Did the default Idle Animations change in the last 8 years?

ArchMikem · December 2023

I was making some posts for my "Then and Now" thread over in Community Creations, and looking at the one of my character in the select menu, I noticed the old her was standing in a much more relaxed, "feminine" stance, as opposed to the current pose with a more square, shoulders back posture. Did ZOS change the default character animations at one point?

I know she's standing at different angles to the camera, but it still looks a little different.

TaSheen · December 2023

*shrug* No idea. I don't look at animations at all.

Araneae6537 · December 2023

I have no idea; I started the summer of 2019. But characters go through some changes in pose, so maybe it’s that plus the angle? In other words, not actually different, but other variables make it appear so? Otherwise it does appear the default idle may have been adjusted, but again, really hard to tell from two stills.

Tyrant_Tim · December 2023

You’re not going crazy, they definitely changed it if the character on the right is the new female default one. You can see it in the bend of the knee.

Very strange.

ArchMikem · December 2023

Tyrant_Tim wrote: »

You’re not going crazy, they definitely changed it if the character on the right is the new female default one. You can see it in the bend of the knee.

Very strange.

That's what caught me too, in the early one the legs look closer together, and the right has a locked knee while the left is bent.

ArchangelIsraphel · December 2023

I wasn't playing in 2015, but those definitely look like different idle poses. You aren't going crazy. I've never seen my female Khajiit do the first pose depicted in your 2015 picture. I wonder if the male characters had a different idle pose as well?

It seems like they went for something more "neutral" which...I'm a bit sad about. I wish that the default stance of your character was a choice given to you at character select. If someone wanted a neutral stance, then they could choose one, or if someone wanted a more "feminine" stance, then they could choose that as a default.

I know we have personalities, but those are always very extreme. Something more subtle like the old 2015 idle that is built into the character from the start would be great to pick if we wanted it. Along with the ability to choose between "feminine" or "masculine" run animations.

I really like the old pose, it would suit the ladies on my account well.

phaneub17_ESO · December 2023

The last known update to the character model was when they added the "Foot Inverse Kinematics" option, it added more motion to the legs and allows you to stand on steps at different angles... it also made you stand on top of desks with one leg in a very awkward position.

Dojohoda · December 2023

Yes, female idle posture was changed many years ago, guessing during 2015 or so. It was originally feminine and that quality was removed. One can see the early female posture at
Motif 10
https://eso.mmo-fashion.com/imperial-ancestor-silk/

I don't remember when, I only remember logging in one evening and wondering why my female characters looked different.

---
Another one
https://eso.mmo-fashion.com/breton-brigandine/

ArchMikem · December 2023

Dojohoda wrote: »

Yes, female idle posture was changed many years ago, guessing during 2015 or so. It was originally feminine and that quality was removed. One can see the early female posture at
Motif 10
https://eso.mmo-fashion.com/imperial-ancestor-silk/

I don't remember when, I only remember logging in one evening and wondering why my female characters looked different.

Interesting, actually compare the two sexes in those images. It looks like they replaced the female character idle animation with the one male characters use. But why?

Dojohoda · December 2023

I don't know.

Wolf_Eye · December 2023

I very much enjoy the new one. The old one would have irritated me to no end and I probably wouldn’t have been convinced to stick around past 2019 when I joined.

That being said, I agree with @ArchangelIsraphel in that it would be so cool to be able to choose certain aspects of your toon like this. I know I would love to have a more neutral run in my female toons without having to resort to Deadlands Walker personality (I think that’s the name of it). I think it wouldn’t hurt to let people choose what kind of idle stance they’d like in their toons.

DMuehlhausen · December 2023

The default no, but they have added so many I rarely see it.

Sluggy · December 2023

Quite a few visual things were changed in the early days. Animations, textures, and models. Some were definitely for the better. Most were probably neutral or even unnoticeable. A few were very ill-received by the community and as a result ZoS made it a policy to never do overhauls like this again. Go look up some early footage on youtube and it is extremely obvious that many animations were different. The way characters ran attacked while using staff-based weapons is especially jarring.

reazea · December 2023

I'm still using the default idle animations since release. It seems like most have purchased, for crowns, new animations. But it's just an animation I don't care about, so not buying any new ones.