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[Kyuugatsu]

Hi! I've made this animation in Photoshop of a top-down character (currently headless):



I get the feeling that something is not quite right here, but I can't figure out what it is. Please help!

 

[eerr]

Well first off, he looks like he's power striding. Is that intentional?

[Kyuugatsu]

It's supposed to be more of a jog.

[Bad_Dude 2017]

his torso is super wide, is this intentional?

[Kyuugatsu]

his torso is super wide, is this intentional?

No, I'm trying for normal proportions...you think that might be it?

Based on eerr's "power stride" comment I tried adding a bit of a bounce so it looks more like a jog:

[Kyuugatsu]

With a less wide torso and a much more exaggerated bounce:

[_glitch]

The torso looks much better now! But the bounce is a bit too much.

[Bad_Dude 2017]

male pelvis is approximately same width as ribcage and in your case pelvis may fit 2 times inside torso

i would also recommend to draw head. Human mind reads figure proportions with head size for comparison. Maybe because of that you didnt notice how tiny arms and legs are.

[ryansumo]

You could also do with extending the legs a litle further forward.  Right now it looks like your character is taking baby steps forward.

You arms are also looking a bit stiff.  Here's a quick tip when animating the human body, do the actual movements yourself!  So right now try mimicking the act of running and jogging.  Then afterwards try actually mimicking your animation as it is.  I think you'll then realize how weirdly stiff it looks and why someone suggested that it looked like a power stride.

Good luck, and please post your progress!

[Kyuugatsu]

male pelvis is approximately same width as ribcage and in your case pelvis may fit 2 times inside torso

i would also recommend to draw head. Human mind reads figure proportions with head size for comparison. Maybe because of that you didnt notice how tiny arms and legs are.

Thanks for the tips and the useful graphic! I realize the torso might still be too big after my edit, but I'm trying to get a bit of perspective in. Let me know if it's too much!

You could also do with extending the legs a litle further forward.  Right now it looks like your character is taking baby steps forward.

You arms are also looking a bit stiff.  Here's a quick tip when animating the human body, do the actual movements yourself!  So right now try mimicking the act of running and jogging.  Then afterwards try actually mimicking your animation as it is.  I think you'll then realize how weirdly stiff it looks and why someone suggested that it looked like a power stride.

Good luck, and please post your progress!

Extended legs:



I didn't quite understand your "stiff arms" comment, although I did try to incorporate some more "swingy"-ness towards the high point of the arm - not sure if it's even noticeable.

I think most people have relatively stiff arms when jogging properly with their chest up...

If you could explain what you meant, I could probably do better!

[Kyuugatsu]

A version with an added head/hat, but a lower framerate, and a few other tweaks:



Seems to be worse than the last one (maybe a bit lifeless because of the lack of bounce)?

Did I put the head too far in the front?

[Kyuugatsu]

I'm redrawing from the basics because I keep screwing up the proportions. This is what I got after not just redrawing, but having to cut paste and mangle:  



I think I've created an optical illusion here, because even though it's supposed to be a guy running (feet), it can look like this thing.

I should probably make the legs even closer than this.

[Kyuugatsu]

Can't tell if it's getting better or worse. Looks like a nifty machine part.

[ｂ∀ ｋｋｕｓａ]

try putting this on motion in a small mock-up test. i have checked up a few top-down games including hotline miami, and if looking closely , animations are a bit off but once in motion i feels natural.

[Kyuugatsu]

try putting this on motion in a small mock-up test. i have checked up a few top-down games including hotline miami, and if looking closely , animations are a bit off but once in motion i feels natural.

That's not a bad idea, I'll put it in the game eventually, I'm already using an older animation in there, which I made quite hastily.

Not really a fan of Hotline Miami's animation style, it's a bit sloppy imo. I think they needed to do it that way for various reasons, though, such as being able to face/walk in different directions.

Current version:



Almost beginning to feel like I know what I'm doing.

[Kyuugatsu]

Okay, probably going to roll with this version for now, unless you see any flaws worth fixing:



Thanks for all your help, I think I became a 1000% better animator in this thread.

[diegzumillo]

This is a pretty awkward angle to animate. I have no mental reference to compare against.

My suggestion for animation is always to look for some reference or make one yourself with a camera. I found this: https://br.pinterest.com/pin/688065649288994599/ maybe it helps.

[Shambrook]

It's supposed to be more of a jog.

The key difference between a run and a walk is that during a run both feet leave the ground at the same time. You also lean forward during a run so that you'd be able to see a bit of the charecters back.

I've done a quick run cycle from the top to give you an idea.

Hope it helps.

[Kyuugatsu]

It's supposed to be more of a jog.

The key difference between a run and a walk is that during a run both feet leave the ground at the same time. You also lean forward during a run so that you'd be able to see a bit of the charecters back.

I've done a quick run cycle from the top to give you an idea.

Hope it helps.
http://imgur.com/ltXYy2w

Thanks for this! diegzumillo's reference helps too.

This isn't the only animation in my game, I'm foreseeing a long road ahead.

[chriswearly]

One of the features of a jog or run is a slight lean forward to continuously propel the top-half forward in sync with the legs pumping. So, perhaps seeing a smidge of the lower-back? 

If you are able, as I always recommend, get a real-life reference. Have someone on a ladder next to you on a treadmill and just record 30 seconds of the top-down angle of you walking/jogging/running. It'll help a ton.