Cuphead's Animation Process and Philosophy

Рет қаралды 626,426

6 жыл бұрын

In this 2017 GDC bootcamp, Studio MDHR's Jake Clark explains his design and animation processes for the game Cuphead, and shares practical ideas and tips for 2D animation.
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Пікірлер: 703

@Sedlan18 6 жыл бұрын

A great example that shows that a delayed game can pay off in a great way, waiting time for cuphead was really worth.

@gurriato 6 жыл бұрын

Cuphead and A Hat in Time came out at the same time after both being delayed for years and they turned out great, but let's not pretend that's the norm. Most delayed games are just stuck in development hell, being pulled in every direction with no clear vision, wasting resources.

@Ayoul 6 жыл бұрын

@BlueDiamond It pays off for us sometimes, but not always for the corporation. Obviously, they'll go with the option that makes the more sense for them. Also, not all companies have the same brand recognition as Valve or Blizzard. They also don't all have the same size. You also have cases where a publisher has multiple developers working for them. If one dev needs a time extension, it can throw off the entire release schedule for that publisher. It's not always as easy as "just give them more time and it will pay off".

@elinacarmina3050 6 жыл бұрын

"A delayed game is eventually good, but a bad game is bad forever."

@JoeyFerg-zu8nu 6 жыл бұрын

Jorge Vila k

@jaredwasserman1092 6 жыл бұрын

I feel the problems arise when there's a budget involved. Delay a game too long and a small company will run out of money to development. A lot of smaller games come out early not because the devs want to push it out before it's ready, but because they have to in order to keep development funded. And the Catch 22 in this case is that if people aren't willing to buy the incomplete game, then the game will likely never get finished.

@AmericasComic 6 жыл бұрын

I'll go through a million "how-to" videos, but none of them are as valuable as hearing an artist talk about their process.

@RangoRNA 6 жыл бұрын

@justinhere6136 6 жыл бұрын

I recommend howtobasic if ur looking for how-to videos

@user-uz3fk8zq3u 6 жыл бұрын

John Field Show it’s so damn close to 666 likes

@donkeykong4983 6 жыл бұрын

Warzombie3701 # I turned it to 667

@user-uz3fk8zq3u 6 жыл бұрын

Donkey Kong YOU *MONSTER*

@shoboreviews 6 жыл бұрын

I love people being creative

@KengaruZ 6 жыл бұрын

Such a simple yet genuine comment.

@Z3r0XoL 6 жыл бұрын

Sand Bag simple is good

@JohNaKaAgilA 6 жыл бұрын

LETS GET CREATIVE!

@christianali5431 6 жыл бұрын

Alex Bee Quick question. Why is it that green is not a creative color, but black is?

@asdffa2726 6 жыл бұрын

+John Velasquez IS THIS A DHMIS REFERENCE

@Foomandoonian 6 жыл бұрын

Hey GDC editors: please linger longer on the slides, especially when the speakers are showing off the cool artwork they are talking about.

@sundrythis 6 жыл бұрын

Foomandoonian i'm always stressed out when i see the presenter glance towards what i assume are the slides like WHAT IS HAPPENING OVER THERE AAAAH

@AlexiasPlaylist 6 жыл бұрын

Foomandoonian thats why we have pause buttons lol

@JSilv3r 6 жыл бұрын

Alec Skinner the man is talking about what is on the slides, we can put information to a picture whilst hearing it. It's not just about getting a better look

@NiCoTHX 6 жыл бұрын

yeah i didn't understood why we spent something like 15 minutes without this side by side presentation we can see at 6:00 for exemple.... Was just daimn practical, and then... just one or the other. Why da F?!

@Bluustar225 6 жыл бұрын

I mean, he's changing the slides....

@domodomo421 6 жыл бұрын

The attention to detail is amazing and it makes me feel comfortable with the delays. I'd rather it come out when it's completely finished than it being rushed.

@Nitrodino7875 6 жыл бұрын

doesn't mostly everyone feel the same? but I suppose you say this to convince others.

@TheShapingSickness 6 жыл бұрын

Preach!

