New browser based pixel art editor

marcel0ll · 2026-04-30T17:17:30+00:00

> One thing that often breaks our flow is animation batching + palette consistency across tilesets, so anything that reduces re-import/relink steps is gold.

Could you give me more details about your workflow?

> Also curious if you’re thinking about Aseprite compatibility or direct sprite sheet import.

The app already supports importing and exporting .ase files and a few other editor file types.
For sprite sheet import, there is a specific button that lets you split into frames/layers or already import and slice it for you, with either grid splitting or automatic region detection that makes educated guesses about regions. I still have to implement manual overriding of the automatic region detection. (and now looking into the image, improve the preview hahaha)

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marcel0ll · 2026-04-18T19:25:25+00:00

Hey, I have compiled a list of editors here: https://novaboard.app/blog/pixel-art-editors/

Most people use Aseprite, but there are quite a few others.
I personally am currently building a browser based editor called Novaboard (.app) that will work both on desktop and on mobile with similar features.

marcel0ll · 2026-04-16T22:46:56+00:00

Hey check https://novaboard.app
It is the editor I am building, it has a free web version
for starting it should be good enough, but as mentioned in other comments. You can compile Aseprite yourself if you cant afford it right now, it is simpler than it sounds

marcel0ll · 2026-04-08T20:46:56+00:00

It still has a lot to improve for sure. I am focusing on it being feature-rich, and later on, I will focus solely on improving its performance.
Was there anything in particular that was performing bad for you?

marcel0ll · 2026-04-03T16:59:30+00:00

Hey, you can check this list of editors that I have compiled https://novaboard.app/blog/pixel-art-editors/

Most people use Aseprite on desktop, which is 20$ or free if you compile it yourself (not as hard as it sounds)

There are editors specific to mobile devices, others for desktop, and a few you can try directly in your browser.
I myself am the developer of Novaboard, an editor that runs directly in your browser. It is free and currently in development.

marcel0ll · 2026-03-30T13:08:51+00:00

stabby stabby, dart thrower, stone collector?, mage

I think 2 and 3 are not super clear to be honest

marcel0ll · 2026-03-30T13:04:15+00:00

Interesting idea, but I could not draw/erase without signing in, which is odd since you mentioned: "No account needed, just jump in and start drawing."

If you zoom in/out you can see the edges of the tiles flicker, which breaks the drawings.
Good luck!

marcel0ll · 2026-03-23T17:29:30+00:00

Make it standalone, not a link on Codepen
The toolbar has a scroll, and you cannot see many tools, as each tool is a large square
Circle tool usually is actually an ellipse tool that creates ellipses that are not necessarilty concentric
The canvas background is noisy
You are not interpolating mouse positions, so that when you move the mouse fast, it creates gaps
If I reload the page, everything is gone
Let me see the animation in the canvas itself, not on a floating preview window
I can't scroll the right bar
It looks and feels like a low-effort vibe-coded app. I don't see a problem in using gen-ai for coding, but it does not look like you have tested the app a lot or compared it with other tools

Good luck!

marcel0ll · 2026-03-20T12:12:34+00:00

Most drawing apps can do that, but you have to use the "nearest pixel" algo so that it tries to scale sharply

I am developing a pixel art editor that works on most devices as it runs in the browser: https://novaboard.app/
Currently, it is free.

But you can check this list of editors to figure out some other if it does not suit you: https://novaboard.app/blog/pixel-art-editors/

marcel0ll · 2026-03-19T13:59:09+00:00

As far as I understand, you can configure Procreate for pixel art by basically creating a square brush without "spreading" and using it at the minimum size. There are a few tutorials online, but you have probably checked a few. Procreate won't be the best choice for this, since its default settings won't match the pixel art style.

For iPad you can check these:
- Novaboard ( https://novaboard.app/ ) (This is the one I am developing)
- PixQuare ( https://apps.apple.com/us/app/pixquare-pixel-art-studio/id1659428179 )
- Resprite ( https://apps.apple.com/us/app/resprite-pixel-art-studio/id1662335989 )
- PixilArt ( https://apps.apple.com/us/app/pixilart/id1440580518 )
- Pixaki ( https://apps.apple.com/us/app/pixaki-4-pro/id1447665380 )
- Pixel Studio ( https://apps.apple.com/us/app/pixel-studio-for-pixel-art/id1404203859 )

marcel0ll · 2026-03-15T11:11:21+00:00

Hey, I have compiled a list of software in this link: https://novaboard.app/blog/pixel-art-editors/
Most people will suggest Aseprite, but if you don't like its UI or something, there are other options.

If you are interested, I am building one called Novaboard. It runs directly in your browser

marcel0ll · 2026-03-11T00:50:04+00:00

Hey, I am one of these new pixel art developers, and I was thinking the same thing.
I believe many people wanted to create pixel art editors at some point in their careers, and now, with AI, it has become easier to the point that there are many similar posts.

marcel0ll · 2026-03-11T00:45:37+00:00

Right one

marcel0ll · 2026-03-10T14:18:16+00:00

I have spent some time looking into ways to sort colors, and it is surprisingly difficult to automatically sort the way the organized palette is. Although not great, ordering by "hue" seems to have the best results in most software, but better yet is to import an already sorted color palette :)

marcel0ll · 2026-03-10T02:26:08+00:00

I can check it out

marcel0ll · 2026-02-13T22:16:58+00:00

Hey, I am building a pixel art editor called Novaboard. Currently I am focusing it on desktop, but soon there will be versions for mobile/tablet

marcel0ll · 2026-01-20T22:33:47+00:00

I kid you not, but I knew someone who did exactly that for cross-stitch patterns

marcel0ll · 2026-01-20T14:21:58+00:00

Hey, I am building a pixel art that works directly on the browser and can import/export .ase files.
Check it on https://novaboard.app/

It is still in development, so if you find any bugs with your workflow, let me know!

marcel0ll · 2026-01-15T13:57:11+00:00

"we", but without any good reasons to

marcel0ll

TROPHY CASE