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Animated sprite editor & pixel art tool (Windows, macOS, Linux)

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Pencil2D is an easy, intuitive tool to make 2D hand-drawn animations. Pencil2D is open source and cross-platform.

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A simple web-based tool for Spriting and Pixel art.

Animated sprite editor & pixel art tool -- Fork of the last GPLv2 commit of Aseprite

Pixel art animation and drawing web app powered by React

Unleash your creativity with Pixelorama, a powerful and accessible open-source pixel art multitool. Whether you want to create sprites, tiles, animations, or just express yourself in the language of pixel art, this software will realize your pixel-perfect dreams with a vast toolbox of features. Available on Windows, Linux, macOS and the Web!

Quick Overview

Aseprite is a powerful, open-source pixel art editor and animation tool. It provides a comprehensive set of features for creating and editing 2D pixel art, including support for layers, frames, and palettes. Aseprite is widely used by game developers, digital artists, and hobbyists for creating sprites, icons, and other pixel-based graphics.

Pros

  • Robust Pixel Art Tools: Aseprite offers a wide range of tools and features specifically designed for pixel art creation, including advanced pixel-level editing, pixel-perfect drawing, and support for pixel-perfect zooming.
  • Animation Capabilities: Aseprite provides a robust animation system, allowing users to create frame-by-frame animations with ease. It supports features like onion skinning, frame-by-frame editing, and timeline-based animation.
  • Cross-Platform Compatibility: Aseprite is available on multiple platforms, including Windows, macOS, and Linux, making it accessible to a wide range of users.
  • Active Development and Community: Aseprite has an active development team and a thriving community of users, ensuring regular updates, bug fixes, and a wealth of resources and support.

Cons

  • Learning Curve: Aseprite's extensive feature set and customization options can make it challenging for beginners to get started, requiring a significant learning curve.
  • Limited Raster Graphics Support: While Aseprite excels at pixel art, it may not be the best choice for users who primarily work with raster graphics or need more advanced image editing capabilities.
  • Proprietary File Format: Aseprite uses its own proprietary file format (.ase or .aseprite), which may not be compatible with all other image editing software.
  • Paid Version Requirement: Some advanced features, such as scripting and command-line tools, are only available in the paid version of Aseprite, which may be a barrier for some users.

Getting Started

To get started with Aseprite, follow these steps:

  1. Download the appropriate version of Aseprite for your operating system from the official website: https://www.aseprite.org/.
  2. Install Aseprite on your computer.
  3. Launch the application and explore the user interface, which includes tools for drawing, animating, and managing layers, frames, and palettes.
  4. Start creating your first pixel art by using the various drawing tools, such as the pencil, brush, and fill tools.
  5. Experiment with the animation features by adding frames, adjusting the timing, and previewing your animation.
  6. Save your work in the Aseprite file format (.ase or .aseprite) for future editing and sharing.

Aseprite also provides a wealth of tutorials, documentation, and community resources to help users get started and improve their pixel art skills.

Competitor Comparisons

1,483

Pencil2D is an easy, intuitive tool to make 2D hand-drawn animations. Pencil2D is open source and cross-platform.

Pros of Pencil

  • Free and open-source animation software
  • Supports both bitmap and vector graphics
  • Cross-platform compatibility (Windows, macOS, Linux)

Cons of Pencil

  • Less feature-rich compared to Aseprite
  • User interface may be less intuitive for some users
  • Slower development pace and less frequent updates

Code Comparison

Aseprite (C++):

void Image::clear(color_t color) {
  LockImageBits<ImageTraits> bits(this);
  auto it = bits.begin(), end = bits.end();
  for (; it != end; ++it)
    *it = color;
}

Pencil (C++):

void BitmapImage::clear(QColor colour)
{
    mImage->fill(colour.rgba());
    modification();
}

Both projects use C++ for their core functionality. Aseprite's code appears more optimized for performance, using iterators and a custom LockImageBits class. Pencil's code is simpler and relies more on Qt framework functions.

Aseprite is primarily focused on pixel art and sprite animation, while Pencil is a more general-purpose 2D animation tool. Aseprite has a larger community and more frequent updates, but it's not free. Pencil offers a free alternative with basic animation features and support for both bitmap and vector graphics.

11,280

A simple web-based tool for Spriting and Pixel art.

Pros of Piskel

  • Free and open-source, accessible to all users
  • Web-based application, no installation required
  • Supports real-time collaboration features

Cons of Piskel

  • Limited advanced features compared to Aseprite
  • Less frequent updates and maintenance
  • Smaller community and ecosystem

Code Comparison

Piskel (JavaScript):

ns.SpriteSheet.prototype.render = function() {
  var canvas = this.canvas;
  var context = canvas.getContext('2d');
  context.clearRect(0, 0, canvas.width, canvas.height);
  this.frames.forEach(function(frame) {
    frame.render(context);
  });
};

Aseprite (C++):

void Document::renderSprite(Image* dstImage, const Sprite* sprite,
                            frame_t frame, const gfx::Point& pos)
{
  render::Render render;
  render.renderSprite(dstImage, sprite, frame, pos);
}

The code snippets show different approaches to rendering sprites. Piskel uses JavaScript and iterates through frames to render on a canvas, while Aseprite employs C++ and utilizes a dedicated render class for sprite rendering.

