Idle sway

Makes a character that stands still look alive: it breathes and sways a little, with no visible loop. Two characters never move in step, so a crowd looks like people and not like a copy.

When you need it

For characters without an idle animation, shopkeepers, crowds, bosses waiting for you, or a sprite that only has one frame.

Say this to your AI

Use the idle sway from Spielerando so my villagers breathe and sway a little while they stand around, each at their own pace.

Or skip this and connect the MCP: your AI then finds all of this by itself.Connect the MCP

Settings

breathsPerMinute (14): How often a character breathes. Raise it after a sprint to show it is out of breath.
breathAmount (0.03): How much a breath stretches. 0.03 means 3 percent.
swayAngle (0.04): The most the character tilts, in radians.
bobHeight (2): How far it rises and sinks with each breath.
seed (0): A number for each character, so that they do not move in step.
fadeTime (0.4): Seconds of standing still before the sway is at full strength.

Your AI gets the code

The finished code and math come through the Spielerando connection, so your AI can use them right away. Connect your AI

Common questions

how do i make a still character look alive

Let it breathe with a slow stretch up and down, and let it sway a little. Add both softly once it stops moving, so the change does not show.

why do all my characters move in sync

They all start their movement at the same moment. Give each one its own number, which shifts its timing, and the crowd stops moving as one.

how do i animate a sprite with only one image

Small changes in stretch, tilt and height go a long way. They read as breathing and shifting weight, even though it is one still picture.