Pixel art palettes for game effects

The pixel art palettes game artists use most, PICO-8, Sweetie 16, Endesga 32, DawnBringer, NES, Game Boy and CGA, what each suits, and how to put an effect or a picture on one.

Updated

A palette is the short list of colours every pixel in a game is allowed to use. Keeping effects on the same palette as the characters and tiles is most of what makes them look like they belong: a fireball with a hundred shades of orange looks pasted in next to a sprite drawn in sixteen colours.

The common palettes

Each one is in the studio under Effect settings > Pixel art and palette > Palette, and in the image to pixel art tool.
PaletteColoursGood for
PICO-816Bright, friendly arcade games. Strong reds, a clear yellow and a dark blue that works as a shadow.
Sweetie 1616Soft fantasy and cozy games, with warm skin tones and calm blues.
Endesga 3232Detailed RPGs and platformers: enough steps for fire, magic and lighting to fade smoothly.
DawnBringer 1616Muted, earthy games and darker fantasy.
DawnBringer 3232The richer version of DawnBringer 16, a common default for indie games.
NES55Games that look like the 8-bit console, with its saturated blues and greens.
Game Boy4Four greens, for handheld-style games where light is only light and dark.
CGA4Black, cyan, magenta and white: harsh, early-PC retro.

Choosing one for effects

  • Use your game's palette. Effects should come from the same colours as the art around them. If your game has its own palette, snap effects to the nearest of its colours.
  • Check the steps for glow. Fire, magic and lightning need a run of 3 to 5 colours from white to their darkest shade. Endesga 32 and DawnBringer 32 have those runs for most hues; 16-colour palettes have them for a few, which gives a stronger, more retro look.
  • Keep a white. The one-frame flash on an impact needs the palette's lightest colour. Every palette above has one except the Game Boy greens, where the lightest green is the flash.
  • No dithering for effects. Checkerboard dither between two colours flickers when a particle moves. Stepped colour bands read better and stay clean in motion.

Put an effect on a palette

  1. Open any pixel effect in the studio, such as Pixel Art Fireball Spell.
  2. Select Effect settings. Under Pixel art and palette, turn on Pixel mode if it is off, and pick a Palette.
  3. Every frame snaps to the nearest palette colour. Use Quick tweaks > Colour before snapping if the effect lands on the wrong hue.
  4. Export a Spritesheet or GIF. The file keeps exactly the palette's colours.
Pixel Art Fireball Spell, free game effectPixel Art Fireball SpellPixel Art Lightning Slash, free game effectPixel Art Lightning SlashPixel Art Glowing Crystals, free game effectPixel Art Glowing CrystalsPixel Art Portal Door, free game effectPixel Art Portal DoorPixel Art Firework Burst, free game effectPixel Art Firework BurstBig Explosion, free game effectBig Explosion

Put a picture or a GIF on a palette

The free image to pixel art tool turns any picture or GIF into pixel art on one of these palettes, in your browser. It matches colours by how they look to the eye (OKLab), not by raw numbers, so skin tones and dark shades land on the colour you would pick by hand. Choose Its own colours to keep the picture's look with only the number of colours you set.

Or describe it

More pixel art palettes

Browse every pixel art effect in the library, or describe the one you need and the agent builds it as real, editable pixel art.

All pixel art VFXDescribe an effect

Questions

Which pixel art palette is best for beginners?

PICO-8 or Endesga 32. PICO-8 has 16 bright colours that are hard to misuse; Endesga 32 has enough shades for smooth lighting and is a common choice for full games.

How many colours should a pixel art game use?

Most use 16 to 32. Fewer colours look more retro and keep everything consistent; more give softer lighting and gradients.

Can I keep an effect's own colours instead?

Yes. Leave the palette off in the studio, or choose Own colours on the agent's start screen, and the pixels keep the effect's colours. In the image to pixel art tool, Its own colours cuts a picture down to the number of colours you set.

Why does my pixel art effect look blurry in the engine?

The engine is smoothing the texture when it scales it. Set the texture filter to nearest neighbour (Point in Unity, Nearest in Godot, turn off texture interpolation in GameMaker) and scale the sprite by whole numbers, such as 2x or 3x, so every pixel stays square.

More pixel art VFX

  • Pixel art fireballs and fire effectsA pixel fireball projectile, blasts, breath, a meteor and looping campfires, torches and braziers, free as sprite sheets and GIFs.
  • Pixel art rainA tileable pixel rain overlay, rain loops, raindrop splashes, a thunderclap and snow, all seamless.
  • Pixel art sparklesTwinkles, glints on items, a crafting burst, fireworks, stun stars and a starfield, free as sprite sheets and GIFs.
  • Pixel art auras and status effectsPower-up auras, heals, shields and buffs, and burning, poisoned, frozen and stunned status effects that loop around a character.
  • Pixel art level up and reward effectsA level up burst, a quest complete banner, a chest opening, a key unlock, pickups and a combo counter.
  • Pixel art smoke and dustSmoke puffs, a smoke bomb, death poofs, jump and landing dust, wall jumps and a dust devil.
  • Pixel art lightning and electric effectsA lightning strike, a thunderclap, a plasma orb, an EMP blast, energy impacts and a mana bolt.
  • Pixel art explosions and bombsA cartoon bomb with a burning fuse, dynamite, a landmine, a classic dot-art blast, rocket and barrel hits and a boss death chain.
  • Pixel art sword slashesA sword swing, claw rakes, a spin attack, a delayed dash strike, wind and lightning slashes and two blades locking.
  • Pixel art hit effectsLight, medium and heavy hit sparks, a comic punch, a critical star, and fire, ice, electric, blood and shield-break hits.
  • Pixel art projectilesFireballs, a magic orb, ice shards, a lightning ball, a shadow bolt, a laser beam, darts, arrows, a boomerang and an axe.
  • Pixel art coins, gems and pickupsA spinning coin loop, a coin burst, a shining gem, heart and star pickups, XP orbs and treasure sparkle.
  • Pixel art portals and teleportersA portal door, a warp portal, a teleporter pad, a respawn beam and a save point crystal, all seamless loops.
  • AI pixel art effects for gamesDescribe a pixel effect, pick a palette and pixel size, and get editable pixel art that exports as a sprite sheet or GIF, with prompts that work.