Help/Advise for My Run Cycle

[Darkantuan]

I've spent the last few days working on a full run cycle for my game's protagonist, and despite using a reference, the movements just look so... off. I am entry level when it comes to stuff like this (this is literally the first thing I've ever animated and it shows xD) so I was hoping to get some help, or advise on how to make it look more smooth/realistic.



The sprite animation runs through an event as a parallel process rather than a script. It's looped on a conditional branch, with the still image (1) showing by default when the player is still, and looping (2), (3), (4), (5), (4), (3), for the run animation.

Note: Because of the letterbox overlay, the legs are never fully visible, so I am leaving them as is for now and focusing more on the movement of the dress.











Any tips or assistance will be greatly appreciated!