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[midnightAI]

I need your help and opinion about how to go about a game I am working on (hopefully that isnt against any rules or anything, mods lock if it is)

Due to two games recently being shown at the PlayStation State of Play for Feb 2026, one being fully 2D pixel art (God of War: Sons of Sparta) and the other being more 2.5D high resolution art (Castlevania: Belmont Curse) it has made me rethink slightly how I go about a game I am going to be starting work on more heavily later this year (I have another game I am working on that will be properly revealed soon that I want to finish first)

There has been lots of comments in both threads about one or the other being trash with some saying both look good also, now regardless of the quality of both of these individual games, what is your opinion/preferred choice of style for 2D games? Beyond the poll, has the pixel art retro bubble burst? does high resolution art look 'tacky' and too Flash like? could high resolution art work well if somehow the flash like appearance is eliminated? (I have some idea on that)

For a little bit of context for the game I will be making without revealing too much at this point, the game will be inspired by oldschool Amiga and arcade games from the 90's, predominantly Turrican and Shinobi but I don't want those games to necessarily determine the style of graphics the game would have, this is more about what people would rather look at while they play.

Example of high resolution art and pixel art of the same sprite (possible look for the sprite in game, completely unfinished):

(for high resolution the resolution would be 1920 x 1080, for pixel art is would be 640 x 360, the above image is an approximation of the size of main sprite based on a screen resolution of 1920 x 1080)

 

[MagiusNecros]

What graphical style does game have for it's levels?

Just by these sprites I prefer the Pixel Art one on the right.

 

[RoboFu]

I loooovvveee good pixel art. Even more so when there is a limited palette.

But that's not to say I hate high res 2d when the gameplay is good.

 

[alabtrosMyster]

For some unknown reason I have always preferred pixel art for 2d games, or even simpler looking games.

I love what they have done with the high colors and use of more advanced effects (zoom, rotations, particles effects, lighting/shading) in games like octopath travelers, owl boy, last night and the very detailed 32-bit consoles or retro arcade games like golden axe: revenge of death adder (add more, the list could be so long)

Some 2d games have a resolution slightly higher (as if they were made to mirror the kind of details we had on 640*480 (480p I guess) instead of the lower resolutions we had before (around 320*240, but still much lower on a lot of hardware. Given the size of TVs/monitors these days I think that would nake sense.

This is just me, since I never got further than "hey I should try to make a video game" I won't criticize too much.

 

[midnightAI]

What graphical style does game have for it's levels?

Just by these sprites I prefer the Pixel Art one on the right.

well I'm not ready to show graphics for the individual levels currently, nothing is really fixed hence why I'm asking the question really as that will determine the graphical style, the first level however is set in a futuristic Japan but old style shops (a kinda juxtaposition between technologically advanced and also vintage Japan, think neon lights but bamboo scaffolding, hover cars but people fleeing on old style bikes as part of the incidental animations)

 

[MagiusNecros]

well I'm not ready to show graphics for the individual levels currently, nothing is really fixed hence why I'm asking the question really as that will determine the graphical style, the first level however is set in a futuristic Japan but old style shops (a kinda juxtaposition between technologically advanced and also vintage Japan, think neon lights but bamboo scaffolding, hover cars but people fleeing on old style bikes as part of the incidental animations)

If it helps I love Neon Inferno and I am keeping a close eye on Acrolyte. So I'm more keen on Pixel Art.

Your sprite has more similarity with Acrolyte's style I think. You can look it up as I don't want to detract from current discussion.

I think it depends on the kind of art direction you want for your game.

 

[The Cockatrice]

High resolution good art. No reason for pixel art to exist aside from nostalgia, and nostalgia sales are quickly fading, as new generation gamers have no desire for pixelated art. It's why the "fortnite" style is present more often than not in modern games. You're also asking on a forum made out of millenials and boomers who lived with pixelated stuff, so I wouldn't make a game base off our answers here. We're minorities.

 

[midnightAI]

If it helps I love Neon Inferno and I am keeping a close eye on Acrolyte. So I'm more keen on Pixel Art.

Your sprite has more similarity with Acrolyte's style I think. You can look it up as I don't want to detract from current discussion.

I think it depends on the kind of art direction you want for your game.

I guess I'll have to come up with a full screen mockup of high resolution and pixel art rather than just a single sprite. The main sprite is a robot Ninja, game will play very similar to Turrican with a bit of melee combat thrown in for good measure along with wall sliding and platform hanging. I have had a look at Acrolyte and it will be quite a bit brighter than that more like Neon inferno but not quite as bright and a lot less cartoon like, again, more in line with Turrican 90's arcade games. (I miss Turrican a lot, was my favourite game growing up as a kid, they aren't making a new game based on that IP so thought I'd make my own along similar lines but it will be quite different also)

 

[MagiusNecros]

I guess I'll have to come up with a full screen mockup of high resolution and pixel art rather than just a single sprite. The main sprite is a robot Ninja, game will play very similar to Turrican with a bit of melee combat thrown in for good measure along with wall sliding and platform hanging. I have had a look at Acrolyte and it will be quite a bit brighter than that more like Neon inferno but not quite as bright and a lot less cartoon like, again, more in line with Turrican 90's arcade games. (I miss Turrican a lot, was my favourite game growing up as a kid, they aren't making a new game based on that IP so thought I'd make my own along similar lines but it will be quite different also)

I think for Turrican specifically that Pixel Art might be best.

Keep us posted. A Turrican run and gun doesn't happen often.

