5 tips for making great animations for 2D games

[Nando]

YMMV

http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/176663/5_tips_for_making_great_animations_for_2D_games.php#.UIayA2_A-5L

Intro from the article:
In this era dominated by 3D games, when even the latest versions of Street Fighter and Super Mario Bros. are made up of polygonized characters, quality sprite-based 2D games are rare.

Many now consider the process behind making beautifully animated productions like Metal Slug or Aladdin to be a lost art, forgotten and undervalued as developers chased the excitement and economy of 3D graphics.

But there are still a handful of gorgeous sprite-based games that release every once in a blue moon, and a few have had the fingerprints of animator Paul Robertson all over them, like Ubisoft Montreal's highly-regarded Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: The Game.

Robertson's style is immediately recognizable, featuring short and stocky figures that look like River City Ransom characters brought up to modern standards, with much more detail and personality packed into each frame.

His latest work can be found in Mercenary Kings, a soon-to-be-Kickstartered 2D run'n gun developed by the Ubisoft Montreal veterans at Tribute Games (Wizorb). Jonathan "Persona-sama" Kim, also an animator on Scott Pilgrim and other titles like Skullgirls, is on board for the PC title, too.

[sunteam_paul]

I hate that guy. He has far too much talent.

[nodtveidt]

[Nando]

I hate that guy. He has far too much talent.

RIGHT!

[Edmond Dantes]

I kind of disagree with him about one thing:  the "always be moving" part.  There are certain styles and types of characters who just look wrong if they're constantly animating.  Sometimes a "stiff" character works.

Other than that, seems like some solid advice.

[Nando]

I kind of disagree with him about one thing:  the "always be moving" part.  There are certain styles and types of characters who just look wrong if they're constantly animating.  Sometimes a "stiff" character works.

Other than that, seems like some solid advice.

I don't know about that. I guess if you want to take it "RETRO" you could have a "stiff" character, but even then, the stiffness was due to the limitations of the platforms.

Even the smallest amount of animation helps. An eye blink, small "breathing" like movements.  Secondary animation is pretty important.

[soop]

[Nando]

LMAO! Awesomeness!

[Arkhan]

I hate that guy. He has far too much talent.

I prefer your art style, and I'm not just saying that because you draw all my shit for me. 

[Edmond Dantes]

I don't know about that. I guess if you want to take it "RETRO" you could have a "stiff" character, but even then, the stiffness was due to the limitations of the platforms.

Even the smallest amount of animation helps. An eye blink, small "breathing" like movements.  Secondary animation is pretty important.

Wanting to look retro is one reason for "stiffness," but another could be context.

I see your Steamboat Willy there, and that works... for Steamboat Willie.  If you had someone from Spawn, Batman the Animated Series or Transformers bobbing around like that though, it would look rather... wrong.  Also anime has shown how sometimes stillness can be artistic (Vampire Hunter D is a very good example of this).

[Nando]

I don't know about that. I guess if you want to take it "RETRO" you could have a "stiff" character, but even then, the stiffness was due to the limitations of the platforms.

Even the smallest amount of animation helps. An eye blink, small "breathing" like movements.  Secondary animation is pretty important.

Wanting to look retro is one reason for "stiffness," but another could be context.

I see your Steamboat Willy there, and that works... for Steamboat Willie.  If you had someone from Spawn, Batman the Animated Series or Transformers bobbing around like that though, it would look rather... wrong.  Also anime has shown how sometimes stillness can be artistic (Vampire Hunter D is a very good example of this).

I think we are approaching it from two different angles. But I hear what you are saying and I agree, the animation need to fit the character. What I am trying to convey is that there needs to be some sort of motion present. That's just one of the basics of animation. In games, a good example to look at is Samus in Metroid Zero mission. There's some slight secondary animation going on ("bounce") when her sprite is standing still. Not much but enough to give her sprite "life."

[soop]

Here's something; have you ever noticed that a screen on pause is different from a live feed where nothing is happening?  Say like CCTV of an empty room.  If you pause it, the pixels stop fuzzing around.

[Joe Redifer]

That's just noise. Depending on the quality of your lens, the amount of light and the cost of your image sensor you may not even see a difference between pause and play. Noise should not be attempted on sprites, though.

[Arkhan]

Rastan Duder would look stupid if he had idle animations.

He's basically a walking erection with a sword.

[Nando]

Rastan Duder would look stupid if he had idle animations.

He's basically a walking erection with a sword.