# Pixel Art

> Use when generating pixel-art assets — sprites, items, tiles, portraits in a pixel style at a specific resolution (32×32, 64×64, 128×128). Pixel-perfect grid, limited palette, retro feel. Trigger on "pixel art", "8-bit art", "16-bit sprite", "pixel sprite", "retro tileset", "pixel icon", "pixel portrait".

- **Type:** Skill
- **Install:** `agentstack add skill-summerengine-summer-engine-agent-pixel-art`
- **Verified:** Yes — security-reviewed for prompt injection and unsafe behavior
- **Seller:** [SummerEngine](https://agentstack.voostack.com/s/summerengine)
- **Installs:** 0
- **Category:** [Agent Skills](https://agentstack.voostack.com/c/agent-skills)
- **Latest version:** 0.1.0
- **License:** MIT
- **Upstream author:** [SummerEngine](https://github.com/SummerEngine)
- **Source:** https://github.com/SummerEngine/summer-engine-agent/tree/main/skills/2d-assets/pixel-art
- **Website:** https://summerengine.com/

## Install

```sh
agentstack add skill-summerengine-summer-engine-agent-pixel-art
```

Requires the [AgentStack CLI](https://agentstack.voostack.com/docs/cli). Works with Claude Code, Cursor, and any MCP-compatible agent.

## About

# pixel-art — Pixel-Perfect Sprites and Tiles

This skill generates pixel-art assets — sprites, items, tiles, icons, portraits — at a target resolution (32×32, 64×64, 128×128, etc.). Pixel art has hard constraints (grid alignment, limited palette, no anti-aliased edges) that diffusion models violate by default. This skill encodes the prompt patterns and post-processing discipline that makes the output actually look like pixel art and not "blurry small image."

**Backing tool:** `summer_generate_image` with `style: "pixel"` and an explicit pixel-art prompt. Pass `options.image_size: "square_hd"` and have the agent enforce pixel-perfect by setting the project's default texture filter to Nearest (and downscaling to the target resolution post-gen). Output is upscaled by the model — you generally request a small generation (or downscale post-gen) to get crisp pixels.

## When to use

- "Generate a 32×32 sword icon for the inventory."
- "I need a pixel-art portrait of the merchant for the dialogue UI."
- "Make a 64×64 enemy sprite — a slime monster."
- "Generate a tileset for a grass / dirt / stone biome at 16×16 per tile."
- The game has a pixel-art aesthetic and the user wants assets in-style.

## When NOT to use

- The user wants a high-resolution painterly portrait → `summer:2d-assets/character-portrait`.
- The user wants animated frames (walk cycle, attack) → `summer:2d-assets/sprite-sheet` (pixel art is harder for sprite sheets — read that skill's caveats).
- The user wants a tileable seamless texture (not pixel art) → `summer:2d-assets/tileable-texture`.
- The game is 3D / non-pixel — verify the user actually wants pixel before generating.

## Steps

### 1. Lock the resolution and palette

Ask the user (or read `.summer/GameSoul.md`):

- **Resolution per asset:** 16×16, 32×32, 64×64, 128×128 are standard. Sprites usually 32 or 64; portraits 64 or 128; icons 16 or 32.
- **Palette:** named retro palette (NES 56-color, Game Boy 4-color green, PICO-8 16-color, Sweetie-16) OR custom hex list OR "no palette restriction."
- **Outline:** hard black outline, colored outline, or no outline?

Write to `.summer/pixel-anchor.md` so the rest of the cast/tileset stays consistent:

```
## Pixel anchor

base resolution: 32x32 per sprite
palette: PICO-8 16-color
outline: hard 1px dark outline (NOT pure black — use the palette's darkest color)
shading: 3-tone (light, mid, shadow), no gradients, no AA
```

### 2. Search for existing assets

```
summer_search_assets(query=" pixel", filter={ kind: "image" })
```

### 3. Build the prompt

Pattern:

```
pixel art , , , , , no anti-aliasing, no blur, sharp pixel edges, transparent background
```

The model can't actually generate at 32×32 — it generates at 1024×1024 with pixel-art *style*. You then downscale to the target resolution post-import for crisp pixels.