@andressalinas6324 6 жыл бұрын

Jose Castillo no as much people want things perfected many want the game now especially when developers or company's put a time constraint to meet a dead line or the holidays I am glad to see they want to make everything as perfect as possible

@slowpoke8585 6 жыл бұрын

Seriously! When they were making a game that was fully animated I was like, "Damn. This is gonna take a WHILE".

@freddychopin 6 жыл бұрын

And it all turned out to be worth it. The game is a masterpiece.

@icarus212001 6 жыл бұрын

"A bit thicker" The best decision.

@pn4960 6 жыл бұрын

icarus212001 thicc

@canobenitez 2 жыл бұрын

10:30

@soulfularts6088 6 жыл бұрын

If they make an art book of this game, I'm SOOO buying it.

@endermic1306 4 жыл бұрын

Soulful Arts well… they did

@Tweezy786 3 жыл бұрын

A little late commenting here. They have in fact created an art book on Cuphead. I just recently purchased it on Amazon.

@onettaviator5396 6 жыл бұрын

"Breadwinners for Nickelodeon" oh, you poor soul.

@Saidriak 6 жыл бұрын

Yeah, thank god he redeemed him self.

@jakeystarsuper 6 жыл бұрын

Who cares

@roseribose 6 жыл бұрын

Everyone except you.

@sketchbookonline2040 6 жыл бұрын

JakeyStar 2017 If you watched that show, then you would know why we care

@jakeystarsuper 6 жыл бұрын

Sketchbook Online I watched the show but I never finished it due to how terrible it was.

@milesharris335 6 жыл бұрын

I hope Cuphead inspires more cartoon style video games. There efforts really payed off big time with this game.

@ethanotoroculus1060 6 жыл бұрын

Their*

@unf3z4nt 6 жыл бұрын

Miles Harris It was a 7 year process. Have fun waiting for a decade for each game.

@milesharris335 6 жыл бұрын

For games of this caliber 7 years is easily worth it. Traditional animation can do things that other variations of the medium cannot and visa versa. Traditional animation is defiantly worth keeping alive imo and this game is a prime example. I hope this game inspires many to follow in its footsteps.

@peepoo6531 5 жыл бұрын

@@milesharris335 if you like hand drawn animated games then I think you'd love Skullgirls, tho I kinda have a feel you already know it jfjds

@adampower9757 3 жыл бұрын

on my way

@Eternal_23 6 жыл бұрын

This game is one of the most authentic games ever!

@2drealms196 6 жыл бұрын

This guy may not be as old as alot of developers but he's very talented and creative.

@velezf216o 6 жыл бұрын

Hand drawn Animation is soo tedious and time consuming. But man it's awesome seeing your work come to life.

@lychee-bear1155 6 жыл бұрын

This game is WAY WAY WAAAAY more amazing than i thought

@blasstois 6 жыл бұрын

I seriously cannot wait for this game. This was one of the best ones I have seen on it.

@well3034 6 жыл бұрын

;)

@katrinalin2496 6 жыл бұрын

Poor guy worked on pretty meh/crappy stuff before cuphead. I'm just glad he's finally gotten his big break with cuphead

@odracircomix7359 6 жыл бұрын

long live traditional animation

@ID1visor 6 жыл бұрын

This is seriously cool, haven't clicked on a video this fast in a while.

@beefknuckles 6 жыл бұрын

I really liked this talk. I always enjoy when people put some humor in them plus this guy seems to have a lot of passion in the project.

@VoeGrevioux 6 жыл бұрын

Part of the reason I watch these GDC vids is to see how all the different speakers cope with their immense nervousness.

@HeiligerGrimmnir 3 жыл бұрын

3 years later. I gotta say. Cuphead truly is a work of art. I appreciate the work that went into it immensely. So much so I bought it for my 7 year old and he went nuts over it and beat it before I was able to get around to it.

@cybersteel8 6 жыл бұрын

I'll give him credit for being up in front of such a huge audience. He looked really nervous, and the constant pacing was quite distracting. It was so interesting to see how they animate, and how much effort went in to preserve the authenticity!

