Running walking animations are easy to take for granted. When they do their job right, they look too natural to ever grab your attention while still adding energy and personality to the character. While it may look primitive now, the original NES Mega Man had some of the best running animations of its day. Back then, Mario, Link, and Simon Belmont all sort of hobbled their way to adventure. Mega Man, on the other hand, had a stride that looked confident and effortless.
That was achieved in part by the game's artists who turned turn his body slightly "towards the camera" while he ran. This does a lot to keep Mega Man from looking flat and bland, but it's also a cheat. Technically, if he ran at that angle in a real physical space, he'd end up running straight into the camera and through your TV screen, but subconsciously, we know 2D sprites don't exist in a real physical space. With simple, low detail sprites, you could get away with cheats like that and not lose suspension of disbelief, as they work within their own visual logic.
As for the run animation in Mega Man 11, it might be a little too logical as of right now, like in the way that Dr. Spock's adherence to an objective analysis of the facts can suck the life out of a party. Here's a few idea as to why that is, and what Capcom can do to fix it.
via destructoid http://ift.tt/2Beuycf