First Pass Final Pass: making animation rock while on the indie clock
summary
Practical, example-driven rules for shipping playable animation fast: weight and timing are the priority — mass controls everything and timing is the closest thing to magic — shown by a 13‑keyframe rooftop leap (13 keyframes). Workflow tactics: favor IK/FK depending on intent, use minimal facial bones, clamp limits, add automatic curve overshoot, test transitions and root‑motion in Unity with proxy bones, reuse shared rigs where possible. Assault Android Cactus proves the approach scales from prototype to shipped game.
AI-written summary · about
chapters (25)
- 0:00Intro
- 0:22Who is Tim
- 1:02Short version of my games
- 1:32My approach to animation
- 3:40Animation example
- 5:02Weight
- 8:25Control
- 10:51Physics
- 13:46Variables
- 15:13Timing
- 18:22Gameplay
- 21:58Transitions
- 25:28Facial Animation
- 28:02Camera constraining
- 30:08Example
- 30:37General advice
- 33:31Fixing animation
- 38:50Polishing animation
- 42:34Time for questions
- 44:06Facial bones vs blend shapes
- 45:31Visualising animation when it is controlled by gameplay
- 47:39References
- 48:36Weight animations
- 49:26Career creative at the end
- 51:26Communication with programmers
related talks
23mTechnical Animation Challenges on Mobile Titles
55mCharacter Animation tips and tricks
26mThe Future of Animation in Unreal Engine
13mWhy Animation Is the Most Crucial Aspect of Games, Yet It's Neglected
27mBring It To Life - Game Animations Using Spine
33mMaking the Most of Animation Blueprints
31mRethinking 3D animation with akeytsu
26m2D Animation for Games the Notion Games Way!