### 4. Generate

```
summer_generate_image(
  prompt="pixel art slime monster, 32x32 sprite, PICO-8 palette, hard 1px outline in palette's darkest color, 3-tone shading, no anti-aliasing, no blur, sharp pixel edges, transparent background, front-facing",
  model="nano-banana-2",
  style="pixel",
  options={
    image_size: "square_hd",
    negative_prompt: "blurry, smooth gradients, anti-aliasing, photorealistic, 3D render, soft edges"
  }
)
```

`negative_prompt` is critical for pixel art — without it the model smuggles in soft edges and gradients.

### 5. Downscale to target resolution

The generated image is 1024×1024 pixel-style. To get true crisp pixels at 32×32:

- Import to the engine, then in the import dock set `Filter: Nearest` (no smoothing).
- For a true 32×32 atlas/icon, downscale in an external editor (Aseprite, GIMP "nearest neighbor") to 32×32 before importing. Aseprite's "Sprite > Sprite Size" with Nearest gives the cleanest result.
- In Godot, set `Project Settings → Rendering → Textures → Default Texture Filter: Nearest` if the entire game is pixel-art. This kills bilinear smoothing project-wide.

### 6. Import and wire

```
summer_import_from_url(url="", path="res://sprites/slime.png")
```

For a `Sprite2D`:

```
summer_set_resource_property(
  nodePath="/root/Game/Slime/Sprite2D",
  resourceProperty="texture",
  value="res://sprites/slime.png"
)
```

Confirm `Filter: Nearest` is set in the import dock OR project-wide.

## Prompt patterns

| Goal | Prompt that works | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Item icon (32×32) | `pixel art iron sword icon, 32x32, NES palette, hard outline, 3-tone shading, no AA, sharp edges, transparent background, three-quarter view` | Three-quarter view reads better than pure side at 32px |
| Character sprite (64×64) | `pixel art knight character sprite, 64x64, PICO-8 palette, hard 1px outline, 3-tone shading, front-facing idle pose, no AA, sharp edges, transparent background` | Specifying "idle pose" prevents action poses that don't tile into a sheet |
| Pixel portrait (128×128) | `pixel art portrait of a young witch, 128x128, custom muted fantasy palette, hard outline, 4-tone shading, bust framing, looking forward, no AA, no blur, transparent background` | Higher resolution allows 4-tone shading; 32px is too small for that |
| Tileset (16×16/tile) | `pixel art top-down tileset, grass-to-dirt transition, 16x16 per tile, 3x3 grid layout, NES palette, hard outline between tiles, 3-tone shading, no AA, sharp edges` | Tilesets render best in a labeled grid layout |
| Background object (64×64) | `pixel art mossy boulder, 64x64, fantasy palette, hard outline, 3-tone shading, no AA, transparent background, three-quarter view` | Background props benefit from three-quarter for depth |
| GB-style asset (Game Boy) | `pixel art skeleton enemy, 32x32, Game Boy 4-color green palette (#0f380f, #306230, #8bac0f, #9bbc0f), hard 1px outline, 2-tone shading, no AA` | Naming the 4 hex codes locks the palette |

### Bad prompts (and why)

| Bad | Failure mode |
|---|---|
| `8-bit sword` | "8-bit" is interpreted loosely. Returns a smooth render of a sword with vague pixel feel. Specify resolution + palette + "no AA" explicitly. |
| `pixel art knight, photorealistic` | Conflicting directives. Model averages and gives you neither. |
| `pixel art at 32x32` (no negative_prompt) | Model adds soft edges and gradient shading. Always add negative prompt for AA / blur / gradients. |
| `pixel sprite walk cycle` | Walk cycles need consistent frames — single-prompt sprite sheets fail. Route to `summer:2d-assets/sprite-sheet`. |
| `cute pixel art` | "Cute" without subject is undefined. Specify what. |

