cases.

[Ben2theEdge]

Girls generally walk with more sway and less bounce. Little girls' mothers teach them to be very conscious of their posture when they walk so usually there is very very little head bob, and arms gracefully sway back and forth with loose elbows and wrists. Feet touch down gently, the opposite of "stomping" if you will.

[Arne]

Yeah, this thing was animated as a cartoon character, and I admit to turning the head just to make it a bit less static overall. I'll see if I can sketch a new one up. Maybe there's a female walk cycle on the net I could use as reference though...

[Arne]

Attempt to adress some of the issues. I tried to use the hair to make the head more lively. Still a bit stompy.

[willfaulds]

A little stompy but full of character (they look determined)

I love the hand movement on the women - but it doesn't match the legs - I feel the arms look a bit like shes skipping - certainly walking carefree.

But are those space suits and are they heavy? If so the stompynss is fine.

[Arne]

The legs are a bit bent all of the time, perhaps they should be straitened out in the contact frame at least. The walk is kind of 'sloppy' now, yeah.

I wanted the +-1px vertical bobbing, even though it's a bit extreme and adds to the stompyness.

[Arachne]

I really don't see why everyone likes that idleworm tutorial so much. My main gripe with it isn't that it's exaggerated, it's that it only applies to cartoon characters with very big (and strong) feet. The reason the character bobs is because it pushes itself up on its toes. In reality, the bobbing is due to simple trigonometry. When the legs are spread, the vertical component is shorter than when the legs are together.

Here's a more realistic take on it.



Edit: Oops, their legs got way shorter.

[robotacon]

I don't like those tutorials either but that's only because I'm brainwashed by the Animators Survival Kit.

I'm no ace animator but...

Straighten the leg on contact where the heel hits the ground.
Make the foot travel 3 pixel on each frame for a smoother motion.
Don't raise the head after the passing point where both feet and hands switch sides.
Consider lowering the body on the contact frame instead because at that's when the characters feet are the longest distance apart which at this scale would be similar to the catch frame where he bends his knees.
Look at the hands and how far they travel in each frame and make sure they follow a smooth curve.
The turning head makes the character more alive but I'm generally against it.

[Arne]

Thanks! I'll take those points into consideration. I think it looks better. Yeah, one reason why I bent the legs was to make them a bit longer, but that wasn't very smart, I should've made the character 1px taller instead, or something. The offset of the head height makes a lot more sense if it's at the lowest point during contact, yeah. I'm not sure why I didn't see that. Perhaps because I was staring at a tutorial rather than thinking.

The reason why that tutorial is popular is because it shows up easily on google. I found that its cartoony approach didn't apply to some of the things which I wanted to do, and the arm movements were confusing.

Edit: I've been looking at Day of the Tentacle. This sprite was made in a simple flat style, somewhat like that in the Space Quest games. It's easier to work with flats when the animation is more important. I think it would be interesting to try a larger Day of the Tentacle style too though. It seems that they use less frames for the walk animations (contact and passing?). I also like how the almost abstract backgrounds keeps things loose and perhaps contributes to diminishing issues with character staying the same size even if they are further away in a room.

(There are DotT videos on YouTube, and vgmaps has the various screens.)