@dash4800 2 жыл бұрын

i was thinking the same thing. He should have rehearsed in front of someone and got some feedback. This is why its good to take speech classes as well. I just wanted to bolt his feet to the ground the whole time.

@MMillion 6 жыл бұрын

>does math >2016 >hmmm.jpg

@BigOlSmellyFlashlight 6 жыл бұрын

he put >does math

@VideoJamesNZ 6 жыл бұрын

Totally agree. The movement of characters is too realistic these days, they don't squash n stretch enough. The beauty of animation is being able to move characters in crazy/fun ways, so why not do it. This game looks amazing and I can't wait to get my filthy mits all over it! 😄

@megamage911 6 жыл бұрын

Exactly! This is also why I hate it when people complain about animated characters not looking realistic. Fx. One Piece, some people complain that most of the women are too skinny, and have too large breasts, and that it's unrealistic, but why not? This is the one medio where this stuff is possible, so why not just do whatever you feel like with it?

@Appletank8 6 жыл бұрын

I agree that its starting to be something I notice. Using heavy reliance on basic rigs seem to make people forget that these characters aren't limited by flesh and bone, you can do wacky shit with them. Except most of the time they still use realistic motions and don't have the fluidity that older cartoons seems to have employed with glee.

@thomase13 6 жыл бұрын

I wish people gave Ub Iwerks the credit he deserves!

@allluckyseven 6 жыл бұрын

What I seriously hate about animation in videogames especially (but also in some TV shows and movies) is both _lack_ of realism in realistic characters, and too much realism in cartoony characters. The former look like lifeless marionettes, the latter like people in costumes.

@PlaystationSimmer 3 жыл бұрын

Realistic animation has it's place, but it makes me sad that we don't get nearly as much fun loosenes as we used to

@elstupido2233 6 жыл бұрын

He's honestly not awkward. Just imagine doing a project for about 3 years knowing every sing detail of it inside and out. All of that shit is packed in your head and you have to present it in about 30 minutes. People who think alot tend to stutter and repeat themselves.

@square-shapedappletrees1413 6 жыл бұрын

Lol that cigar boss. Can't wait to play this gameeeeeee

@qtpie6088 6 жыл бұрын

Amazing artwork

@yan87433 6 жыл бұрын

Bland Blend the ironic thing is that he’s a mini boss of king dice

@pwnageprata 6 жыл бұрын

This was really interesting + informative as someone who wants to do 2D animation for a living. People who liked this should definitely check out another video on GDC's channel called "Making Fluid and Powerful Animations For Skullgirls"

@Down10 6 жыл бұрын

Fun fact: Betty Boop was originally a dog, as seen in the reference notes @10:05. At some point, she became a human character, though I'm not sure if Max Fleischer or his animation studio publicly acknowledged this.

@templeislandriven 6 жыл бұрын

Gorgeous.

@CombatWombat19 6 жыл бұрын

This is amazing. Rough crowd, some people I guess can't appreciate the hard work and passion put into these things. It's evident that this is a project made from the heart.

@dabossman5650 6 жыл бұрын

CombatWombat19 how is it a rough crowd?

@Erilis000 6 жыл бұрын

Well said

@cat_jk00 6 жыл бұрын

Sean Watts Moore Not really very interactive or engaging with him

@jjj7790 6 жыл бұрын

You can't hear the crowd because the purpose of these videos is to record and listen to his presentation, not the crowd, so they only record his mic. It doesn't make sense to create a presentation video with dirty audio.

@sthxdnn1 6 жыл бұрын

Not to mention it would be rude to react to someone trying to present their product... he doesn't want a standing ovation; he's not an entertainer.

@junpeiiori4720 6 жыл бұрын

that looks gorgeous

@PA551ON 6 жыл бұрын

The mermaid is one of my favorite bosses in the game so its fascinating to see how she was made. So stoked for release! I've already pre-ordered.

@TheBetterGamer 6 жыл бұрын

A lot of cartoons nowadays still use traditional animation, but they use digital coloring and compositing to make it look all digital. CN is the best example. Steven Universe is all hand animated, but digitally colored/composited.

