ABSTRACT
Animation is the underlying mechanic on which the visual aspect of computer games is built. It is the illusion of movement created through the display of a rapid succession of images, each slightly different from the other, creating the impression of motion. Animation in the very first computer games was the result of using vector graphics to draw an object on the screen, clearing the screen, and redrawing the object at a slightly different location and rotation. The animation images for a sprite are drawn based on the movement cycles originally developed for cartoon characters. Biomechanics is a field of study that examines the mechanical movement of biological systems such as humans, plants, and animals. It plays an important part in animation describing the way in which natural hierarchical systems such as the human skeleton move. Calculating animations in real time through kinematics is a very processor-costly method for animating game characters.
