Feedback Need help/tips from 2D experienced artists as a programmer struggling with art :(

Hello I am working on a 2D game that will mostly focused on combat.

I just need help on how to improve the art and direction of my game, I am a programmer and learning art as a programmer I struggle to make anything look decent.

I have a few questions that If any experience artist can answer will help me tons.

What software should I use? I learned Gimp 2 but if there is something better I will try it.
What resolutions should I create my sprites?
Sometimes I draw sprites on 1920x1080 and they still look blurry. Why is that?
I see people use many sprites in one scene, can it affect performance?
How can you try huge sprites without the scale messing up, like huge trees in the background?

Any other tip/help is appreciated!

Bellow are some images from my game...

 

For now I am gonna experiment with vector graphics. Hopefully it will give some results I can work with.

 

i dont recommend vector, 99.9% of games do not use vector graphics

vector graphics are used mostly in the design industry for logos or print that needs to maintain the same look at a multitude of scales

to get better at art there is no shortcut, you draw a lot and get better overtime, I could say you need to add more shadows, no clash between styles( your water and moss cobblestone are very detailed compared to your grass and bridges that are 1 solid color taking up the whole screen ) but there is no actionable way you can fix this without spending a lot of time drawing.

I could also say that photoshop is better than gimp, however its not by switching to photoshop that you will become better. ( a better artist will produce better art using paint than a worse artist using photoshop )

the best advice i can give you is pick your favorite games and start taking screenshots and trying to copy the art, this isnt a magic trick and it will still take you a long time ( years ) but in my opinion thats the best way to learn

 

Thank you for your detailed answer. 2 Questions if you can answer

How can I make huge sprites without stretching them from unity and that it will look big and clean (not blurry)?
You talk about shadows, i saw unity has a shadow 2d system and it looks a bit complicated. Would i be better just drawing the shadows?

 

check your import settings, make sure you have filter mode to point, no compression

its better for you to draw the shadows

you can use lights in addition to that to improve the look of your game, but not for the shadows im talking about

I figure the sort of art you are trying to go for is something like this?:

 

Yes on point with the art, it is what I wanna do. I will change the import settings . I use a lot of unity sprite shape tool but I will change to modular sprites as it seems most games use many sprites to make the game look good.

Thank you for all your help!

 

no problem, in the end for things to look good you have to draw them by hand

if you want it to be easier you should do pixel art, since the sprites are much smaller and minimalist its easier to get away with less elaborate art ( see stardew valley, the art is not amazing but meshes very well together and creates a nice atmosphere, the map is tileable so its easier to design levels )

of course as I said this will still take time, in the end no one can teach you how to draw better the same way no one can teach you to run faster, you just have to keep doing it and you will get better over time.

 

Krita is the best free photoshop alternative by a mile especially for drawing: https://krita.org/en/. I didn't know how much GIMP irritated me until leaving it.

 

Interesting I will give it a try thanks!