Daily progress: Making a Reload Animation

Now that our hands look like they’re actually holding the gun, let’s create a reload animation!

Create a gun folder in the Animations folder:

Then select the gun firing animation. This is where the animation tree is located, we’ll create a new clip called Reload and save it in our newly created folder. You’ll notice our model doesn’t have a head. This isn’t part of the course, I thought I’d try hiding the head so we have a better camera view as I pulled the camera back a bit.

Next, go into the animator and create a trigger called Reload, we’ll also make connections from idle to Reload and back.

From Idle to Reload, no exit time, Condition: Reload trigger.

From Reload to Idle, has exit time, no condition.

Go back to the main scene window, and open the animation window if it isn’t already, and then add position and rotation parameters to the animation.

Next, we’ll hit play to see our player hold the gun, and the press record on the reload anim. we’ll also add another second to the animation. I moved the window so I can see the end result a bit easier as I work on it.

Next, press the play button, then select the usp model and select the reload animation and press the record button; move and rotate the gun and the hands will follow, and next move the left hand away as if reloading.

Copy and paste the reload position near the end so you end up with your original position. For some reason, the hands didn’t copy over so I copy and pasted that keyframe over to the final frame as well.

Next, we’ll add the clips transform position and rotation to the animation timeline.

Next, I animated the clip falling, and then being pushed back into the gun.

Finally for a bit of extra oomph, the top of the gun was animated to slide back when the clip fell and back when it was reloaded.

and also a bit of recoil when the clip reenters the pistol.

Then to implement it in the game, we’ll have to modify the guns own Gun_Fire_Pistol.script

and now we can press R to reload our gun!

And with this, the 3D zombie shooter course is concluded.