Thread by @Richmond_Lee

It just occurred to me, I don't think I've ever seen sprite rips of the turn animations in Street Fighter 3! They're not on Fighters Generation or that awesome Zweifuss site! Look at these nice in between poses that you rarely see!
#SF3 #SpriteArt

Alright you two, look at the camera! Gott dang I love this game. 20 years and it's still as beautiful as the first time I laid eyes on it!
#SF3 #ThirdStrike #pixelart

I love the way Makoto crosses her arms when she turns.

Everyone's got crouch turning animations too!

OK! Actually the full sprite rips made by @Zwei_Fuss (bless you good sir) that have been available for years actually DO have the turn animations! It's just that no one's turned them into animated gifs!
justnopoint.com/zweifuss/sprit…
#SF3 #pixelart #ArtHistory

For your viewing pleasure, here is Makoto's turning animation in a loop! Raw dot art for all you pixel pushing purists out there!
#SpriteArt #PixelArt #SF3 #ThirdStrike

And of course, here is Makoto's turning animation, with (simulated) scanlines and corrected aspect ration AS GOD INTENDED.

#SF3 #ThirdStrike #BestGameEver

Here's Makoto's turning animation looped in slow motion. Savor every frame! It's so good!
#SF3 #SpriteArt #PixelArt

My goodness. Look at how much LOVE went into these feet! How they conveyed so much weight and dimension with a few pixels. The shifting tones and values. The subtle splaying of the toes! This is a moving painting!
#SF3 #PixelArt #SpriteArt

Here's Makoto's feet isolated, raw pixels vs scanlines+corrected aspect ratio. Street Fighter III was absolutely optimized for old school monitors! All the details read so much better on the left (down to her toenails)! And the edges blend together so smoothly!
#SF3 #SpriteArt

OH MY GOODNESS I COMMITTED AN ENORMOUS SIN. The previous gifs are all playing BACKWARDS!!! Here's Makoto's turn animation in the proper order. God it looks even better! AHHHHH
#SF3 #SpriteArt

Alright, here it is again. Makoto's turning animation, raw pixels. Ahhhhhh so much WEIGHT and FORCE in everything that she does! SO GOOD!
#SF3 #ArtEaterPXLs

AWWWWRRRRIIIIITE! Here's Makoto's turning animation in slow motion, playing in the proper order. She's always careful to maintain a firm, strong base in every frame. She always feels so SOLID.
#SF3 #ArtEaterPXLs

And in case Quintin Tarantino is tuning in, I've corrected the timing on the foot animation comparison too! The way her toes splay as she puts her weight down on that leg is SO GOOD.
#SF3 #ArtEaterPXLs

This pose is SO RAD. Makoto's every frame is as masterful as a classical painting. Not even kidding. I believe her sprite set is the zenith of pixel art. Every single pixel matters. Every detail is meaningful and delightful. And her animation is unrivaled!
#SF3 #GOAT

Here's just 4 frames isolated and slowed down. Look at how beautiful every single part of this sprite is from frame to frame. Look at how SOLID her body feels underneath her FLOWING (yet HEAVY) gi!

Look at how clearly every single finger reads even though they're just tiny clusters of pixels! Look at the EXACT ANGLE of each finger, how it's as delicately conveyed as a beautiful charcoal drawing in an oversized pad from a life drawing session!
#SF3 #ArtEaterPXLs

Look at the boulders she has for hands! Look at how the light dances across them! The glint of her knuckles. Flesh that reads as stone. There is more complex lighting and meaningful information being conveyed here with a few pixels than in her full 3D HD iteration!

In case you think I'm being hyperbolic when I say the sprite art in SF3 is as good as classical art, let me assure you I'm DEAD SERIOUS. This is some incredibly complex color theory. Every color in the sprite's palette is what an experienced painter would have laid down on canvas

And unlike traditional paintings, Street Fighter III MOVES. It's in constant BEAUTIFUL motion! Look at how her forearm subtly gets darker in value and cooler in tone. That combined with the shifting warm rim light convey the exact angle her arm has turned in space in this motion!

OOF! Look at the beautiful movement of her hand here. Those beautiful, calloused, firm, yet supple karate hands. Look at the secondary animation of the cloth trailing behind! It adds so much weight!

Look at how much is conveyed in just these two frames. The hurried movement of the open fingers vs the immediate calm of the closed palm.

So much is conveyed with her hands alone. All these thoughtful details convey that she's a world class martial artist in full control of her body. Elite, even for a Street Fighter. For instance, Necro and Q do NOT have such precise tempo changes frame to frame.
#SF3 #ArtEaterPXLs

During this entire turn there's only a single frame where Makoto isn't firmly planted on the ground. This is a rare moment where she allows herself to blink as there's nothing she can do to change course AT THAT EXACT INSTANT. Might as well accept it! ITS BRILLIANT!
#ArtEaterPXLs

Compare that to this moment where the young rookie Sean blinks. He's COMPLETELY OPEN for that instant. He's an extremely talented fighter, but just doesn't have the experience of someone like Makoto who was literally raised in a dojo.

https://twitter.com/Richmond_Lee/status/807645116923985920?s=20

Alright, that's enough gushing for tonight. GOD I LOVE STREET FIGHTER 3!!! If you're still hungry for more SF3 animation breakdowns, here are some old threads of mine!

https://twitter.com/Richmond_Lee/status/949913427035635714?s=20

And please check out my website art-eater.com! I'll eventually properly archive all these Street Fighter 3 animation breakdowns on there. Until then enjoy this classic post about Darkstalkers!

art-eater.com/articles/darks…