@notoverwatch6991 6 жыл бұрын

This animation is miles above Steven Universe's though. Or really anything on TV.

@CCriddy50 6 жыл бұрын

As far as I know CN themselves heavily encourage the use of flash though, to save time and money. Shows like Johnny Test started out hand drawn then quickly switched to flash.

@dongodingo670 6 жыл бұрын

The key poses/animations are done on paper, everything else is done digitally

@paragon4770 6 жыл бұрын

Cuphead was also colored digitally though

@KommissarBanx 6 жыл бұрын

CyBro Cuphead was ONLY colored digitally using photoshop. Everything else was done by hand

@n0denz 6 жыл бұрын

I urge you all to watch Max Fleischer's cartoons. He's all but unheard of now which is criminal in itself - let alone the fact that Walt Disney stole his ideas.

@joshuabaddeley3987 6 жыл бұрын

Seconded

@ZombifiedDuder 6 жыл бұрын

Thirded

@Clay3613 6 жыл бұрын

He didn't steal anything, get over yourself.

@gamephreak5 6 жыл бұрын

Walt Disney didn't steal anything, but yes, everyone should watch Max Fleischer's stuff, if not for anything than to get into the mood and mindset of the Cuphead game!

@raaaaaaaaaam496 6 жыл бұрын

Anyone can dream few can actually do it. Fleischer was a dreamer Walt could actually put it into practice. Thus he won the cartoon war.

@epicshitz 6 жыл бұрын

When you play you can really feel the hard work and passion that they put into their game.

@kross_draws 6 жыл бұрын

"Don't do the math"

@JFD62780 6 жыл бұрын

Kross Gonzalez Yeah, don't do it. It's off by a year! :p

@JohnnyKidder 6 жыл бұрын

"Math, not even once"

@ElyskeTheDonut 6 жыл бұрын

This cigar is no longer pure in my mind 23:00

@DragonScythe64 6 жыл бұрын

Cigars were never pure to begin with

@jorge69696 6 жыл бұрын

It doesn't help that the cigar looks like a penis getting crushed by a shoe which is exactly what happens in the crushing porn he talked about.

@jesuschrist274 6 жыл бұрын

DragonScythe fr

@nagakillua4851 6 жыл бұрын

ElyskeTheDonut This comment has 69 likes now...

@outsync4399 6 жыл бұрын

ElyskeTheDonut I

@drowningin 6 жыл бұрын

that game looks sooo pretty

@DADSTRACTED 6 жыл бұрын

As just a video game fan, I found this presentation so interesting. It also put into light how hard it is to make a great video game.

@VuqarStyle 6 жыл бұрын

this is not a indie game This is a REAL ART

@R0mA1n69 6 жыл бұрын

A game is a real art

@VuqarStyle 6 жыл бұрын

Hi, yes :)

@Dxpress_ 6 жыл бұрын

The two are not mutually exclusive.

@Frexter 6 жыл бұрын

It's still an indie game..

@theagentking1192 6 жыл бұрын

ya, but indie games are real art.

@moeezS 6 жыл бұрын

Interesting, didn't know that 3D is all about roundness and how 1930s cartoons transition into that better than more pointy 2D styles.

@trulyinfamous 6 жыл бұрын

I always loved the style of old cartoons. I'm glad somebody was able to recreate that style with incredible similarity.

@IllusionSector 6 жыл бұрын

Hats off.

@yan87433 6 жыл бұрын

Arthur Hakhverdian nah, hats on, gotta be sunsmart

@hoisin75 2 жыл бұрын

well that turned out pretty good in the end

@justamanofculture12 2 жыл бұрын

Little did the audience knew, the game would be a MASTERPIECE.

@NoriMori1992 3 жыл бұрын

17:59 I love the childlike simplicity of this instruction! 🤣

@KirstenNH 6 жыл бұрын

I'm honestly so blown away by the amount of creativity and effort put into this game. It truly is a masterpiece

@orthovasky 6 жыл бұрын

Best presentation so far! Loved it!

