A Plea To Fix Run/Strafe Animations

Disclaimer: Yes, yes I know everything is super pre-aplha etc. etc.

I just want to point out that the current implementation of strafe animations look really unnatural. It appears the animators are under this impression that strafing requires the character's body to be completely facing forward while running side-to-side. This forces the character into a weird side lateral shuffle. Instead, the character's body should turn to face the direction the body is moving. The head can then be turned to face the direction of the camera in order to keep a sense of direction the player is focusing on.

You can see the weird strafe animation I am referring to here: https://youtu.be/uFA4gN-GD2E?t=1354

For reference on a cleaner strafe implementation, Black Desert does a decent job at addressing the issue. I made a short clip so you can see what I'm talking about: https://youtu.be/3vydl_e3RaU

I'm sure polish such as run animations will be at the end of the list of things to complete before release, but I thought it wouldn't hurt to make this post on the off chance it wasn't something on their radar! Can't wait to play this game!

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Comments

maouw

I think this depends on how the rest of combat is designed.

If they make flanking/backstabbing an important part of combat, or skills that behave differently if cast in front of you vs to your side, then current strafing is good.
Otherwise I agree, I'd like to see head turning.

Jirue

Just noticed... FFXIV, WoW, and GW2 also does the torso/body rotation head forward thing like BDO. AoC is I think in the minority animation wise to do side steps without rotating the body very much. Curious which games do not do that little animation adjustment, now that you've pointed it out.

Saedu

I 100% agree. The stopping animation seems a bit odd as well like the character is trying to overcorrect their position.

Vhaeyne

I don't have a problem with the current strafing animation. It seems pretty normal to me.

Not something that I think needs to be addressed. If IG wants to improve it that is fine, but the animation is good enough.

Javionn

To me, as long as you can tell which direction the other player is going then it’s fine; at least for me. For Honor does it just like this if you’re targeting an enemy. I guess if you’re not targeting something, then have it to where the strafing is like bdo’s, other than that it’s fine.

Asgerr

I would also personally want to see a revamping of movement animations. Strafing and all the others.

They currently feel like the torso is stuck in place while the arms and legs move a litte. It feels clunky.

However, people having lobbed their opinions about this a million times, I'm sure they're aware of the general opinion. If they consider this to be a salient enough issue, they'll probably work on it later on. Although it won't be gamebreaking if they don't either.

Wingtzu

Some good opinions all around! As @Asgerr said, I'm sure this has been discussed a million times. However I subscribe to the belief that nailing core systems and mechanics only make a good, maybe great, MMO. If you truly want to create the best next gen MMO you have to think about the little things. Something as simple as more natural run animations might not seem like a big deal to many people (at least consciously), but all the "little things" add up and can lead to unexplainable "clunky" or "bad" feelings when playing.

I too think all the animations need a lot of work. However I thought it pertinent to bring this particular issue up now largely due to something @maouw mentioned. Assuming the character hitbox is directly tied to the character model (I actually hope it isn't like this), then changing the strafe animation approach would potentially change combat interactions greatly. This is something you'd want to address earlier rather than later. Otherwise, it could get too far down development and the cost-benefit for addressing this issue becomes less appealing, and it becomes just another "little thing" that would ultimately detract from the great potential this MMO has.

Grumsten

I have no problem with how it currently is. The one thing that can turn me off a game is when the whole character (head & body) turns to the direction you're strafing in like ESO. Drives me mad. I really like the way it looks in AoC right now though!

AntVictus

Nothing is even remotely in it's final phase right now, you'll probably see some improvements here and there. We don't need a call to fix something small every time someone sees something they don't like. Animations aren't 100% yet.

Sathrago

I mean, I honestly do not see this as a major issue this early on. Just look at the animations that have a lot of work put into them with some of the animals and mounts. This just needs more time to flesh out.

Vhaeyne

I don't see how anyone can have an issue with these animations to the point that we are pleading for change. I am not talking about how nothing is final here.

What if these specific animations are final? They are 100% satisfactory in their current state. You don't need to be blown away by every detail in a game. No masterpiece is ever perfect in every way.

I worry that if Intrepid takes threads like this too seriously. They could end up eternally reworking their game to appease a crowd that could never be satisfied.

Zyvan

There is seriously nothing wrong with the original post of this thread. It's a reasonable topic to bring up. The OP didn't make a big deal about it, just brought up a valid concern in a civil manner. No idea why this is being shot down lol.

Dygz

*meh*
The whole point of us gaining access to pre-Alpha and Alpha is to give the devs this kind of feedback.
I think I don't like the strafing pose either. It's probably not a deal-breaker, but I hope it gets changed.

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