So the animations are going to be terrible again? Boo. : V

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 4:28 pm

So one of the most immersion-breaking elements of Bethesda games for me have been the animations. They've always been stiff, unnatural and awkward, and it looks like it will be the same again in Skyrim - particularly where humanoid NPCs are concerned. I thought and had hoped that with the joining of Beth and id that they might borrow a better animation system from id, but it doesn't look like it. I think animations are the area where Bethesda are lagging the most.

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 7:54 am

i dunno, they looked like a MAJOR improvement from oblivion and fallout 3. especially the guy lifting the log in the leaked footage.

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 5:25 pm

Yes, they do look improved. But at the same time, the human NPC animations, not those of your own character, look terrible. That combat stuff shows it well. The guy grinding the axe looks like a mannequin.

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 1:09 pm

You are just Ungrateful, Look at them compared to Oblivion and Morrowind, Then come back here and tell us what you think

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 1:40 pm

Animations look great to me?

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 1:57 pm

My reaction to this thread: :brokencomputer:
The animations are fine, I see nothing wrong with them. It's not like I've seen a game that showcases awesome animations, Skyrim is just as good as others.

Edit:
Go play Morrowind, I'm sure you'll realize how much of an improvement it is.

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 5:06 pm

I disagree, I thought they looked great and vastly improved.

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 12:57 pm

They look good, a huge improvement over Oblivion.

I'm happy with the way they look.

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 12:44 pm

You are just Ungrateful, Look at them compared to Oblivion and Morrowind, Then come back here and tell us what you think

Oh please. They were terrible in Oblivion and Fallout 3 too. Saying they look better than that gets no reward. Perhaps you just don't play any games other than Elder Scolls, but Beths animations are among the worst of the industry.

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 10:29 am

Stop crying. They look miles better.. If your so concerned with just a few animations go play My Little Pony or something.

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 4:59 pm

i dunno, they looked like a MAJOR improvement from oblivion and fallout 3. especially the guy lifting the log in the leaked footage.

Indeed. I'm not seeing the issue here.

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 1:22 pm

i dunno, they looked like a MAJOR improvement from oblivion and fallout 3. especially the guy lifting the log in the leaked footage.

Yes. For whatever random video game someone wants to compare it to, it may have looked "humdrum", but for a Bethesda game it looked incredible. Hell, many of the dragon animations look utterly fantastic too, and nowhere near what you would have expected to come from the creators of Morrowind and Oblivion--and they are the largest creatures in the game (that we know of).

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 5:29 am

Yeah OP, there's nothing wrong with NPC's skidding/floating up or down hills. It's SKYRIM, so the ice everywhere makes it believeable. Plus Magic.

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 11:25 am

I agree with you on the guy sharpening the axe. He should've at least been keeping his eye on what he was doing...

Other than that, animations are TONS better.

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 6:18 pm

Compared to Oblivion/Fallout 3, obviously it's a major improvement. Compared to other games today, I think the animations look fine.

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 2:59 pm

The only animations IMO that were strange is the dunmer archer sliding around.

The guy picking up the log looked very unnatural to me. They should have two men lifting the log on each side. The way he lifted it over his head was really unrealistic.

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 2:50 pm

I'm personaly quite pleased with the new animations. Dragons look amazing and the third person camera seems like a legitimate option now.

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 6:42 pm

Oh please. They were terrible in Oblivion and Fallout 3 too. Saying they look better than that gets no reward. Perhaps you just don't play any games other than Elder Scolls, but Beths animations are among the worst of the industry.

Your criticisms of the animations aren't even backed up, what didn't you like, are they too stiff? What game have you played that has much greater animations? All you're saying is that they "were terrible and Oblivion and Fallout 3 too. Saying they look better than that gets no reward". What if it looks extremely improved? What if one game had horrible animations, but the sequel has the best animations ever? Are you saying there is no reward for that too?

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 5:09 am

So one of the most immersion-breaking elements of Bethesda games for me have been the animations. They've always been stiff, unnatural and awkward, and it looks like it will be the same again in Skyrim - particularly where humanoid NPCs are concerned. I thought and had hoped that with the joining of Beth and id that they might borrow a better animation system from id, but it doesn't look like it. I think animations are the area where Bethesda are lagging the most.

Blame Havok more than anything really. Yes Havok for these types of games have potential to be better than something like Euphoria so some of the blame is on BGS.

That said Havok Physics has never impressed me.

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 12:50 pm

The only animation/lack thereof that bothered me was the sliding. Still, for an alpha, and a Bethesda game, those animations are a HUGE leap.

Compared to other games, the animations are still actually quite good considering the amount of content that goes into this game.

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 8:05 am

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKCerijbsW8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBWrCSIXpnE&NR=1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xs131hClzfw&NR=1

/thread

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 6:18 am

Yes. For whatever random video game someone wants to compare it to, it may have looked "humdrum", but for a Bethesda game it looked incredible. Hell, many of the dragon animations look utterly fantastic too, and nowhere near what you would have expected to come from the creators of Morrowind and Oblivion--and they are the largest creatures in the game (that we know of).

It's the human animations that are so tacky. I don't think Bethesda should be getting a free pass just because they're animations traditionally looked awful. They're still very poor and they definitely have the budget to make them comparative in quality to other modern games. It seems to be an area that they just don't care to invest time and money in, and it really lessens the impression of their product.

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 5:41 am

Animations remain weak compared to, say, the campaign on a corridor shooter like COD, where the NPC behavior is all heavily scripted and your own behavior is highly constrained. They can just mo-cap everything and it looks quite realistic. (Shooter multiplayer modes are a different story, of course--you see all kinds of "unnatural" movements in those).

In a game like Skyrim you just have to accept some tradeoffs. And as everyone above me points out, they do continue to show improvement in this department.

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 8:05 am

i think you're just whiny.

the animations are really great.

» Mon Aug 08, 2011 6:29 am

OP could you give us a game of which you believe the animations are great. Please dont include games like Crysis since it is apples to oranges as far as content and type. A large open-world game will suffice. I think the animations are greatly improved, but by no means about to set the industry ablaze...