A long time ago now somebody asked whether gif animations were supported by RPG Maker, with the expressed intention of using them for animated face graphics in messages. Unfortunately, it is not possible to use gifs as they are not supported at all, let alone the animated variety. There is a technique I've been toying with for animated faces. It has varied results, can look sloppy, so try it out and decide how best to use it, if at all.

This makes use of the message box commands. If you're not familiar with them, I suggest you review, they're in the RPG Maker help file. I used a range of facesets created by the Inquisitor for his project "Sightless Omen". He'd made the full range of expressions at many different extremities. So, I arranged blank messages, one after another, with a different step in the animation. This is the basis of the animated faceset techique. However, if you try to use it to any great extent there are two hurdles to overcome.

1. You have to click through each message. This is quick to remedy, most everyone knows the /^ command - this autocloses the message box. If you give this a try, you will be pleased to see an animated effect, but runs into problems if used mid-speech (see 2). If you plan to only use the animated faces techniques at the beginning of the text, before any words are displayed on screen, this is where you should stop. It works beautifully, I might add. Selaud, the character's face set I had used, went from happy to angry in half a second, each frame visible but smooth, before uttering the words "I WILL kill you!" (standard RPG line)


Change Face Graphics: Selaud 1 Message: "\^" Change Face Graphics: Selaud 2 Message: "\^" Change Face Graphics: Selaud 3 Message: "\^" Change Face Graphics: Selaud 4 Message: "\^" Change Face Graphics: Selaud 5 Message: "\^" Change Face Graphics: Selaud 6 Message: "\^" Change Face Graphics: Selaud 7 Message: "\^" Change Face Graphics: Selaud 8 Message: "I WILL kill you!\^"
2. This is what makes the animated facesets a little uneasy on the eyes. It occurs if you try to animate mid message in the above mentioned fashion. The faceset will animate, but the problem is the text is displayed with the usual pauses it would encounter. For example:

If I wanted Selaud to open and shut his mouth for every word, I would have to have an event like this:

Change Face Graphics: Selaud 1 Message: "I\^" Change Face Graphics: Selaud 2 Message: "I\^" Change Face Graphics: Selaud 1 Message: "I WILL\^" Change Face Graphics: Selaud 2 Message: "I WILL\^" Change Face Graphics: Selaud 1 Message: "I WILL kill\^" Change Face Graphics: Selaud 2 Message: "I WILL kill\^" Change Face Graphics: Selaud 1 Message: "I WILL kill you!\^" Change Face Graphics: Selaud 2 Message: "I WILL kill you!\^"

Seems simple enough, but as I mentioned, text in RPG Maker, by default, will have a display speed. You can countermand this with \> \< - everything between those two symbols will be displayed instantly, but unfortunately not quicker than the refresh rate of the human eye. In short, you get a slight flash where text isn't displayed. Play with it, you might find a way around.