Feeling nostalgic for the early days of computer and arcade games? Pixel Art is a design style that replicates the earliest video game graphics, which were produced with rudimentary, 8-bit graphics, creating a distinctive “blocky” style. It’s a great alternative to modern and more realistic drawing styles, such as anime.
You can create your very own Pixel Art with any of the following tools.
PiskelApp
PiskelApp is a completely free online pixel editor with an emphasis on sprite creation. It permits you to store your pixel art on the internet and has an import function so you can use it to edit your current pixel art. PiskelApp includes a simple user interface and is an excellent choice if you would like to dive right into creating your sprite sheet.
Pixie
Pixie is just another fully functional online pixel editor. Even though it’s not too suited to sprite sheet creation since PiskelApp, it’s still quite simple to use and is a good choice for anybody looking to let their creativity run wild. The white canvas is the standard starting point for this particular tool and promotes freehand drawing as opposed to rigid grid layouts.
Pixlr
Pixlr is a slightly more advanced pixel editor in comparison to the previous editors with a massive selection of drawing tools. It offers the identical online saving feature as PiskelApp but is not as well suited to sprite sheet creation. If you would like to avoid the 16-bit style that PiskelApp supports, have a look at this tool instead.
GrafX2
GrafX2 is a bitmap paint program that includes a number of effects and tools which make it especially useful for designing sport images, pixel artwork and sprite sheets. It’s free to download and available on all Significant desktop programs
GIMP
GIMP is an open source image editor for a background which could be used for everything in picture manipulation into creating original artwork. You might also use GIMP to create your pixel art and sprite sheets. Although there is a bit of a learning curve for beginners, GIMP is a powerful tool which can cater to virtually all image editing needs.
PyxleOS
In case you’re trying to find a stripped-down instrument that lets you concentrate on creating great pixel art, you need to take a look at PyxleOS. This open source desktop program is specifically designed for the creation of pixel artwork and it is extremely easy to pick up and use.
MakePixelArt
Make Pixel Art is a fun online tool which lets you start drawing your pixels straight away. Although it might be considered somewhat basic compared to some of the additional tools, it might be your very best option for those who want to quickly sketch an idea or prototype an object or character for your game.