Hey itch.io community! 👋
We’re excited to share what we’ve been building at FutureVision Labs - two powerful tools that transform 3D models into perfect 2D sprites for modern and retro game development!
🎨 The Sprite Alchemist
The Sprite Alchemist is our flagship tool that’s already live on itch.io! It’s designed for modern 2D game development, featuring:
- 3D Model Support (GLB, GLTF, FBX)
- Live Turntable Preview with animated models
- 16-Direction Capture with compass picker
- Camera Presets for RPG, Platformer, Shooter, and Isometric views
- Spritesheet Atlas Generation with transparent backgrounds
- Bulk Export for processing multiple models
- Full Metadata Export (JSON with direction mapping)
Perfect for indie devs who want pixel-perfect sprites from their 3D assets without the manual work!
🕹️ The Sprite Alchemist - Retro (Coming Soon!)
The Sprite Alchemist - Retro is our retro-focused sibling that’s currently in active development. This tool exports 3D models to native sprite formats for classic platforms:
- C64, NES, SNES, Game Boy
- ZX Spectrum, Amiga, Atari, Amstrad CPC
- Stacked Sprite Support (2x1, 2x2, 3x2 arrangements)
- Automatic Color Quantization to platform-specific palettes
- Platform-Specific Bitwise Encoding
🎯 Why C64 is the Hardest Export (And We’re Almost There!)
We’re currently deep in Phase 1 development, focusing on the C64 export MVP, and let us tell you - it’s been a journey! Here’s why C64 is arguably the most challenging retro platform to export for:
The Technical Challenges:
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Dual Display Modes: C64 sprites have two completely different modes:
- Multicolor: 12x21 hardware pixels that display as 24x21 (double-width pixels), 3 colors + transparency
- Hi-Res: 24x21 hardware pixels, 1 color + transparency
- Each requires completely different encoding logic!
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Tight Color Constraints: Only 3 colors + transparency for multicolor (or 1 color + transparency for hi-res) means aggressive color quantization while preserving sprite detail. We’ve had to implement smart palette selection that analyzes ALL animation frames to lock colors across the entire sequence.
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Bitwise Encoding Complexity: C64 sprites use a unique bit-packing format:
- Multicolor: 4 pixels per byte (2 bits each)
- Hi-Res: 8 pixels per byte (1 bit each)
- Getting the bit order and encoding correct is critical for compatibility with C64 emulators and tools like SpritePad.
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Sprite Centering & Wraparound: Ensuring sprites are properly centered in the 12x21 or 24x21 grid without wraparound issues requires careful bounding box calculation and cropping - something we’ve been iterating on to get just right!
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Format Compatibility: We’re supporting both SpritePad .spd format (for easy editing) and raw C64 binary .bin format (for direct VICE emulator loading), each with different header structures and data layouts.
The Progress So Far:
✅ Platform selector UI
✅ Color quantization with contrast-based palette selection
✅ Bitwise encoding for both multicolor and hi-res modes
✅ Global color locking across animation frames
✅ SpritePad .spd and raw .bin export formats
✅ Sprite centering and cropping to prevent wraparound
We’re so close to having the C64 MVP locked down! Once we nail this, the other platforms (NES, SNES, Game Boy, etc.) will be much more straightforward since they follow more standard sprite formats.
🚀 What’s Next?
After we complete the C64 MVP, we’ll be adding:
- Stacked Sprite Support (2x1, 2x2 arrangements) - revolutionary for retro game dev!
- Core Platform Exports (NES, SNES, Game Boy)
- Extended Platforms (ZX Spectrum, Amiga, Atari, Amstrad CPC)
💬 We’d Love Your Feedback!
Both tools are built with the indie dev community in mind. If you’re working on 2D games (modern or retro), we’d love to hear your thoughts, feature requests, or see what you create with our tools!
- The Sprite Alchemist - Available now for $4.99 (Early Access)
- The Sprite Alchemist - Retro - Coming soon, follow for updates!
Thanks for reading, and happy sprite creating! 🎨✨
Created by the FutureVision Labs Team