PIXEL ART GALLERY
On this page I've gathered some screenshots from a variety of retro games whose pixel art I admire. I tried to choose a variety of genres, platforms, and styles to show you just how broad the medium of pixel art can be.
Most of these games are from the 90s and early 2000s. In my mind, this was a "golden age" for pixel art, when 3d graphics were still crude and before indie game developers truly picked up the mantle. Looking over these screenshots, each one is a beautiful work of art on its own... kind of mind-blowing to be reminded that these are only snapshots of the much larger creation that is an entire video game!
Some of you might be wondering why I didn't include contemporary pixel art here. The simple answer is that it'd be awkward to choose who to include (and have to field inquiries about whether I could add someone's game). Every day I see amazing pixel art on Twitter and a lot of it surpasses the work here in one way or another. So consider this to be a small, curated selection of masterful pixel art from a specific era that is still well worth studying alongside modern 2d games and artists.
If you've read my pixel art tutorials (PIXEL ART TUTORIAL: BASICS and PIXEL ART: COMMON MISTAKES), take a close look at how these artists applied selout, anti-aliasing, dithering, and other techniques to overcome the limitations placed upon them. What makes you go "Wow!" and why? Where can you find room for improvement? Which palettes appealed to you the most? But most of all, enjoy yourself! That's the best part of studying art.
(Note: If the screenshots don't look crisp, you may need to zoom in or out to counter your browser's default zoom settings.)
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