The More Pixels, The More Joy!
My journey through pixel art graphic creation. The simplicity of Pixel art is what makes it so wonderful.
I absolutely love 2D old-school games like Game Boy’s Pokemon, Mario Bros, console games like Contra or Tank 1990. My favourite PC MMO game is still TIBIA!
Basically…The more pixels, the more joy!
I think the secret is their simplicity and their similarity to the classic board games — movement on bars, game climate and simple and predictable rules.
My First Hackathon
While working in EL Passion I had the opportunity to make my dreams come true! During one of our internal 2-day long Hackathons, which is a time dedicated to working on personal creative projects, my group made a pixel art game!
It was supposed to be a simple 2D MMO game about flat earth theory enthusiasts (FEAR — Flat Earth Arena Royale) inspired by retro pixel-games. After the team planning, fate had it, that I would be the one to work on the graphics.
My first thought… “Easy Babe!”
I started looking for some software to work on the graphics and I found a free online sprite editor called PISKEL. It was a good tool to start working on the first sprites of the main character and… he started looking like a chestnut! 😱
We decided (not completely consciously) that our frame resolution would be 16x16px and it would be very sparse in detail, bordered with fat black lines…generally, the goal was that it should look pretty bad!
I started looking for some tutorials about how to draw pixel art, find out more about border techniques (using a darker colour — not only black) and see if there were any tips about how to match terrain sprites.
After 2 days of wandering in the fog, we made our first online multiplayer game, FEAR.
How it Works
You can move on the flat earth, which is falling apart, using the arrow keys and push other players over the edge with your cat blaster using the space bar! This is a multiplayer game, so it’s best to find yourself a partner when trying it out. There isn’t a mobile version yet, so you’ll need to use a computer.
As a result of our project, we won the Hackathon and it was a great experience. Yet, I felt unsatisfied with the graphics.
Behold…Bono!
Before the next Hackathon, I decided to do more research. I found information about more advanced software for pixel art and this time around I decided to use Asepirte.
The software isn’t free, but it’s not expensive either. It’s everything a pixel artist could ever need! There are layers, frames, various save formats, exporting to sprite sheets, a lot of modification facilities and it even has necessary functions for pixel art in default -you don’t have to set up anything for pixel workflow like in photoshop.
WE’VE GOT A PIXEL LAYOUT OF THE APP!!! AWWEESOOMMEE!!!!!!
On the official website, you can find a lot of tutorials about how to use Aseprite but it’s really easy to use and a very intuitive software. There are more software examples available you can check out.
As a result of my research, I also found fantastic examples of pixel art graphics and mini-tutorials by MiniBoss studio and useful tips from Lospec. From these sources, I learned about colour palette, sprite sizes, border colours, perspective and backgrounds.
I started to draw my first sprites of the main character for my new game “El Puggo — The Bono Stories” in 32x32px. The game is about Bono — the pug moving around our office, looking for his owner and solving quests.
Bigger sprite sizes allowed me to add more details and create nicer graphics, while still maintaining the pixelated retro style.
My Second Hackathon
During the most recent Hackathon, in a bigger group than last time, we created other animations for Bono, as well as backgrounds, floors, walls, windows, tables and other items that can be used in the game.
The main character and active items have darker borders so that they stand out more. The background has lighter borders, so as not to distract the player.
How to Play!
We added some fancy shadows and textures. You can play EL Puggo and see for yourself!
Use arrow keys to move around, S button to sit, D button to drop the ball after you find it and space bar to talk to other characters.
Remember, this is 2-day mockup without the main story and there isn’t a mobile version, but you can try some functionalities we developed in this Hackathon.
3 Tips to Get Started on Your Own Pixel-Art Games
1. Take a look at some awesome examples of pixel art at MINIBOSS STUDIO and try to make your own based on these mini tutorials.
2. Use layers to make it easier to correct mistakes.
3. Just have fun with it!
Conclusion
To make pixel art games you don’t need a graphics tablet…you probably don’t even need a mouse! I’ve seen people drawing awesome sprites using a touchpad.
Making pixel-art doesn’t require any advanced software, but of course, it can make your workflow simpler. Remember, the more layers you create, the easier it is to make changes.
The other great part about pixel art is that you don’t need fancy skills. Honestly! Watch some online tutorials and try to draw something that’s 32x32 pixels.
Give it a go and you’ll see how easy and fun it is!
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About the Author
Rafał Rudko is a Frontend Developer & Sower Of Confusion at EL Passion. You can find him on Facebook.
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