Video Game Pixel Art Masterclass - Build Assets with Piskel

Learn Piskel by creating a first pixel art project on Piscatella App Dotcom, mastering frames, sprite sheets, symmetry, color palettes, and essential tools for drawing, editing, and exporting.

Set the canvas to 48 by 48 pixels, outline a female character with a mirror pen, then add the vest, skirt, boots, hair, and facial features.

Add detail by redefining the outer outline, recoloring with darker tones, and adding shading and facial adjustments to make the pixel character feel more lively.

Duplicate the existing pixel character to create a consistent male companion, then erase and adjust features while re-coloring skin and hair using a shared palette and painting tools.

Learn to add detail to a pixel art character by using the paint all pixels the same color tool, manage palettes, outline, shade, and craft plaid shirt and sneakers.

Duplicate the layer to create a reusable base outline in Piskel, erase extra features, and use mirror and fill tools to shape a gray base with eyes and shorts.

Build a puppy pixel art on a new layer using a vertical mirror pen. Color with a palette, add shading and highlights, and place a collar.

Duplicate cookies to create a cat, resize and reshape the puppy into a kitten, erase outlines, mirror shapes, and apply color to craft stripes, ears, eyes, and a curved tail.

Create a 64 by 64 platform tile for our characters, build a skybox with a harbor color palette, and layer trees and background using dithering and tiling for seamless edges.

Create and texture a new 64 by 64 platform in piskel, using layered sky, harbor blues, and tiled trees, with dithering, outlining, and vertical mirror alignment for seamless looping.

Create a new top layer to build a foreground boardwalk, using a mirror tool and palette tweaks to add a railing and a separating border from the ocean.

Create a cobblestone texture by building a layered gray palette (blue, dark and light grays, sand), mirroring the sides, then refine lines with the race tool and fill operations.

Add a new background layer under the ocean to place distant islands and rocks, texture the water with highlights and shadows, layer clouds, and save the file as harbour.

Align your character sprites with the environment by building a stone road layer, texture, and horizon separation in Piskel, ensuring foreground figures stay distinct from the background.

Animate a walking character from the side by recreating the figure on a new layer, using color pick, the pen tool, and layer management to refine the pose.

Design a side-profile pixel art character in piskel, color the hair and ponytail and vest, add outlines and highlights across the palette, and set up the first walk-cycle frame.

Duplicate the frame to create a second frame, then adjust the character’s arms and legs through the walking cycle, color palette tweaks, outlines, and layer shifts to convey motion.

Learn pixel art animation techniques by duplicating frames, shifting layers, and refining leg and arm movement with the pen tool, bucket fill, and color outlines to create a natural swing.

Master frame-by-frame pixel animation in Piskel by duplicating frames, adjusting arms and recoil, and refining movement to create a natural walk cycle.

Create a walking cycle for a pixel art character by duplicating frames and adjusting positions. Color, shade, and align feet, legs, arms, and hair across layers to smooth motion.

Animate a walking character by integrating a seven frame walking cycle into a platform scene, duplicating frames, importing the character, and moving the character and clouds to create motion.

Create a 32 by 32 pixel short sword in Piskel, starting from outlines to fill and shade with a color palette, adding purple, gold, and a ruby centerpiece for UI inventory sprites.

Create a longer pixel sword within a 32 by 32 canvas using diagonal tricks, multiple layers, and a custom color palette to add details, highlights, and shadows.

Learn to build a diagonal, pixel bow by creating a new layer, mirroring shapes, adjusting colors with a custom palette, adding string, shadows, and embellishments for a polished asset.

Create a twisting staff on a new layer using browns, gold, and greens with highlights, shadows, and leaves, then refine edges for a 32 by 32 pixel asset.

Create a new shield layer, enable vertical mirror, and outline with black; build a blue-gray shield with shading and decorative embellishments for a defender asset.

Build a treasure chest pixel art by creating a new color palette, outlining with browns and a vibrant gold trim, and applying shading and highlights to convey depth.

Create coins, rubies, a diamond, and a ruby-like gem for a treasure chest, using layered shading, palette management, outlines, and highlights in pixel art.

Learn how to create a cute slime monster as a beginner-level asset using Piskel, including blob shaping, outlining, shading, eyes, blush, and color palette management.

Create a blob animation in pixel art with piskel by duplicating frames, squishing and stretching, adjusting eyes and blush, and animating antennas and shadow for an idle or walking loop.