Character blitheness

Inkscape tutorial

This is a basic introduction to character animations in Inkscape. Patently, this is just i way of doing animations. It's very like to old school cut out animations. Though, information technology might not be as fluid as hand drawn animations or 3D work. Its straight forward arroyo makes it easy to follow. In short, it works quickly and quite well with small size sprites.

Creating the [soon to be animated] caveman

Basically, information technology'southward the same procedure used in the 'creating a game graphic symbol' tutorial. I added complication in the facial features. Also, the setup of the limps is contradistinct.

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The Head

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Let's offset with some circles for the principal shape of the face and the eyes.

Group the centre, duplicate and mirror it. Calibration it down and position the smaller heart at the right edge of the face.

Add together another circle, modify the right node to class the ear.

Using the line tool draw an arrow shape with four lines. Convert the lines to curves and modify them.

Two circles create high-lights on the ears. Two squares grade some thick eyebrows.

A circle becomes the neck and some other i the nose. Use a gradient fill up on the nose and curve the nodes.

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2Dgameartguru - character animation

A circle at the bottom of the stack forms the base of the hair. The hairline ist created from a triangle. Another two circles at the top will make the beard.

Deform the hair and add some gradient fill to add depth.
Side by side, 2 more circles make the oral fissure and teeth…

…and 3 more than for a pony tail (placed behind all other shapes – Page downwards) along with some transparent shapes for highlights.

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The Body and Setup

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Modify another circle for the leg…

… and create a smaller duplicate for the lower leg. Create the human knee by adding a flake more curve.

The feet are based on one plain-featured circle with two mirrored copies. Lastly, group these objects and gear up the pivot to the talocrural joint.

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The artillery and hands are just modified circles. Duplicate the limbs and darken the slightly to add some depth.

Group the caput and adjust the pivot points of the separate objects and yous have the basic character.

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Note:
I mirrored the limbs in the epitome to a higher place just to prove the 'exploded' torso setup. In that location is no need for that when you utilise the elements in a side-on view [both feet should bespeak in the same direction].

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The Layers

So far we just worked on 1 layer. To do the ani-mations nosotros will make use of inkscape'due south layer abilities.

Creating a new stance will be a lot easier by keeping the objects on unlike layers and copying the changes from opinion to stance as they are created.

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Arranging the objects in a basic opinion.

Bring up the layer panel via Layer / Layers or SHIFT & CTRL & Fifty.

Our caveman is currently on layer i – by clicking the middle icon he volition 'disappear'.

The lock icon blocks the objects on the layer from beingness selectable or editable.

The opacity allows adjusting a layer'due south transparency.

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2Dgameartguru - character animation

Create a new layer using the plus icon.
In the 'Add Layer Box' proper noun the layer and select the 'Above current' option.

Click on Layer 1 in the Layers panel and select all the objects (CTRL & A) and re-create them (Edit/ Re-create or CTRL & C).

Select Layer 2 and paste the objects in place (Edit/ Paste in Place or CTRL & ALT & 5).

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The Layers (connected)

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Gear up the opacity of the first layer down to 25% and lock the layer.

Select the Layer 2 and motility an object (e.g. the head).

The layer setup allows you to work on the animation while keeping rail of the past frames.

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2Dgameartguru - character animation

After irresolute a pose copy it to the next layer, lock the onetime ane and reduce it'southward opacity.

Turn the visibility of your current layer on and off to test your blitheness steps.

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Annotation:
I piece of work quite a lot with CorelDraw. As result, I capeesh the multiple folio setup of CorelDraw documents. Instead of layering animations you just place them on separate pages. Flick through them to check your progress with easy.
The program fifty-fifty alows you export all the pages in one layered bitmap file. Idealy, keeping layers and pages separated.


Animative:
If you first out animating information technology's helpful to become with some more basic animations start. There is zilch wrong with the 'mad-kung-fu-360-tiger-meets-dragon-in-mid-air-motility' but it might be a little frustrating to start with.
Think simple and create something you can apply in your game.  This way you keep motivated and focused.
I examination a character'due south setup with a simple idle animation. Usually, followed by a walking examination.

Note:
It's always helpful to check out references.  Poses, animations or colours are covered in heaps of tutorials. A lot of the reference will prove y'all a simplyfied setup. This makes it a little easier than working off memory or your own experiences.

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After setting upwards the technical side – let'southward go and attack some animations front on…

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The Start steps

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We start out walk animation with the front leg stepping down and aim for an eight frame walk bike.

Every bit the body is going downwardly a niggling during a step movement all merely the anxiety objects downwardly (Arrow keys).

… and start rotating the upper legs to make the footstep. Rotate the lower legs and motility them into position

Next are the artillery – kickoff with the rotation of the upper arms and adjust the lower artillery accordingly.

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2Dgameartguru - character animation

This is the start frame and likewise the 9th frame in the animation again as we want to brand.
Copy the objects to a new layer and lock the old layer and set information technology's opacity depression.

Afterward the first frame the forepart leg will become downward. The back leg moves up while the artillery swing slightly back to the centre.

the head goes down a piffling more than (to it's lowest indicate in the walk cycle). For the walk information technology's essential to keep the feet level.

Again we copy the objects to a new layer and lock the old 1 to go along the animation on the copied elements.

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The First steps (connected)

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Now we movement the head back up a lilliputian every bit the back human foot moves forward and front end foot moves dorsum.

The back knee is leading the legs motion – condign visible with the front limbs taken off.

With 4 frames down it'due south the center of the walk.

The adjacent frame is similar to the beginning frame with 'reversed' arms and legs. The front arm and the back leg are at present moved forward.

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2Dgameartguru - character animation

This is the commencement frame and also the ninth frame in the animation again as we desire to make.
Copy the objects to a new layer and lock the former layer and prepare it's opacity low.

After the starting time frame the front end leg volition go down. The back leg moves upwardly while the arms swing slightly back to the middle.

Now we plough to Layer ii as reference. Arrange the arms and legs to mirror this pose.

It's the same with frame 7 which matches the third frame.

Finally, frame 8 is the pose from frame 4 with swapped artillery and legs.

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Finally, this is a scaled down version of what the walk cycle looks like:


I promise you enjoyed this addition and information technology gave yous some ideas how to have fun with vectors.


Get the source art (svg file) of this tutorial for costless!

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Update:

Later on all that, I have to admit that this tutorial was fun, I still like it only it'southward obsolete as far every bit the animation goes. In the years since this tutorial was written a lot has happened in 2D animations for games. With tools similar spine, spriter, dragonbones (only to proper name a few) as well as the power to animate right in the game engines of east.thousand. Krita or Unity, it makes very little sense to get through the pains of animating direct in Inkscape. Exporting the parts to separate pngs and taking them into the animation tool of your choice is the smarter way.)