Pixel Art Academy: Learn Mode (tuxdb.com)

Pixel Art Academy: Learn Mode is now in Early Access!

Hello everyone! As is customary before I do a release, I want to give everyone a few reasons why NOT to buy the game:

Not all fields of art are covered. Just line art is included with the first Early Access release (about 24 hours of content for a speedy playthrough). The other 6 elements of art (shape, form, space, value, color, and texture) will be added throughout Early Access. So if you're expecting to learn color theory or perspective right away, better wait for full release.
A lot of quality-of-life and accessibility features are missing for now. Tablet support is not there (except for Apple Pencil). There is no color-blind mode yet. You can't rebind the keys I suggest you try the demo to see what state the game is in from a UI perspective at this point.
There is no Steam integration yet. Achievements and cloud saves will come sometime down the road, but if these are essential features for you, better wait.

On the other hand, here is why buying Learn Mode in Early Access is for you:

You want to learn as soon as possible. I like to do frequent updates (every 23 weeks), so when I'll have a new tutorial ready, It'll be immediately released in an update.
Get the lowest price. The game will never be cheaper than it is right now. The price will slowly get higher as more content is in the game. There will not be any discounts that go cheaper than the price right now out of respect for my Kickstarter backers where the basic game tier was $10. So if you know you will buy it at one point, now is the best price/value.
Support educational games and full-time development. If you like the idea of learning with video games, buying the game helps support that. Sales of Learn Mode will enable me to work on the game full-time so I can spend the most time developing new features and lessons for everyone to enjoy.

Alternatives to buying right now:

Try the demo. If you're not sure if the game is for you, the demo covers the first 30 minutes of gameplay. If you like it, the Early Access release will continue straight from there (save files are transferred).
Learn from my free Study Guide. The topics covered by the game are all in my Low-Resolution Raster Art book. I always put all educational resources I make for the game also out for free to make learning as accessible as possible. If you like my teaching style there, you will probably like the game even more.

I'm very open about my development process so you are very welcome to ask any questions and follow behind-the-scenes content in my devlogs on YouTube to know more about me. I want this game to be a win-win experience, so I hope this helps to know if now is the right time to buy for you. With that said, I hope you will enjoy what is in the Early Access version so far! Cheers! Retro

[ 2024-08-05 12:56:20 CET ] [ Original post ]

Pixel Art Academy: Learn Mode
Matej 'Retro' Jan

Developer

Retronator

Publisher

2024

Release

Action Indie Strategy Casual RPG Adventure Simulation F2P Sports MMO Racing Singleplayer Multiplayer Coop EA

Learn by doing

Pixel Art Academy's interactive tutorials are designed for learning by doing. While there will be plenty of nerdy reading, all lessons are immediately followed by drawing what you've learned.

Test your knowledge

Before you move on, you want to make sure you understand what you've been learning. Pixel Art Academy uses formative assessment to identify gaps in knowledge so that you can apply further study and practice to build strong fundamentals.

Become a game artist

You can't be an artist by just copying other people's work. It's time to create your own art! In Pixel Art Academy, you will be working on various projects, most of them creating art for classic games such as snake, invaders, block breaker, and pinball creator.

Play your creations

Immediate feedback is very important. Start up the game and see how your sprites look in context. Then jump back to the canvas and immediately see your changes.

Future development

I've been working on Pixel Art Academy for almost a decade, building the game's engine, writing the story, and narrowing down the learning design. While the bigger adventure game that I have in mind is still far from complete, the game's educational core is ready to be shared with a wider audience. That's why I created Learn Mode, a standalone single-player version that includes just the polished learning content.

During the Early Access period, I will create tutorials, challenges, and projects that cover the major pixel art fundamentals (jaggies, dithering, and aliasing), applied to different areas (characters, environments, items). After this first course gets a full release, the development will continue to other areas (drawing from observation, perspective, shading …) as well as integration of the new content into the game's full Adventure Mode.