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Pixx Suite

Create · Image-to-pixel converter · Intermediate

Pixxato — Intermediate

Consistent pixel art from Pixxato: the right size and sampling, colour and dithering control, clean edges, presets and batch conversion.

Open Pixxato

#What you'll learn

  • Choose a size and a sampling method for the kind of picture you have.
  • Decide between automatic colours, a classic palette, your own palette or all colours.
  • Tune dithering, alpha and outlines so sprites have clean edges.
  • Save a look as a preset and reuse it, including on a whole folder of pictures with Batch.
  • Keep projects in the cloud and send results to other Pixx apps.

#Before you start

  • Read the Pixxato beginner guide first: opening a picture, setting a width, colours and exporting.
  • Have a few pictures of the same kind ready (for example item photos or character concepts) to try the batch workflow.

#How-tos

#How to choose the size

  1. Decide the size the art will be used at in your game or post. A 32×32 icon should be converted at 32 pixels, not shrunk later.
  2. In Size, type one side and leave the other empty to keep the picture's shape, or type both for an exact box. Each side can be 1 to 4096 pixels.
  3. Crop first (Crop on the image) when the subject is small in the picture. A tight crop gives the subject more of your pixels.
  4. Check the result at Split view and zoom in with +; turn on Pixel grid when zoomed in to judge single pixels.

#How to pick a sampling method

PictureTryWhy
Photo, painting, 3D renderAverageBlends each block, so gradients stay smooth.
Concept art with strong linesDetailPicks a real pixel from each block: crisp, no muddy in-between colours.
Screenshot, UI, existing pixel artFlatTakes the most common colour of each block, so flat areas stay flat.
Quick test, very small outputNearestThe centre of each block: fastest and sharpest, but small details can flicker between conversions.

#How to choose a colour mode

Under Colours, pick one of four:

  1. Auto finds the best colours for this picture. The Colours slider goes from 2 to 64.
  2. Palette uses a classic or suite palette (PICO-8, Game Boy and many more), so several pictures share exactly the same colours.
  3. Custom uses your own swatches. Import .hex / .gpl loads a palette file, and Use as custom copies the current result's colours so you can edit them.
  4. Keep all skips colour reduction: you get the downsampled picture with all its colours.

#How to tune dithering

  1. Open Dithering. With few colours, a dither stops gradients from banding.
  2. Use Floyd–Steinberg (error diffusion) for photos, Atkinson (light, classic Mac) for a lighter, higher-contrast look, Jarvis (soft) for very soft gradients and Sierra Lite in between.
  3. Use Ordered 2×2, 4×4 or 8×8 for a regular pattern that looks deliberate and animates without crawling.
  4. Lower Strength until the dots only appear in gradients. None (flat) is best for icons and sprites with flat colour areas.

#How to get clean sprite edges

  1. In Clean-up, tick Remove the background and raise Tolerance until the area around the subject clears. It removes colour connected to the corners, so crop tightly if the subject touches an edge.
  2. Raise or lower Alpha cut (1–255): pixels less opaque than the cut become fully transparent, the rest fully opaque. Pixel art has no half-transparent edges.
  3. Tick Remove lone pixels to clear stray dots.
  4. Tick Outline, pick a colour, and choose Diagonal corners for a fuller outline that also fills the corners.
  5. Add Ink edges to darken edges inside the picture for a hand-drawn look.

#How to save and manage presets

  1. Set everything up, then open Presets → Save these settings as a preset… and name it.
  2. Your presets appear under Yours; the built-in Looks include Retro 64 · 16 colours, Game Boy · 4 greens, PICO-8 · ordered dither, Detailed 128 · 32 colours, Icon 32 · outlined and Portrait 80 · inked.
  3. Remove one with Delete a preset….

#How to convert a set with Batch

  1. Set up the look on one picture (or pick a preset).
  2. Click Batch (Batch convert…) and pick several images, or drop several onto the page.
  3. Every picture is converted with the same settings; check the previews.
  4. Click Download ZIP. Use a Palette or Custom colour mode when the set must share colours.

#Workflows

#Concept art to finished sprite

  1. Crop the character, convert at the final sprite size with Detail sampling, 16–32 colours and an Outline.
  2. Send to App → The pixel art (image) to Pixxivi and clean up the details by hand.
  3. Send Its colours (palette) to Pixxulo to tune the ramps, then reuse that palette everywhere.

#A matching item set

  1. Make a palette in Pixxulo (or pick a classic one), and choose it under Colours → Palette or import it with Import .hex / .gpl.
  2. Save the look as a preset, then run every item photo through Batch.
  3. Pack the results into one sheet with Pixxula.

#Cloud projects

Click Cloud → Save to cloud to keep the picture and all settings in your account. Open from cloud… brings it back on any device; Save as a new cloud project keeps the old version too.

#Tips and shortcuts

  • Ctrl+O open, Ctrl+S export, 0 fit, + / - zoom, Esc leaves crop mode.
  • Double-click the picture to fit it to the stage.
  • Ctrl+V pastes an image straight from the clipboard.
  • Export scales up 1× to 16× with nearest neighbour, so the pixels stay sharp. Copy puts the result on the clipboard.
  • Animated GIFs: only the first frame is converted.

#Troubleshooting

  • Colours shift between similar pictures. Auto picks new colours for each picture. Use Palette or Custom for a shared set.
  • The edge of the subject is jagged or has holes. Adjust Alpha cut, then add an Outline.
  • The background removal ate part of the subject. Lower Tolerance, or crop so the corners show only background.
  • Dithering looks noisy on a small sprite. Lower Strength, use an Ordered pattern, or choose None (flat).
  • The browser pauses on huge sizes. Conversions above about 2000 pixels take a moment; try the look at a small width first.