The Animation Week – Bringing the mole to life… and death
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For this week, I spent the time with doing various animations for the mole, using key frame animation. So let’s go with the digging animation. In friday last week, I got some useful drafts from one of the members on how to make it. The animation would be superfast and consist of at least four frames. When I asked how to approach with the Dig up-animation, I got the response that it would not be needed for now, but maybe later. For this week, I would focus on the dig down-animation, since that’s the most important of the two. I made a total of five frames. One when the mole stands forward, one when he starts to dive down the erupted hole, one when half of his body is under the ground, one when only his tail is visible, and the last one when only the hole is left. .png){kind=icon} Like this.
.gif){kind=icon} After I finished the digging-animation, I immediately started with the death-animation. Me and the team agreed that the animation would not be brutal and bloody, since this game is aimed at a young audience.
My interpretation of it would be that when the mole gets the killing blow (by the gardener or the water), his eyes would pop out (almost like he’s getting really stoned) and his whiskers starts twirling. After that, he rolls to the side with his mouth open wide and stretches out his tongue. And then he lies dead on his back, still with his mouth open. My first version of it consisted of only three keyframes. One where he gets the killing blow, one when he rolls to the side and one when he lies dead on his back.
 Like this.
 But then I thought that it was to fast, and the rolling keyframe needed to be changed. So I tweeked it and made two additional keyframes when he rolls.  And now, I think this is much better.
.gif){kind=icon} The final animation for this week is the idle-aniamtion, when the mole stands still. So I wanted to breath, but it didn’t turn on so well.
 Now he looks like a balloon-animal. :/
 So I really need to tweak this one, a lot. One of the members gave me the idea that the mole would crawl up like a dog of some sorts, when he doesn’t move, Maybe I’ll consider it, but I still want the mole to breath so that he does not look like a statue.
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