Pixel Size Community Discussion

[Sengir]

Are pixels too big in independent games? Time to decide in an official community discussion!


I for one believe that pixels should be the size of pixels. Maybe even smaller depending on the circumstance, but never more.

[[robo9]]

If the game has an art style that can pull off larger pixels, power to them. But for the love of god half pixels drive me insane

Keep that shit proportional, yo

[Garamonde]

don't even get me started on differently-sized pixels

[Sengir]

What about 150% pixels? Should they even be allowed? Is it possible (ethical?) to criminalise these +-.5 pixels?

[puggsoy]

I have to admit the pixel-y nature of many indie games is starting to get to me. It was cool for a while but now it feels like an overused meme, people trying to be cool by going "retro".

I'm not saying it should be stopped, and I'm sure some people do it because they can't make/hire people to make better graphics (e.g. Terry Cavanagh with VVVVVV). But sometimes it's done on purpose and I just don't like it.

[Rhyme]

i think pixels are too large for independent developers to properly utilize, and as such i think they should stop using pixels and move towards a more pixel-based art style, like pixels

[Crappy Blue Luigi]

i play roms of pre-3d systems in 2x size without filters all the time. my personal preference tends to lie on the side of "1x-3x pixels are fine depending on the size of the content, anything bigger looks kind of absurd"

also, agreeing with sportoise, and going a step further: do not stretch or rotate pixels procedurally. it saves on artist work and graphics space, but it looks ugly as all get-out. pokemon gen 5 suffers greatly for this, in my eyes. i'll take human-crafted partially-animated pixels over engine-crafted fully-animated pixels any day of the week.

What about 150% pixels? Should they even be allowed? Is it possible (ethical?) to criminalise these +-.5 pixels?

half-pixels don't exist. you're living in a fantasy world. it's time to grow up, sengir

[Sevenstitch]

Indie titles, what most constitute as real Indie titles, have real pixels.
Like, from actual pixel artists who specialize in pixel-based media.
Of course there are a fair share of Indie titles filled pseudo-pixel art that is really hard to look at with a trained eye.

You don't have to have pixel-based graphics to be an Indie title, but it does seem that most Indie devs come from the days of pixels, and a big part of becoming a Indie dev is to make games that resonate with you at a personal level with your own specific tastes in mind.


As for my personal opinion, so long as pixels stay the same size and are arranged in a pleasing format, I'm more than happy to see them in any video game, Indie or no.

[Spacebake]

I have to admit the pixel-y nature of many indie games is starting to get to me. It was cool for a while but now it feels like an overused meme, people trying to be cool by going "retro".

I'm not saying it should be stopped, and I'm sure some people do it because they can't make/hire people to make better graphics (e.g. Terry Cavanagh with VVVVVV). But sometimes it's done on purpose and I just don't like it.

I don't think it's just people trying to be cool. It's cheaper and faster to use low resolution sprites than to use high res ones or vector graphics most of the time.
It's probably so common because most indie games are so low budget.

[Sengir]

half-pixels don't exist. you're living in a fantasy world. it's time to grow up, sengir

People who don't believe in half-pixels should be removed from our world. This is a half-pixel-fearing capitalist society.

[[robo9]]

You know what, it's not the resurgence of pixel art in indie games that bothers me, it's that faux NES style that too many of them have. I mean it can be well done in some instances, but I feel like it's being so overused it's became cliché

[puggsoy]

I don't think it's just people trying to be cool. It's cheaper and faster to use low resolution sprites than to use high res ones or vector graphics most of the time.
It's probably so common because most indie games are so low budget.

I guess you have a point. It just seems to me that it's become a fad (cliché as Sportoise said) and people do it for the sake of retro-ness more than anything. As I said I'm sure some do it out of necessity/convenience but I don't think that's always the case.

[Rystar]

You know what, it's not the resurgence of pixel art in indie games that bothers me, it's that faux NES style that too many of them have. I mean it can be well done in some instances, but I feel like it's being so overused it's became cliché

It's not really that it's overused so much as it's never done very well. Everyone seems to stick to this weird mishmash of NES limitations and whatever the jolly hell they want to add onto their sprites. This wouldn't be so bad if they didn't insist on claiming it was "NES RETRO INFLUENCED GRAPHICS MADE BY PEOPLE WHO REMEMBER THE GOOD TIMES". God, that stuff's so annoying.

[Kriven]

My problem with the way indie game developers are utilizing spritework is that everything looks the same... I mean, there are an infinite number of ways and styles in which pixels can be utilized, but indive dev teams seems obsessed with this in-between Atari-NES style in terms of the way they draw it up, then they splash on some SNES paletting to make it look more detailed or something.

The medium can do so many things, though... Super Metroid, Super Mario World, Pac-Man, Drill Dozer--all of these games look different. Why do indie games all look the same?

[Koh]

*Indie game developer Koh takes notes, and strives to make his sprites the best they can be, complete with hue shifting and all*