Valmora DevLog : facial animation system
Hi everyone!
In these posts, we'll be sharing insights into our ongoing development process, technical challenges, and progress updates as we build our dark fantasy world.
Today we're focusing on our character facial animation system - a crucial element for creating immersive interactions throughout the game.
Our approach to facial animations
We've implemented a blend-shape based animation system that allows for a wide range of expressions, from subtle emotional cues to more pronounced reactions. This system works by manipulating specific facial regions including:
Eye and eyebrow movements to convey attention and emotion
Mouth animations synchronized with dialogue delivery
Facial muscle movements that create natural-looking expressions
This technical foundation will ensure characters react appropriately during conversations, quests, and more intimate encounters, making every interaction feel more authentic within our sandbox system.
Implementation in unreal engine
Building this system in Unreal Engine has allowed us to optimize performance while maintaining high-quality animations. We've focused on creating a framework that can be efficiently applied across different character models as we expand our cast of NPCs and other characters you'll encounter throughout Valmora.
Current development status
This facial animation system builds upon our existing character work, which has already included implementing physics for hair and beard attachments, as mentioned in our previous updates. The animations will be integrated with our dialogue system to create more engaging conversations.
Exclusive content & future updates
We've shared an extended video of this animation system in action with our Founders.
If you'd like to see this video and other exclusive development content, you can join our Founder tier.
We'll continue to share regular development updates through these DevLogs as our work on Valmora progresses.
Thank you for following our journey into the dark fantasy world of Valmora!
See you soon,
-Iron Leaf Team