 

[Reizo Ryuu]

How are you creating the art? if you're converting 3d models into 2d sprites for the high rest art, that's probably the way to go since it will be much less work in the long run, especially if you want to add/change things.
If you are drawing high res art, and then using some kind of skeletal motion graphic system for the animation, that will probably look less good than pixel art that's animated by hand, but save a little on time.
If you are drawing high rest art and drawing individual frames for animation, you're a psychopath

 

[PeteBull]

Big budget AAA game from veteran western dev studio- we want proper highend next gen graphics, not snes alike pixelated mess.
Anything else aka indie or AA games= w/e devs want

 

[midnightAI]

High resolution good art. No reason for pixel art to exist aside from nostalgia, and nostalgia sales are quickly fading, as new generation gamers have no desire for pixelated art. It's why the "fortnite" style is present more often than not in modern games. You're also asking on a forum made out of millenials and boomers who lived with pixelated stuff, so I wouldn't make a game base off our answers here. We're minorities.

Well, maybe, but its mixed at the moment which is how I feel about it. The way I am going about my current game and how I was going about this was thinking about it more like high resolution pixel art, so much of it is hand animated and practically drawn pixel by pixel, at least to touch up what I have brushed by hand that high resolution pixel art is a more apt description, at least for the sprite work. I'm also in my 50's, but I have done pixel art for a long time as well as high resolution art, so I don't really have a preference as such but one thing I do agree on for many is the flash like look of some high resolution art games but a lot of that is down to how its animated which I feel can be avoided by using hand drawn animation rather than using skeletal animation using tools like Spine (dont get me wrong, that can create good results if used well).

 

[midnightAI]

How are you creating the art? if you're converting 3d models into 2d sprites for the high rest art, that's probably the way to go since it will be much less work in the long run, especially if you want to add/change things.
If you are drawing high res art, and then using some kind of skeletal motion graphic system for the animation, that will probably look less good than pixel art that's animated by hand, but save a little on time.
If you are drawing high rest art and drawing individual frames for animation, you're a psychopath

(well, kinda, my plan is to use a combination of something like Spine but then generate that as a sprite sheet and then correct and improve the animations so they are less 'flash' like)

 

[Fbh]

Both styles can be good, and both can look cheap.
Overall I personally prefer high resolution art, most of the metroidvanias I've enjoyed in recent years have used that style (Silksong, Nine Sols, Metroid Dread, Ori, etc).

That said, while I know nothing about game development, I could imagine that if you are making your game alone or dealing with limited resources pixel art might be a bit easier to make look good. I've noticed a lot of games like these made by solo devs like Animal Well or Axiom Verge tend to go with a Pixel Art aesthetic.

 

[easyblake777]

There is nothing wrong with pixel art. GOW game looks trash though.

 

[Von Hugh]

I don't think Sons of Sparta is pixel art.

 

[MrJangles]

Hi-res. Too many developers have jumped on the pixel art bandwagon and for me at least, they all look too similar so I quickly swipe past them on Steam, etc.

 

[Magic Carpet]

I have a knee jerk response to blocky graphics.
I avoid. I don't play.
It's not charming.

 

[ResilientBanana]

Pixel with a CRT filter and normal mapping

 

[The Cockatrice]

Well, maybe, but its mixed at the moment which is how I feel about it. The way I am going about my current game and how I was going about this was thinking about it more like high resolution pixel art, so much of it is hand animated and practically drawn pixel by pixel, at least to touch up what I have brushed by hand that high resolution pixel art is a more apt description, at least for the sprite work. I'm also in my 50's, but I have done pixel art for a long time as well as high resolution art, so I don't really have a preference as such but one thing I do agree on for many is the flash like look of some high resolution art games but a lot of that is down to how its animated which I feel can be avoided by using hand drawn animation rather than using skeletal animation using tools like Spine (dont get me wrong, that can create good results if used well).

If you're good at what you do and if its not much of an issue, why not combine both? Like make your game have a unique level or two where everything becomes pixelated, or even better, graphics option to swap between them? Not many games have these things. Probably a lot of work.

 

[DownLikeBCPowder]

I like both styles personally. In general I am really fond of 2D games as a rule. As far as whether or not I will like an individual product, that's going to depend on a lot of factors such as the animation quality, style, etc. But I would never say in a sweeping such statement that I don't like one or the other personally.

 

[midnightAI]

If you're good at what you do and if its not much of an issue, why not combine both? Like make your game have a unique level or two where everything becomes pixelated, or even better, graphics option to swap between them? Not many games have these things. Probably a lot of work.

I was considering a switch (like R-Type Dimensions) but it could be too much work really, still, not ruling anything out at the moment.

 

[TKOFromTokyo]

I prefer good 2D pixel art, but most modern 2D pixel art games look mediocre at best. GoW Sons of Sparta falls into that category. I can go play my SNES or Genesis and enjoy the pixel art on those consoles so much more. I will say that the few that do it right on modern consoles make games that look stunning.

 

[Ziglax]

Pixel art when it's done well leaves more room to imagination. To make a bold comparison, I feel it's a bit like impressionism in painting, more interesting than realism. But it requires expertise.

 

[Saber]

I would say both, depends on the type of approach a game has.
If your purpose is remembering the old times, making the person feel like is playing a Mega Drive or Master System or just feel like your art doesn't translate well to 3D, then go to pixel.
Any other reason is valid for high resolution art. I would not suggest going for high resolution for realistic human look though. If its animated or close to anime, then its good.

 

[midnightAI]

I don't think Sons of Sparta is pixel art.

It is, they did export some model animations from the other GOW games but they drew over those, still, they aren't 3D models directly and they don't use high resolution art (at least not as the final output). They may have 'cheated' in a few areas but it is closer to traditional pixel art than any other style.

 

[AndrewRyan]

Hi-res. If for no other reason than the expectation that pixel-art games are less expensive.