Trouble animating sprites (Pygame)

Solution 1:

There are 2 parts to achieve this effect.

1. Create a function to change image of the sprite. ( Easy Task)
2. Call the above function periodically every x seconds. ( Intermediate Task)

Step 1. You can achieve this by just setting/loading the self.image variable with the next image.

Step 2.

clock = pygame.time.Clock()

time_counter = 0
images = ['starship_1', 'starship_2', 'starship_3']
current_img_index = 0

while run:    
    # Your Code

    time_counter = clock.tick()

    # 1000 is milliseconds == 1 second. Change this as desired
    if time_counter > 1000:
        # Incrementing index to next image but reseting back to zero when it hits 3
        current_img_index = (current_img_index + 1) % 3 
        set_img_function(current_img_index) # Function you make in step 1

        # Reset the timer
        time_counter = 0

A good approach will be to complete step 1 and then bind it to a button. Test if it works and then move on to step 2.

Some good read about the functions used in this code to fully understand them is here