Spine, an excellent animation software program, is focusing on 2D animations for games. Its efficient, streamlined workflow for creating animations and making use of animations in games has attracted many professional animators and designers. Spine is famous for its many features such as mixing, blended, procedural, and reusable animations, etc. The animation created by Spine is based on skeletal animations which means attaching images to bones and animating the characters by manipulating the bones.
Spine is available to make animations in multiple-use but most of the functions and tools are designed to help game players. Is there any alternative software to make natural skeletal animation and suit users from every walk of life? You may be looking for a Spine 2D alternative but can’t find a useful and cost-effective one. Mango Animate has released a new skeletal animation maker recently which is the best Spine 2D alternative with a lower price and multiple uses.
Mango Animate Character Maker(Mango Animate CM) works on the same principle with Spine: skeletal animation. So it is good for making natural and logical animations too. What makes it distinguishes from other competitors is that it enables users to make animations on different themes such as education, business, and so on, which satisfies the needs of users from different industries for skeletal animations. Also, the pre-made templates for different purposes further fasten the process of making a skeletal animation.
We have compared these two software programs on the following sheet and you may clearly find the difference.
| Features | Spine | Mango Animate Character Maker |
| Free Version | ❌ | ✔ |
| Pricing | Essential$69 Professional $299 Enterprise $2200 | $139/lifetime |
| Skeletal Animation | ✔ | ✔ |
| Blend Animation | ✔ | ❌ |
| Character Rigging | ✔ | ✔ |
| Free-Form Deformation | ✔ | ✔ |
| Inverse Kinematic ontrol | ✔ | ✔ |
| Supported Import File Formats | in JSON or binary format | PNG/PSD/GIF Video/Audio |
| Output Formats | JSON/binary/GIF/PNG /JPG/AVI/QuickTime | PNG/GIF /MP4/MOV/APNG |
| Auto motion keyframe | ✔ | ✔ |
| Timeline | ✔ | ✔ |
| Custom the Facial Features & Expressions | ❌ | ✔ |
| Character library | ❌ | ✔ |
| Custom Resolution | ✔ | ✔ |
| Privacy Settings | ✔ | ✔ |
| Drag & Drop | ✔ | ✔ |
| Share to social platforms | ✔ | ✔ |
After comparing the similarities and differences between Spine and Mango Animate CM, it’s easy to find that Spine focuses on making the animation more coherent and natural. For example, you can adjust the previous frame and the next frame to bring up life-like animations in a linear, step, and bezier way. Also, you are able to blend the animations that a character can shoot while walking. Spine is powerful in making game animations but it doesn’t have a free version except for a free trial. You are able to experience all the features in the trial but can’t save or export any data. On the contrary, Mango Animate CM, the best Spine 2D alternative, not only provides a free version for everyone to use but also enables you to save your animation projects and export them. Meanwhile, for those who wish to use skeletal animation for multiple purposes, it is the best choice.
It is a great tool for everyone to create skeletal animations. For example, businesses can promote their products or services through a skeletal animation. Teachers are able to use character skeletal animations as courseware while online teaching becomes regular. There are also many character templates for you to choose from. And it allows you to customize the facial features and expressions which makes the process of making animations more entertaining. In brief, as the best free Spine 2D alternative, Mango Animate Character Maker meets most people’s needs to create skeletal animation videos in a quick but useful way.
Why You Should Choose Mango Animate Character Maker As Spine 2D Alternative
Photos to Characters
Turn your static images into vivid cartoon 2D characters. Import your PNG or PSD files to it, add bones and edit movements of the characters by manipulating bones.
Easy Rigging
Rig any 2D characters with a simple click. Moving your characters or the pre-made character templates is a breeze. It empowers everyone to create pro-level character rigging in a blink.
Pre-set Bone & Motion Templates
The pre-made bone templates help you fasten the process of animation. A huge motion template library helps animate the characters to fully express your ideas.
Built-in Cartoon Characters
A huge character library is available to you. You will find human templates from all walks of life and animal templates that are easy to edit for multiple uses.
Infinite Customization
Choose a character that suits you and custom your character to meet your needs. Everyone is able to unleash their imagination.
Multiple Output Options
Publish your animated characters in various formats, including MP4, MOV, PNG, and animated GIF. Share or upload your artwork on any social media platform.
Free animation maker to make explainer videos, promo videos, training videos, whiteboard videos, character videos, and text videos.