## Anti-patterns

- **Skipping the downscale.** The model returns a 1024×1024 pixel-style image. If you import that as a 1024 texture, the "pixels" are actually 32-pixel blocks of soft color. Downscale to true target resolution OR set `Filter: Nearest` so the up-rendering doesn't smooth.
- **No `Filter: Nearest`.** Default Godot texture filtering is bilinear. Pixel art bilinearly filtered looks like garbage. Set it on import or project-wide.
- **No negative prompt.** Without `blurry, anti-aliasing, gradients, soft edges` in the negative, ~50% of generations are off-style.
- **Inconsistent palette across the cast.** Pick a named palette (PICO-8, NES, custom hex list) and re-use across every asset in the project. Different palettes = the project doesn't read as one game.
- **Generating walk-cycle frames as one image.** Sprite sheets via single-prompt are unreliable. Route to `summer:2d-assets/sprite-sheet`.

## Edge cases

- **User wants animated pixel sprites.** Generate base sprite here, then per-frame variants via img2img with the base as `referenceImageUrl`. For more than 2-3 frames, route to `summer:2d-assets/sprite-sheet` (and read its caveats).
- **User wants the entire game in pixel art.** Set `Project Settings → Rendering → Textures → Default Texture Filter: Nearest` once. Saves you from re-setting it on every import.
- **User wants a high-res "pixel art" portrait that's not actually pixelated** (faux-pixel-aesthetic at full resolution). That's `summer:2d-assets/character-portrait` with a "pixel art aesthetic" prompt — not this skill.
- **User specifies a palette like "Sweetie-16" or "Endesga-32" and the model ignores it.** Name the hex codes explicitly. Palette names alone are unreliable below the top 5-10 famous ones.
- **Tilesets need to tile cleanly.** Pixel-art tile-edge cleanliness from raw generation is poor. Generate the tile grid, then manually fix edge seams in Aseprite. The AI gets you 80% there.

## Fallback (no MCP)

Print the call:

```
summer_generate_image(
  prompt="",
  model="nano-banana-2",
  style="pixel",
  options={ image_size: "square_hd", negative_prompt: "blurry, smooth gradients, anti-aliasing" }
)
```

Tell the user to run via the Summer dashboard, downscale in Aseprite/GIMP to true target resolution with nearest-neighbor, then `summer_import_from_url` (or drop into `res://sprites/`) and set `Filter: Nearest`.

If MCP is offline entirely: open Aseprite or Piskel and hand-author the asset. For pixel art at small resolutions, hand-authoring is often faster than fixing a generation.

## Handoff

After the asset is wired:

- **More assets in the same style** → re-invoke this skill, re-use the pixel anchor.
- **Animation frames for the sprite** → `summer:2d-assets/sprite-sheet` with the base sprite as anchor.
- **Pixel UI** → re-invoke with UI subjects (icons, button frames) at appropriate resolution.
- **Tilemap setup** → `summer:scene-composition` for `TileMap` / `TileMapLayer` wiring.

## See also

- `summer:2d-assets/sprite-sheet` — animated pixel frames.
- `summer:2d-assets/character-portrait` — high-res counterpart.
- `summer:asset-pipeline/asset-strategy` — meta-router.
- `references/mcp-tools-reference.md` — `summer_generate_image` schema.

## Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

- **Author:** [SummerEngine](https://github.com/SummerEngine)
- **Source:** [SummerEngine/summer-engine-agent](https://github.com/SummerEngine/summer-engine-agent)
- **License:** MIT
- **Homepage:** https://summerengine.com/

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.

## Pricing

- **Free** — Free

## Security capabilities

Automated source analysis of v0.1.0 — what this tool can access:

- **Network access:** no
- **Filesystem access:** no
- **Shell / process execution:** no
- **Environment & secrets:** no
- **Dynamic code execution:** no

*"Yes" means the capability is present in the source — more access means more to trust, not that it is unsafe.*


## Versions

- **0.1.0** — security scan: passed — Imported from the upstream source.

## Links

- Listing page: https://agentstack.voostack.com/l/skill-summerengine-summer-engine-agent-pixel-art
- Seller: https://agentstack.voostack.com/s/summerengine
- Browse the marketplace: https://agentstack.voostack.com/browse

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