Piskel
Piskel is a free online editor for creating 2D pixel art and animated sprites with a live preview and export options for games and digital projects.
Storyboarder
Storyboarder is a free, open-source storyboarding software that provides artists with a fast, simple interface to draw, animate, and export visual stories directly to professional creative suites.
Quick Comparison
| Feature | Piskel | Storyboarder |
|---|---|---|
| Website | piskelapp.com | wonderunit.com |
| Pricing Model | Free | Free |
| Starting Price | Free | Free |
| FREE Trial | ✘ No free trial | ✘ No free trial |
| Free Plan | ✓ Has free plan | ✓ Has free plan |
| Product Demo | ✘ No product demo | ✘ No product demo |
| Deployment | ||
| Integrations | ||
| Target Users | ||
| Target Industries | ||
| Customer Count | 0 | 0 |
| Founded Year | 2012 | 2017 |
| Headquarters | null | New York, USA |
Overview
Piskel
Piskel is a dedicated tool designed to help you create pixel art and animated sprites directly in your browser or through a desktop application. You can draw your characters and environment frame-by-frame, managing your animation speed with a real-time preview window that shows exactly how your work looks in motion. It simplifies the technical side of pixel art so you can focus on the creative process of building assets for your indie games or digital art collections.
You can organize your workflow using layers and frames, similar to professional animation suites but with a much lower learning curve. The platform is completely open-source and free to use, making it a go-to choice for hobbyists, game developers, and students. Whether you are building a retro-style platformer or just want to experiment with digital drawing, you can export your finished work as animated GIFs, PNG sprite sheets, or even Zip files containing every individual frame.
Storyboarder
Storyboarder provides you with the fastest way to visualize your stories. Whether you are a filmmaker, animator, or novelist, you can quickly draw rough sketches to test your ideas without the friction of complex tools. You can use the built-in drawing tools or print out paper templates to draw by hand, then snap a photo to import your frames instantly.
The software integrates deeply with your existing creative workflow, allowing you to open your boards in Photoshop for detailed editing. You can also export your finished boards directly to Premiere, Final Cut, or Avid for timing and assembly. Because it is open-source and community-driven, you get a professional-grade toolset entirely for free, making it accessible for independent creators and large studios alike.
Overview
Piskel Features
- Live Preview Check your animation in real-time with a dedicated preview window that lets you adjust frames per second instantly.
- Layer Management Organize your artwork across multiple layers to separate characters from backgrounds and simplify complex editing tasks.
- Sprite Sheet Export Export your animations as professional PNG sprite sheets ready for immediate use in game engines like Unity or Godot.
- Google Sign-In Save your sprites to the cloud by signing in with your Google account to access your gallery from any device.
- Onion Skinning View a faint ghost of your previous and next frames to ensure smooth transitions and consistent character movement.
- Offline Desktop Apps Download the standalone version for Windows, macOS, or Linux to keep creating even when you don't have an internet connection.
Storyboarder Features
- Quick Drawing Tools. Use a light pencil for roughing, a hard pencil for lines, and a brush for tones to create boards quickly.
- Shot Generator. Type a description to instantly generate 3D characters and sets when you need to visualize complex camera angles.
- Paper Import. Print storyboard templates, draw with a real pencil, and take a photo to automatically import and crop your frames.
- Photoshop Integration. Edit any board in Photoshop with one click and see your changes update automatically inside Storyboarder.
- Professional Export. Send your storyboards directly to Premiere, Final Cut, Avid, or PDF to begin your editing and production process.
- Layer Management. Organize your drawings with simple layers to separate characters, backgrounds, and notes for better visual clarity.
Pricing Comparison
Piskel Pricing
- Unlimited sprites
- Cloud gallery storage
- Offline desktop version
- Animated GIF export
- PNG sprite sheet export
- Open-source license
Storyboarder Pricing
- Unlimited storyboards
- Shot Generator 3D tool
- Photoshop integration
- Export to Premiere and Final Cut
- Printable paper templates
- Open-source source code access
Pros & Cons
Piskel
Pros
- Completely free and open-source for all users
- Extremely low learning curve for beginners
- Live preview window makes animation timing easy
- No installation required to start drawing immediately
Cons
- Lacks advanced brush and shading tools
- Performance can lag with very large canvases
- Cloud saving is limited to Google accounts
Storyboarder
Pros
- Completely free and open-source for all users
- Extremely fast interface for rapid sketching
- Seamless round-trip editing with Adobe Photoshop
- Unique 3D shot generator for non-artists
Cons
- Limited advanced drawing features compared to Photoshop
- Occasional stability issues on certain hardware
- Smaller community support compared to paid alternatives