Thoughts on the new model 'Animations'

[Queen of Hamsters]

Tauren have always looked very serious. Now they look like some crap out of a disney movie. From the run animation to the talk. I was hoping to race change to tauren after the racial balancing, but I'll be staying male troll because they remained true to the soul of male troll and didn't turn it into something it wasn't.

MAYBE they looked that way because, you know...they didn't have anything more to work with? You'll also notice how the pre-TBC character models were absolutely void of emotion apart from a few pasted face options with a permanent snarl or smile or whatever.

Now they have brought forth what they envisioned, and sorry to all the people afraid of "childish things" but still playing a 12+ game KNOWN for its cartoony style and for not taking itself too seriously, but you can always use the old models I suppose.

I love how the new models can display anything from goofiness to serious bloodthirst.

[Khorm]

When I first started playing Warcraft, I loved the combination of lore and a very strong artistical(sp?) design. It had a somewhat toony design, but remained very serious. I think Warcraft is losing some of that "seriousness" with these designs. The animations make it feel like my character is coming out of a pixar movie(with all due respect, there are some really great ones), but this is not what I originally "experienced" when I started playing Warcraft. The facial expressions don't really help much either imo.

I think the game could do with a little bit less childish-feeling stuff. But that's how I particularly enjoyed the game the most.

Yeah, lets give Warcraft an emo make over like Batman. Quick! Someone put up the Nolan sign, we need our hero in these dire childish times.

[Arenis]

Yeah, lets give Warcraft an emo make over like Batman. Quick! Someone put up the Nolan sign, we need our hero in these dire childish times.

That made absolutely no sense and has nothing to do with my comment whatsoever?

[Lollis]

I hate the new Gnome run animation, it is too aggressive and over-exaggerated and why the fuck does the female have to pull a stupid face when she is running?

[snuzzle]

Well I totally disagree. I love the way they feel and it feels like I'm inside a painting and an animated movie. The in game graphics are always given a goofy aspect that's supposed to look slightly ridiculous. But most of all, I love the new life it gives the old animations and feels like life and more soul to me, I think people either get it or don't just get it, Blizzard's maintained everything I feel while amping things up in a way I actually hoped for. This seems par for the course and exactly what I predicted and expected, as usual with this game, for a decade now.

I particularly LOVE the night elf run animation, and if they make it subdued in any way I will be disappointed. I wish you shared my enthusiasm, but that's just how things are I suppose. This is exactly what I expected, in fact I'm surprised not more was done in many instances, a lot of animations feel like copy paste jobs while others are filled with more poise and nuance and a sense of gravity and momentum.

I want more.
And I think anyone who thinks this is a shift away from the norm is simply out of touch with what the developers have valued going back 20 years.

See, you're still totally misunderstanding what I'm saying. I'm not saying this is a shift away from the norm, nor am I saying that goofy is bad. However, I think they need to adjust the level of goofiness to the race they're working with. The new undead female animation looks like she's skipping through a field of flowers. That doesn't fit her race. The new tauren male looks like a bubbly toddler when he's chatting. That doesn't fit his race.

I think they nailed it with some of the models... looking at, say, the new trolls (though the female's run still feels too stiff, and the male's has lost the "badass lope" feel) or the gnomes or dwarves. But if a race is supposed to be stoic, drop it down a notch. If a race is supposed to be graceful, try to ensure their motions are more efficient.

In truly good animation, you can see and feel different attitudes and personalities in each character. You don't give each one the same generic "angry" expression to all the characters, a stoic character will show less anger than someone with a brash temper. Part of why Warcraft's style is so overdone is because it's very theater-ish, you have to overemote to sell the act to the folks in the cheap seats. It's good to let players know immediately who is talking, who just aggro'd, or who is AFK easily from afar. In the past, we couldn't do that with facial expressions so we did it with overdone arm and body actions.

However, it seems now we're getting animations that are still more over the top, as well as exaggerated expressions. Which is fine, as long as they temper their hand to fit the race, which they are not consistently doing. It's a mistake to say that I or others feel the style is bad. Personally what I dislike is the current way they've applied the style.

- - - Updated - - -

MAYBE they looked that way because, you know...they didn't have anything more to work with? You'll also notice how the pre-TBC character models were absolutely void of emotion apart from a few pasted face options with a permanent snarl or smile or whatever.

Now they have brought forth what they envisioned, and sorry to all the people afraid of "childish things" but still playing a 12+ game KNOWN for its cartoony style and for not taking itself too seriously, but you can always use the old models I suppose.

I love how the new models can display anything from goofiness to serious bloodthirst.

No, tauren HAVE always been serious and stoic even in outside lore. Some of the males' animations are far too goofy. The females currently have a great balance of emotion in their animations (issues I have with their design aside) and I think that Blizz would do well to bring the males down a bit more to their level.

[UnluckyAmateur]

MAYBE they looked that way because, you know...they didn't have anything more to work with? You'll also notice how the pre-TBC character models were absolutely void of emotion apart from a few pasted face options with a permanent snarl or smile or whatever.

Now they have brought forth what they envisioned, and sorry to all the people afraid of "childish things" but still playing a 12+ game KNOWN for its cartoony style and for not taking itself too seriously, but you can always use the old models I suppose.

I love how the new models can display anything from goofiness to serious bloodthirst.

