Character Traits Through Stylized Walks : A Framework-Based Analysis of Expressive Animation in Games

Walk cycles are one of the most fundamental interactions in games, often overlooked buthave a significant expression. This aim of this study is to examine how walk cycles in stylizedgames are communicating character traits through deliberate exaggeration and movementdesign. Focusing on games The Sims 4 (Maxis, 2014), Persona 5 (P-Studio, 2016) andPsychonauts 2 (Double Fine Productions, 2021), the research uses frame-by-frameobservation and a synthesised framework through a narrative analysis from gait psychology,animation principles and non-verbal communication theory. Based on their expressivepotential, four distinct walk cycles have been selected from the games. The study revealshow similar traits express unique personalities through stylization and personalisation, bycoding traits across personality, movement and social dimensions, through the integration ofliterature framework with game observational data. The resulting findings offer insight onhow a walk cycle can help expressing a character identity and provide a structuredframework to support animators and designers in creating expressive and trait-drivenanimations.