Create 80s Pixel Art Designs with AI: A Design Tutorial

Creating retro designs is a fun way to tap into nostalgia and capture a unique aesthetic. In this comprehensive guide, we'll explore how to craft amazing 80s-inspired pixel art designs, even if you're not a seasoned artist. We’ll leverage the power of AI, discover sources for free fonts, and master essential design techniques in Affinity Designer. Get ready to create your own pixelated masterpieces!

Unleashing AI for 80s Pixel Art Design Ideas

The first step in our design journey is to harness the creative potential of AI.

We'll use tools like ChatGPT and its Sticker Whiz plugin to generate initial concepts for our 80s-inspired Pixel Art. Think of it as brainstorming with a digital assistant. The key is crafting the perfect Prompt.

For this Tutorial, we'll focus on an 80s-themed boxing design. However, the principles apply to any subject matter. You can easily adapt the prompts to create pixel art for gaming, sci-fi, or any other genre that tickles your fancy.

The Prompt: To get started, a very simple prompt to get a base pixel image of something is: A pixel version of a boxer.

This prompt instructs the AI to generate a pixelated image of a boxer. To refine the results and achieve that authentic 80s aesthetic, we need to be more specific. Consider adding details like:

• Fighting stance: '...in a fighting stance'
• Wearing boxing gloves: '...wearing boxing gloves'
• Background details:'The sticker has a solid white background, a strong black border surrounding the white die-cut border, and no shadow.'

By adding these details, you guide the AI to create a more polished and targeted design. Feel free to experiment with different prompts and keywords to explore the vast creative possibilities. Remember that you can replace “boxer” with anything from Wizards to Pizza!

Sticker Whiz on ChatGPT excels at generating sticker designs with clean lines and distinct borders. This is ideal for creating graphics that will be used on merchandise or as digital assets.

Once you’re happy with a base design, make sure you download it to use in the next step!

Upscaling Your Pixel Art: Achieving Optimal Resolution

One common challenge with pixel art is its inherent low resolution.

To ensure your design looks crisp and professional, especially for print-on-demand products, you'll need to upscale it.

dgb.lol is an excellent free AI image upscaler for this purpose.

Steps to Upscale Your Image:

1. Go to dgb.lol.
2. Select the AI Image Upscaler tool.
3. Upload your pixel art image.
4. Choose an upscaling factor. A multiple of 6x is generally a good starting point. I am using the DGB LOL (Sharp) option.
5. Submit the image and wait for the upscaling process to complete.

Upscaling increases the image resolution, making the individual pixels smaller and less noticeable. This results in a smoother, more refined look, especially on larger prints.

Finding the Perfect Free Pixel Fonts

Typography plays a crucial role in capturing the 80s aesthetic.

Thankfully, there are many sources for free pixel fonts that you can use in your designs.

Dafont is a fantastic resource for finding a wide variety of fonts, including a dedicated 'Bitmap' (pixel) category.

How to Find Free Fonts for Commercial Use on DaFont:

1. Go to dafont.com.
2. Click 'Bitmap' under the ‘New fonts’ Menu.
3. Click on 'More Options'.
4. Check the box next to '100% Free'.
5. Click submit.

This filters the search results to display only fonts that are 100% free. Some great 100% free options are:

• Upheaval
• 8-Bit Wonder
• Super Mario Bros. 2

When choosing a font, consider the overall tone and style of your design. A bold, blocky font might be perfect for a high-energy action scene, while a thinner, more delicate Font could work well for a retro computer interface.

Isolating Your AI Generated Image and Refining Pixel Art

To effectively incorporate your pixel art into a larger design, removing the background is essential. This allows you to seamlessly integrate the graphic with other elements. There are different ways of doing this, but here is one way.

1. Open your upscaled pixel art image in Affinity Designer.

   

2. Select the pen tool to begin creating the Outline.

3. Use the pen tool to draw around your ai generated pixel art image.

   • Zoom in close to the image so you can follow the lines properly.
   • Hold down shift while drawing to keep the lines straight.

4. Hover over the AI generated pixel art image with the curve you drew over the top of it, then click the two boxes so you have a curve for it.

5. Click and drag the curve box over top the AI generated pixel art in the layers box.

6. Now delete the original AI generated image.

7. You may need to clean up parts with white spots still visable using the Shape tool.

By default, AI generates images with solid white backgrounds. By removing this background, you achieve a clean, isolated graphic that can be easily placed on any background.

Warping and Arching Text for Dynamic Designs

Adding arched or warped text can significantly enhance the visual appeal of your design.

Affinity Designer offers powerful tools for manipulating text and achieving these effects.

Steps to Warp and Arch Text

1. Create your circle for a type on a path effect with the Ellipse tool.
2. Select the ellipse.
3. Use the Text tool to create the 'Type on a path effect'.
4. Put your words in a line.
5. Then adjust the position with the two triangles so it fits the path right.

These techniques are particularly effective for creating logos, badges, and other eye-catching graphics. Experiment with different warp styles and settings to find the perfect look for your design. This is going to be useful for creating words above and below the pixel art design.

Creating Designs for Print on Demand

Print-on-demand (POD) services offer a fantastic way to monetize your pixel art designs without the hassle of managing inventory. Here are a few tips to consider when creating designs specifically for Pod:

• Resolution is key: Always start with a high-resolution image and upscale it as needed. This ensures that your designs look crisp and clear on printed products.
• Consider the product: Adapt your designs to suit the specific product you're selling. A design that looks great on a t-shirt might not work as well on a mug or phone case. Think about the Scale, placement, and overall aesthetic.
• Embrace negative space: Don't be afraid to use negative space to your advantage. A well-placed design with a minimalist aesthetic can be very impactful.

Remember to adhere to the POD platform’s guidelines regarding image size, resolution, and file formats.

AI Tools

Some of the AI Tools that will be used during this tutorial cost money to use, but some are available for free. It is recommended that you explore the options for pricing to see which features are available.

DaFont

DaFont is available as a completely free resource to all users.

Affinity Designer

Affinity Designer is a paid tool, however it is only a one time purchase, not a subscription. This makes it a lower cost option for designers in the long run.

ChatGPT

ChatGPT and its plugin, Sticker Whiz, helps provide the base image for design with a simple prompt.

dgb.lol

A website that uses artificial intelligence to upscale smaller images in preparation for larger format prints.

DaFont

DaFont provides many free pixel images to build a brand off of.

Affinity Designer

Affinity designer is a powerful image and vector manipulation tool that allows the pixel art and design to be edited to create the complete piece.

Print on Demand T-shirts

A great design for shirts that captures an old school image.

Stickers and Products

Pixel art is ideal for stickers and many other product print ideas, so you can create the sticker for a low price.