Pre-baked Animation
Pre-baked animation is a technique in computer graphics and game development where animations are precomputed and stored as data (e.g., vertex positions or texture coordinates) rather than calculated in real-time. This involves generating animation frames offline and baking them into assets like textures or meshes, which are then played back during runtime. It is commonly used for complex or performance-intensive animations to reduce computational load.
Developers should use pre-baked animation when optimizing performance in real-time applications like video games or simulations, especially for animations that are too costly to compute dynamically, such as fluid simulations, cloth dynamics, or detailed character movements. It is also valuable in scenarios where animation quality must be preserved without runtime overhead, such as in cinematic sequences or VR experiences, ensuring smooth playback on lower-end hardware.