@alwynd2310 6 жыл бұрын

Yes please! Please make more games like this! Enough open-world survival horrors.

@EliVieira 6 жыл бұрын

Fantastic work. Keeping one of the greatest art forms alive. Kudos!

@shniss5403 6 жыл бұрын

Best $20 I’ve spent on a game in a long time.

@Inogat 9 ай бұрын

One of my all time favorite games thanks for the talk and thanks for all the art and memories! Playing this co-op has been a delight every single time, made good friends that way.

@mytommy 6 жыл бұрын

People.. Just focus on the presentation and get the information from the guy. Stop worrying about how he acts and talks. It's not a high school assignment for you to grade.

@MrMrannoying 6 жыл бұрын

mytommy That's exactly what we're trying to do. A big part of presentation is to maintain composure and speak clearly and fluently or else you'll distract the audience.

@monkeyman134nickw 6 жыл бұрын

The most important part of public speaking and giving presentations is your speaking and presentation. Having only interesting information can only get you so far, and it's important to keep an audience engaged. We are allowed to critique him

@BlazeTheGamer1 6 жыл бұрын

MrMrannoying exactly who? Assholes? I think we'd like to see one of these "we're" people present to hundreds of people.

@anthonyadkins6288 6 жыл бұрын

MrMrannoying I got the info pretty clearly. It wasn't that distracting. Helluva lot better than I could do lol

@Rubberman202 6 жыл бұрын

People are distracted by how he acts and talks? I thought he did fine.

@nacs 6 жыл бұрын

Love that animation style!

@yolech 6 жыл бұрын

It's sad when a video game puts more effort into their animation than the vast majority of animated shows these days.

@JoelErhart 6 жыл бұрын

Wow! So cool to see how the designs were such a culmination of so many different ideas / iterations from Jake, coupled with the suggestions from the art director. I tried adapting a few characters I liked of Sim Gretina's as Cuphead bosses, but I had the benefit of only having to merge two similar styles. It was a lot of fun.

@CWINDOWSsystem32 6 жыл бұрын

Funny, I was just watching a livestream of the mermaid battle and commented on how much I loved the animation of her hips...

@Herowebcomics 6 жыл бұрын

This was a great way to see how Cup head's animation process works! It was totally worth it!

@SonicSanctuary 6 жыл бұрын

he worked on bread winners?! you poor poor guy.....

@kaylinevans Жыл бұрын

I really love this talk and getting to see the process the art design went through! I am an Art Historian at an entertainment university, and getting to hear you talk about this is so valuable to be able to relate that information to students!

@2121nath 3 жыл бұрын

Favorite GDC talk by far!

@metalkatstudio 8 күн бұрын

Excellent presentation! Thanks for keeping this art form alive! It looks totally amazing and inspirational.

@bennhurweb 6 жыл бұрын

congratulations to the whole team. keep up the good work guys !!!

@DarkZholt 6 жыл бұрын

10:30 "thiccer" ... proceed.

@ShadowExcaliburDelta 6 жыл бұрын

𝓮𝔁𝓽𝓻𝓪 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓬𝓬

@somerandomchannel382 6 жыл бұрын

making a GDC before the game is out? Sounds like No Man Sky thing to do.

@hellsapoppin9326 6 жыл бұрын

What did I expect from an anime girl icon

@MrPhantaze 6 жыл бұрын

Stop referring Cuphead to No Man's sky. this game will be good, no matter if it fails, the animation has guaranteed 5 stars

@DragonScythe64 6 жыл бұрын

+MrPhantaze it's at least persona 5

@blkmusic__ 6 жыл бұрын

All those years for this game was worth it lol

@StiffAftermath 6 жыл бұрын

Super cool presentation!!! Soooooooo much love put into this wonderful game!! Absolutely amazing!

@PhotonVideos 6 жыл бұрын

I remember seeing him in the hallways in Capilano. Nice guy.

@Archivist42 6 жыл бұрын

Very impressive dedication, it’s a game you can really get behind the success of

@golu_badbola 5 ай бұрын

One of the best Indie platformers. Great to watch and learn this talk.

