Rigging

Poppy Playtime was a rewarding and challenging series of rigs.  They were all unique monsters with a variety of requirements.  We identified what a "basic" rig structure should look like, and then identified what additionally each character would need to meet the script and game design needs.

Prototype

Completely non-standard rig
  • Arachnid Rig with forelegs following second pelvis

  • Two part spine FK IK setup with the shoulders controlling the sternum and the traditional shoulder area

    • Internal mechanism section that needed to follow lower spine IK

  • IK on Jester’s forearms needed to include extra joints, so used a spine IK

  • Additional mechanical parts that needed to automatically follow main layout

Doey Stalker

Completely non-standard rig
  • Two COG system - drive from base of tail or from upper body

  • IK Fingers with knuckle positioning

  • Scalable child hands which transferred their perportion between FK and IK

  • Hat which rolled on its sides

  • Reverse foot hands

  • Volume preservation on arms

  • Physics and Sine wave feature on tail

  • Belly controls which tracked to FK IK Spine

Lily

  • Standard Bipedal Rig
  • Unique Face:
    • 2D Ribbon to ensure movements stayed relative to the facial shape

    • Extreme (non human) smile shapes

    • Oval eyes

      • Engine side 2D texture offset linked to eye bone rotation

      • Set driven keys to drive eyelid and eyelash rotation and position

  • Unique Hair:
    • FK chains driving ribbons to maintain smooth curves

    • Local orient features per FK

Huggy / Kissy

  • Standard Bipedal Rig
  • Unique Arms / Legs:
    • Ribbon tweak controls to ensure smooth curve shape while still maintaining FK IK limb functionality

  • Reverse foot hands

  • Double Mouth - one outside and one inside, with additional teeth controls

Poppy

  • Standard Bipedal Rig
  • Unique Skirt

    • Three bone chain with intermediately nested IK to create a “swishy” feel

Chum

  • Standard Bipedal Rig
  • Unique Stomach:
    • Peel open
    • Lock/unlock to edges
    • Major controls to drive main shape
      • Minor controls for creating phonemes
  • Short Legs
    • Helper bones to protect hip deformation

Pianosaurus

  • Standard Bipedal Rig
  • Hock Legs
  • Tear off limbs

Giblet

  • Standard Bipedal Rig
  • Ribbon Mouth

  • Ribbon Eyepatch which drove eyebrows (to a lesser degree)

  • Buttons and sash

Outimal

  • Standard Bipedal Rig
  • Retargeted animations to other outimals with different limb perportions