Based on my knowledge, Spine's physics constraints are designed to be efficient and shouldn't require annoying levels of computation in most cases.
Key points about physics performance:
- Physics constraints are actually more efficient than traditional animation because they require setting fewer keys
- The computational load depends on both the number of physics constraints used and the overall complexity of your skeleton
- At runtime, physics calculations are efficient and don't typically need baking for performance reasons
Performance recommendations:
I recommend testing the performance based on your specific needs first before making decisions. The actual impact varies significantly depending on:
- How many physics constraints you're using
- Your skeleton's overall complexity
- Your target hardware
- How many characters are on screen
If you do encounter performance issues:
Rather than downgrading or baking, consider:
- Reducing the number of bones affected by physics
- Adjusting the physics FPS (update rate) - lower values like 30 FPS can still look good while reducing computation
- Optimizing your skeleton complexity overall
About baking:
While baking is technically possible, it's generally not recommended because:
- You lose the dynamic, reactive nature of physics
- It usually requires many keys and complex tools to manage them
- Spine's physics are efficient enough that baking isn't needed for performance
Test your setup first - you may find the performance is perfectly acceptable without any compromises!
