Graphics The art of the pixel 4 way Hero (SOLVED)

I'm starting to hate google for its lack of good sprites. I have a couple sprites that are free to download and use but, the templates of the sheets are crap at best. I did find some gems on a site but finding one out of "7 billion" is a bit of a stretch. I would love to make my own but I need inspiration on how to do things. I'm an engineer not a artist. For my work, I'm not a perfectionist , instead a completist. So where to start the hunt for knowledge?

Tile of Post has been changed from 8 way hero to 4 way hero.
 
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Xer0botXer0

Senpai
Get Aseprite for starters, it has layers and frames, layers working with things at different depths, and frames for animating.
You can buy it on steam, or you can actually since it's open source, download the source code, compile that and you've got Aseprite for free!

Pixelation has an index of many great Reads:

pinterest.com - amazing visual tutorials
https://www.deviantart.com - Some of the best pixel artists posting their art that I've seen
https://www.deviantart.com/drawing-tutorial/gallery/50919619/tutorial-pixel-art - And they've got epic tutorials
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC08QfQDLAd9D7aYPFgBUIng - Adam steams 1-3 times a week on twitch he then uploads his streams to youtube.
Great pixel art content, makes it seem flawless and the fun part is you can discuss what's going on, ask live questions etc while he flawlessly makes pixel art.

Finally do pixel art dailies.
Take long walks in nature.
Examine the real world lighting conditions, examine how textures react to light, and just build up a collection of artwork that you've done.. it's great to know that you've already made 10, 20, 50, 100 artworks, you then see how you've progressed and perhaps you could even use some of that art work.
 

gkri

Member
For brainstorming, inspiration and references pinterest could be your best friend...

You can find lots of free cg art tutorials on YouTube. There also paid options like udemy, domestika, cartoon smart, skillshare etc
 

Zizka

Member
Get started! đź‘Ť

I started studying Mother 3 sprites (Earthbound). The advantage of Earthbound is that the pixel art is simple but has enough character and looks good enough not to need more detail. This is good because it allows for the creation of a lot of assets quickly. Less detail also means less time to animate.

Eventually, you'll branch off from your source material and develop your own style. This being said, I personally think pixel art is time consuming to learn. You might learn faster than I did however.

mother-3-prologue-900x506.png
Mother 3
 
@Xer0botXer0 I am going through it and most of it is what I need for reference.
@gkri I'm strapped for cash so that's out of the question, and I looked at Pinterest and there is nothing worth mentioning.
@Zizka Yes I will try that when I get around to it... right now I need some of the basics out of the way.

ty for the information. I'm looking at them now. If anyone has more to share I would be happy to look at it.
 
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Padouk

Member
still trying to find art, any other materials or tutorials out there?
In your title you talk about "8 way hero". I'm assuming you are looking for some sort of isometric 8 directional character?
Is there are reason you want to go 8 directional instead of 4? That's usually not a cheap way to go.... Those are rarelly hand-drawn. And requires slightly more knowledge to the get all 5 perspective with just a 2d tools.
You should definitivly expect a little money in there.

Anyway.. Remos came up with an 8 directional crusador on itch.io https://remos.itch.io/ it's easy to import in GMS and that's the one I use for my action-rpg proof of concepts

(or the marketplace 1.4 link: https://marketplace.yoyogames.com/assets/322/isometric-mini-crusader)
 
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i might be stretching my wallet abit but your right, i should go with only the 4 way. I have a hero but no enemies to test on other than the Multiplayer.
It might be rough but i still need more material like walls and terrain too...so ill change the post name.
 

kburkhart84

Firehammer Games
Just out of curiosity, have you learned anything in the realm of 3d modelling? Many games(including my current project) use pre-rendered sprites from 3d models. It can work for basically any game, but is even more useful when you need multiple directions created, even more so for more directions. It has limitations, and the workflow in general takes longer both in learning and in execution, but once you have something going, iteration is typically faster depending on what you are iterating on.
 
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