@joshuastein1888 3 жыл бұрын

love the art, love the gameplay. worth the wait!

@strawberry641 6 жыл бұрын

Thank you for this! It's amazing to see the character and animation development of this game! I especially love how he went into how the cuphead team actually studied the character designs of the 1930s. A big pet peeve of mine is when people try to make something in a "1930's cartoon style", but dont do any research or studies on *how* those characters back then were designed.

@anonymousdog22 6 жыл бұрын

Wait, so everything you look at on the game (except probaby character movement) is on paper? If so, THAT IS DEVOTION

@TheAudioCGMan 4 жыл бұрын

17:14 it's really interesting. one can still see the keyframes a bit, but it look's so authentic

@camilovillamizar6171 6 жыл бұрын

Incredible animation work.

@halberdgamers 6 жыл бұрын

The wait was worth it.

@notoverwatch6991 6 жыл бұрын

Awesome presentation.

@muckymucks 6 жыл бұрын

Great insights. Very interesting. Cuphead is something else. I hope they do more.

@BigBossMan538 6 жыл бұрын

I thought that the cigar's death animation was hilarious and brilliant. Good choice!

@alainchouinard9256 6 жыл бұрын

Just tried it... real nice job!!

@TheShapingSickness 6 жыл бұрын

Awesome talk, I've pre-ordered the game already looking forward to it.

@antonp3921 6 жыл бұрын

Incredible

@DarkAngelEU 6 жыл бұрын

You can tell how much work went into this game, it's just amazing that people still care about trying something new in this industry and actually bite the bullet.

@drslurpy1552 Жыл бұрын

I’m here and I will try this out

@jae55555 6 жыл бұрын

great work, jake

@anasshahid224 Жыл бұрын

Cuphead has such a unique art style, love the game 🙌

@jayphonic9244 6 жыл бұрын

THE DAY IS HERE!

@squeakysneakers6685 6 жыл бұрын

Ive been gaming since 1981 and Cuphead is by far the most genius and creatively animated game with stellar game mechanics Ive ever seen. Each boss is so unique, yet the overall style carries perfectly throughout the entire game. I havent even played it and its my favorite game. Truly a masterpiece. You guys deserve all the awards you can get.

@dwikygri9731 6 жыл бұрын

GENIUS!

@drhoneybadger 6 жыл бұрын

10:29 T H I C C

@ClarenceDass 6 жыл бұрын

This was so damn informative.

@googscast5175 6 жыл бұрын

Amazing!

@user-zs4xg8oq2s 4 жыл бұрын

This was a wonderful speech

@BigMan7o0 6 жыл бұрын

it's really cool to see the process behind such a simple, yet complicated game like cuphead. and it's cool to see that part of his thinking process is whether he would enjoy playing it, and whether he would enjoy creating it. i feel like nowadays the thinking process is "can it make us well over 200% profit?" and if the answer is no, they force it to fit into their huge profit margins.

@theclockworkartist 6 жыл бұрын

The guy animating for Breadwinners did Cuphead? Good for him!

@shiobuzz3724 6 жыл бұрын

Maybe you shouldn't put Breadwinners on your resume....

@osmigs-ki8dl 6 жыл бұрын

eh B O O T Y. K I C K

@McDuders 6 жыл бұрын

Uh, yes he should? While Breadwinners is a bad show, being able to say that he worked on a show for Nickelodeon is an excellent thing to put on your resume, especially for animators.

@shiobuzz3724 6 жыл бұрын

McDuders it was just a joke my friend.

@McDuders 6 жыл бұрын

Regardless, I'll just leave that in here just in case people get the wrong idea.

@shiobuzz3724 6 жыл бұрын

McDuders alright.

@SpookyFairyVR Жыл бұрын

What a fantastic video. I feel that the artists and game designers have a stronger connection with every single frame of their game because of that. And freedom of creativity without any strong limitation. And bringing a style that was long ditched and so many people know how to appreciate. A huge appreciation for the founders and everyone working in the team to making the next cuphead game.