Animated sprite editor & pixel art tool -- Fork of the last GPLv2 commit of Aseprite

Pros of LibreSprite

  • Completely free and open-source, with no commercial restrictions
  • Community-driven development with more frequent updates
  • Supports a wider range of operating systems, including older versions

Cons of LibreSprite

  • Smaller user base and community compared to Aseprite
  • Less polished user interface and fewer advanced features
  • May have compatibility issues with some Aseprite files or extensions

Code Comparison

Aseprite:

void Editor::setZoom(render::Zoom zoom) {
  setZoomAndUpdate(zoom, true);
}

LibreSprite:

void Editor::setZoom(render::Zoom zoom) {
  setZoomAndUpdate(zoom, true);
  updateStatusBar();
}

The code comparison shows that LibreSprite has added an additional function call updateStatusBar() to the setZoom method, potentially providing more immediate feedback to the user when changing the zoom level.

Both Aseprite and LibreSprite are pixel art creation tools, with Aseprite being the original commercial product and LibreSprite a free, open-source fork. While LibreSprite offers unrestricted access and community-driven development, Aseprite maintains a larger user base and more polished features. The choice between the two depends on individual needs, budget constraints, and preference for open-source vs. commercial software.

Pixel art animation and drawing web app powered by React

Pros of pixel-art-react

  • Web-based and accessible from any browser
  • React-based, making it easy to integrate into existing React projects
  • Lightweight and doesn't require installation

Cons of pixel-art-react

  • Limited features compared to Aseprite's comprehensive toolset
  • Less optimized for professional pixel art creation
  • Lacks advanced animation capabilities

Code Comparison

Aseprite (C++):

void Image::putPixel(int x, int y, color_t color)
{
  if (x >= 0 && x < m_width && y >= 0 && y < m_height)
    *(m_bits + y*m_rowstride + x) = color;
}

pixel-art-react (JavaScript):

const paintPixel = (pixelIndex, color) => {
  const newFrames = frames.map((frame, i) => {
    if (i === activeFrameIndex) {
      return {
        ...frame,
        pixels: frame.pixels.map((pixel, j) =>
          j === pixelIndex ? color : pixel
        ),
      };
    }
    return frame;
  });
  setFrames(newFrames);
};

Summary

Aseprite is a comprehensive, desktop-based pixel art and animation tool, while pixel-art-react is a lightweight, web-based alternative. Aseprite offers more advanced features and is optimized for professional use, whereas pixel-art-react provides easier integration with React projects and browser accessibility. The code comparison shows Aseprite's direct pixel manipulation in C++ versus pixel-art-react's React-style state management approach in JavaScript.

Unleash your creativity with Pixelorama, a powerful and accessible open-source pixel art multitool. Whether you want to create sprites, tiles, animations, or just express yourself in the language of pixel art, this software will realize your pixel-perfect dreams with a vast toolbox of features. Available on Windows, Linux, macOS and the Web!

Pros of Pixelorama

  • Free and open-source, making it accessible to all users
  • Cross-platform compatibility (Windows, macOS, Linux)
  • Built-in animation tools and timeline

Cons of Pixelorama

  • Less mature and feature-rich compared to Aseprite
  • Smaller community and fewer resources available
  • Performance may be less optimized for larger projects

Code Comparison

Pixelorama (GDScript):

func _on_Tool_pressed(tool_name: String) -> void:
    Global.current_tool = tool_name
    update_tool_buttons()

Aseprite (C++):

void ToolBar::selectTool(tools::Tool* tool)
{
  m_activeTool = tool;
  updateToolIcon();
}

Both projects use different programming languages, with Pixelorama utilizing GDScript (Godot's scripting language) and Aseprite using C++. This difference affects performance and development approaches. Aseprite's C++ implementation may offer better performance for complex operations, while Pixelorama's GDScript code might be easier to read and modify for some developers.

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README

Aseprite

build Translation Status Discourse Community Discord Server

Introduction

Aseprite is a program to create animated sprites. Its main features are:

Issues

There is a list of Known Issues (things to be fixed or that aren't yet implemented).

If you found a bug or have a new idea/feature for the program, you can report them.

Support

You can ask for help in:

Authors

Aseprite is being developed by Igara Studio:

Credits

The default Aseprite theme was introduced in v0.8, created by:

A modified dark version of this theme introduced in v1.3-beta1 was created by:

Aseprite includes color palettes created by:

It tries to replicate some pixel-art algorithms:

Thanks to third-party open source projects, to contributors, and all the people who have contributed ideas, patches, bugs report, feature requests, donations, and help us to develop Aseprite.

License

This program is distributed under three different licenses:

  1. Source code and official releases/binaries are distributed under our End-User License Agreement for Aseprite (EULA). Please check that there are modules/libraries in the source code that are distributed under the MIT license (e.g. laf, clip, undo, observable, ui, etc.).
  2. You can request a special educational license in case you are a teacher in an educational institution and want to use Aseprite in your classroom (in-situ).
  3. Steam releases are distributed under the terms of the Steam Subscriber Agreement.

You can get more information about Aseprite license in the FAQ.