Animated 3D Models

An animated 3D model is a mesh with a skeleton (armature) and one or more animation clips baked into the file. Each clip records how the bones move over time — a walk cycle might be 30 frames, an idle loop 60 frames. In game engines like Unity and Unreal, these clips are played back at runtime via an animation state machine. In web engines like Three.js or Babylon.js, an AnimationMixer drives the clips. The model, its rig, and its animation clips can all live inside a single FBX or GLB file, which makes sharing and importing straightforward.

The minimum viable set for a game character: Idle (loop, ~60–120 frames), Walk (loop, ~30–40 frames), Run (loop, ~20–30 frames), Jump (one-shot or loop), and at least one action clip (Attack, Interact, or Die). High-quality packs also include: Crouch walk, Strafe left/right, Turn in place, Reaction/Hit, and Facial animations (blink, lip sync shapes). Check the listing description for a full clip list before buying. Creators who list clip names and frame counts have taken care with their exports.

Root motion means the character's position in world space is driven by the animation itself — the skeleton's root bone actually moves during a walk cycle. In-place (or 'in-situ') animation keeps the root stationary and you move the character via code. Root motion gives natural movement curves and prevents foot sliding, but requires your engine to apply the root motion to the character controller. Unity and Unreal both support root motion via checkbox. If you're building a first-person game or need precise physics-driven movement, in-place is often easier. Most Proofly listings specify which they use in the description.

FBX is the most reliable format for animated characters in Unity and Unreal. Both engines import FBX natively, preserving bones, skin weights, blend shapes, and embedded animation clips with their loop flags intact. GLB/GLTF is a strong alternative for Unity 2022+ (via the GLTFast package) and Unreal 5.0+ (built-in GLTF importer). For web engines (Three.js, Babylon.js, PlayCanvas, React Three Fiber), GLB is the standard — GLTFLoader plays clips via AnimationMixer directly. When a listing offers both FBX and GLB in a ZIP, you get the best of both pipelines.

Yes — most Proofly listings include a Commercial license that covers use in games, apps, and other products distributed for sale. Check the license panel on each model page: Personal, Commercial, or Extended. Commercial licenses cover use in one product/game. Extended licenses cover templates, asset store re-distribution, or unlimited projects. The license panel on every Proofly model page states exactly what's permitted. If you need a custom license (e.g., for a AAA game or NDA project), you can contact the creator directly via the 'Message Creator' button.

Load the GLB with GLTFLoader, then create an AnimationMixer and pass the animation clips to it: `const mixer = new THREE.AnimationMixer(gltf.scene); const action = mixer.clipAction(gltf.animations[0]); action.play();`. In your render loop, call `mixer.update(clock.getDelta())`. To switch between clips (idle→walk), use `action.fadeOut(0.3)` on the current clip and `mixer.clipAction(newClip).fadeIn(0.3).play()` on the next. The AnimationMixer handles crossfading automatically. For multiple characters, create one mixer per character — they update independently.