What causes easing curves to feel mechanical instead of organic in character animation?

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What causes easing curves to feel mechanical instead of organic in character animation?

Asked on Oct 28, 2025

Answer

Easing curves can feel mechanical when they lack variation or subtlety, resulting in predictable and rigid motion. To create more organic character animation, it's essential to incorporate variations in timing and spacing, allowing for natural acceleration and deceleration that mimic real-life physics and emotions.

Example Concept: Easing curves determine how motion accelerates and decelerates over time. Mechanical motion often results from linear or overly uniform easing, while organic motion benefits from varied easing, such as using slow-in and slow-out principles, to create more lifelike and expressive movement.

Additional Comment:

Use a combination of easing types (e.g., cubic, quintic) to introduce variation.
Experiment with timing charts to visualize and adjust easing curves.
Incorporate secondary motion to enhance fluidity and realism.
Observe real-life motion for inspiration on natural timing and easing.

✅ Answered with Animation best practices.

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