So I’m getting into a more advanced animBP that in my previous projects, and I am starting to see how your BP can get really big and complicated really fast, especially in an RPG game.
For this project I’m creating an animation blueprint for an RPG hero that can run, jump, climb, swim, etc. I am using the animset pro from the marketplace, and have different animations for different types of strafing, if you run, walk, or go idle after landing from a jump, choosing which jump animation to use based on what foot is forward etc.
I also plan to change how the character animates depending on a few things, like what type of weapon you are carrying (dagger, vs heavy axe for example), if you are in combat mode or passive mode, and the sort.
With all the different weapon types, I can see this animation blueprint becoming very messy.
I know that the UPDATE ANIM node, fires something like every tick. So in a super complicated animBP, I would have a mile long string of nodes checking every little thing.
So my question is this. Is there an issue with this being too long? how long is too long? is it best to separate things like weapon styles into separate animBP’s or just use one animBP optimized for best performance.
what are the pros and cons of say, having one animBP when sword is equipped, or bow is equipped, vs using one animBP that checks all the variables and has a huge state machine (or multiple state machines if that’s possible?).
I suppose when update animBP fires, it can run through a branch that checks combat mode, what weapon etc, so limit how many nodes it is running.
Any advice would be much appreciated.