PIXEL ART: BASICS
I show you the basics of making pixel art by walking you through creating a sprite. Sprites are the images in 2D games that represent the various objects in a game like your player character, monsters, objects, etc.
Note: The size of the original NES is 256 x 240, while a Super Nintendo is 256 x 224.
According to the wikipedia entry for the Super Nintendo, there are actually multiple output modes. Progressive: 256 × 224, 512 × 224, 256 × 239, 512 × 239 Interlaced: 512 × 448, 512 × 478 NES had only 256 × 240.
The other thing that makes a huge difference is the color palette available. More memory meant being able to do things like shading (mario had red, dark red, light red, blue, dark blue, light blue clothes instead of just red, blue).
BACKGROUND
Pixel art, also known as dot art in Japan, is a form of digital art where editing is done at the pixel level. It is primarily associated with 1980s and 1990s video game graphics, where commercial artists struggled against limited memory and low resolutions to create increasingly eye-catching images. These days, it's still popular in games and as an art form in its own right, despite the possibility of realistic 3D graphics. Why? Well, nostalgia aside, it's still a fun and rewarding challenge to create vibrant works of art within such strict limitations. In the same way that we admire how a few strokes of a trained hand can render form and evoke emotion, we also admire how a few pixels can combine to do the same thing.
The barrier to entry for pixel art is also relatively low compared to painted or 3D graphics, making it a good choice for indie game developers looking to bring their ideas to life. But make no mistake, that in no way implies that it's easy to FINISH a game with him. I've seen a lot of indie kickstart their Metroidvania pixel art thinking they have a year to finish when it's actually more like six years. Pixel art at the level most people want to do is time consuming and there are very few shortcuts to doing it. At least with a 3D model you can rotate it, warp it, move its limbs, copy animations from one model to another, etc. High-level pixel art almost always requires a great deal of painstaking pixel placement in each frame.
With that caveat out of the way, a bit about my style: I primarily use pixel art to make video games, and it's from video games that I draw most of my inspiration. In particular, I'm a fan of the Famicom/NES , 16-bit consoles, and ' 90s arcade games. My favorite games from that time had pixel art that I'd describe as colorful, bold, and clean... but not so clean that it was stark or minimalist. That's the style I modeled mine on, but you could easily apply the ideas and techniques from this tutorial to something completely different. Study a variety of artists and make pixel art what you want it to be!
SOFTWARE
The basic tools required for pixel art are zoom and pencil for pixel placement. Line/shape tools, selection/move tools, and a paint bucket for quick fills are also useful. There are many free and paid software options that you can use that have these tools. I'll describe some of the more popular ones here (including what I use).
If you're on Windows, its built-in paint program is basic, but it has all the above tools you'd need to do pixel art.
This seems to be the most popular editor available at the moment. Full of features, actively developed and available for Windows, Mac and Linux. On top of that, de is open source and can be used for free if compiled from source code. If you're serious about creating pixel art and don't already have an editor you're connected to, this is probably the way to go.
PAINT
GraphicsGale is the first standalone editor I remember hearing about that was designed just for pixel art and featured animation tools. Created by a Japanese company called HUMANBALANCE, it became freeware in 2017 and is still widely used despite the growing popularity of Aseprite. Unfortunately, it's only Windows.
Since Photoshop is an expensive subscription-based app that isn't designed around pixel art, I don't recommend it unless you already have it for painting or image manipulation. It can get the job done for static sprites and pixel artwork (like the ones I've done for this tutorial), although it's quite cumbersome compared to focused apps like GraphicsGale or Aseprite.
I highly recommend a drawing tablet for any type of digital artwork to prevent repetitive stress injuries to your wrists. RSI is much easier to prevent than to fix. Once they start to get sore, you're already headed downhill (my days of drawing with a mouse have made it difficult to play any game that requires mashing buttons). So start taking care of yourself early, it will be worth it! I am currently using a small Wacom Intuos Pro.
If getting a tablet isn't possible, at least get a wrist guard. My favorite is the Mueller Green Fitted Wristband. I have found other brands to be uncomfortably tight or not supportive enough. You can easily order wristbands online.
WRIST GUARD