They run like giant gnomes.

[Trassk]

They run like giant gnomes.

As opposed to running like they have a stick up there ass you mean?

[tristannarutofan]

Aye, this is true. My problem is that Blizzard seems to have looked at this and decided to ramp it up to 11 for some things. I honestly can't run on my Night Elf without him flailing his arms back and forth like he's trying desperately to achieve lift-off.

I wish i could join in , in the conversation but you hyperbolizing it makes it very difficult.

I do know that in real life people's bodies move up and down when they run, not just their legs.

I know that dwarves and orcs have achieved this as well as female night elves.

Please explain what you are talking about.

[UnluckyAmateur]

As opposed to running like they have a stick up there ass you mean?

Gnomes run like that, Nelf Males have giant sticks up their asses.

[Deleted]

This is disturbing. Maraad, please stop...

[Khorm]

That made absolutely no sense and has nothing to do with my comment whatsoever?

Well it does because you say WoW has become more childish when it's essence hasn't changed at all. After people lambasting Panda's as childish I'm sure it's just a way for beta's to try and think they're more alpha than they are.

[Daffan]

wait what? i don't know if we saw the same new model but a) the running animation reminds me of a male draenei (which is disgusting enough) and b) he is sticking his ass out while running, which looks like this.

They destroyed the male human for me.

This is what i though too, the running is crazy bad.

I must have missed the artcraft where they said that was the goal. The artcraft I read said they were going to stick to the feel of the WoW characters and said nothing about Disney animators taking over the game.

Yeah, thats what i thought too. They didint just update the models, they changed a lot of spell casting animations too. The Human female is completly different

[Yig]

See, you're still totally misunderstanding what I'm saying. I'm not saying this is a shift away from the norm, nor am I saying that goofy is bad. However, I think they need to adjust the level of goofiness to the race they're working with. The new undead female animation looks like she's skipping through a field of flowers. That doesn't fit her race. The new tauren male looks like a bubbly toddler when he's chatting. That doesn't fit his race.

I think they nailed it with some of the models... looking at, say, the new trolls (though the female's run still feels too stiff, and the male's has lost the "badass lope" feel) or the gnomes or dwarves. But if a race is supposed to be stoic, drop it down a notch. If a race is supposed to be graceful, try to ensure their motions are more efficient.

In truly good animation, you can see and feel different attitudes and personalities in each character. You don't give each one the same generic "angry" expression to all the characters, a stoic character will show less anger than someone with a brash temper. Part of why Warcraft's style is so overdone is because it's very theater-ish, you have to overemote to sell the act to the folks in the cheap seats. It's good to let players know immediately who is talking, who just aggro'd, or who is AFK easily from afar. In the past, we couldn't do that with facial expressions so we did it with overdone arm and body actions.

However, it seems now we're getting animations that are still more over the top, as well as exaggerated expressions. Which is fine, as long as they temper their hand to fit the race, which they are not consistently doing. It's a mistake to say that I or others feel the style is bad. Personally what I dislike is the current way they've applied the style.

- - - Updated - - -


No, tauren HAVE always been serious and stoic even in outside lore. Some of the males' animations are far too goofy. The females currently have a great balance of emotion in their animations (issues I have with their design aside) and I think that Blizz would do well to bring the males down a bit more to their level.

I don't see anything I've misunderstood, my pontification was kind of generalized. I hear you loud and clear. I just disagree with your judgement and sensibilities completely in this area.

[Leiandri]

New gnome idle animations make them bounce about way too much. It just looks stupid and annoying. A lot of other races' idle animations makes them move a lot while 'breathing' too which is also annoying.

[Deleted]

The new models look good, when static

However,

Just an observation, but why do all the Alliance races now look like they have springs for feet? They look ridiculous bouncing around when they run, especially the Human followed by the Dwarf. Personally i'm glad they let you use the old models still because it just looks ridiculous.

Anyone else dissapointed with the animation changes? Some change the whole spell animation so it is nothing like the "original"

Some races seem to share their running animations with the pandaren female model, for some reason.

[Deleted]

Quoting Conan O'brien on this one.

"This guy, he's standing still but he seems out of breath."

Blizzard really do over exaggerate their animations.

[UnluckyAmateur]

This is disturbing. Maraad, please stop...

It tickles.

[Deliverer]

I play night elf male and human male and i'm really disappointed with their running animations.. I hope they will fix them soon and not that they are done with them! Night elf is too bouncing it's ridiculous While human male keep moving his ass like it's a girl running! I have 3 human male chars and while I like the new faces I feel the body changed in some bad way it feels screwed up a lot to me!

[Urti]

It's supposed to feel like a Don Bluth cartoon. I'd cite the Secret of Nimh or Dragonslayer more than simply Disney, but oh-so-serious edgy teenagers and adults make the word Disney synonymous with childish or just plain bad.

Off-topic: I really, really, really wish they had done a Don Bluth style animated film instead of live action.

On topic: I like what I've seen so far in both the style of the new models and their animations. My only real concern model-wise was a repeat of panda-sameface-itis, and they are obviously taking steps to mitigate that.

[Teddybearavenger]

yea male night elves still have horrible casting animation and the running is obviously not done. I hope......... The headache of doom cast has to go it's ridiculous they still have it.