Animator

Plays an Animator: a small set of animation clips (states) that switch by themselves as your variables change. Idle while standing, walk while moving, attack while attacking is 1. Use it once a character needs more than one repeating motion.

Making an animator

1. Right-click in the Project panel and choose New animator, or press New animator… on the component.
2. In the Animator window, add a state for each clip (idle, walk, attack). Give each one its frames, its speed and whether it loops. A state can also have frames per facing direction.
3. Add transitions between states. Each one tests a variable (for example speed > 0 goes from idle to walk).
4. Pick which state it starts in (the entry state).

Settings

Setting	What it does
animator	Which animator to play. Pick one, or drag one in from the Project panel. If you have none yet, a note tells you how to make one.
sprite sheet	Optional. Plays the same animator with a different sheet, sliced the same way (same frame numbers). Lets every NPC share the player's animator with their own art. Blank uses the animator's own frames.
entry	A thumbnail of the first frame of the state it starts in, so you can check the art.
Parameters	One row for each variable the animator reads. Put this object's own variable in a row to use it instead. Blank reads the variable with the animator's own name. Handy when several objects share one animator.
flip facing left	Only on older objects that used it with Grid Move. Untick it and use Left uses Right, flipped on the state in the Animator window instead.
Edit animator	Opens the picked animator in the Animator window.
New animator…	Makes a new animator and picks it here.

Good to know

• Picking an animator moves the object's pivot to match its art, so snapping and rotating use the sprite's own pivot.
• Animator wins over a Sprite on the same object. Play Animation wins over both.
• For clothing or gear layered on a character, use match parent frame on the layer's Image so it follows this Animator.
• Games and apps only, not watch faces. Runs in Preview and on both Wear OS and Apple Watch.