For Hero Academy we did as Odium suggested. I created a MaxScript that could import a folder of images as planes. Since we used a 2D game engine, I also created a MaxScript that exported the animations as 2D data. (Only XZ Position and Y rotations.) Video https://dl.dropbox.com/u/2904948/Sketches/jrm_Taunts.mov
You're not derailing, that a valid method for exporting sprite animations. (And I used that method on other games.) However, that's not what we did on Hero Academy. 1. We create several images with different parts of the body. (Head, arm, weapon, ect...) We use a photoshop layer exporter to speed this up. 2. Import all the…