Top 10 Animation Tools For Digital Artists

You may plan to include 2D designs to enhance your game design. Being a digital artist, you need to be use of the right tools. What if you are a fresher and not aware of the type of digital tools available to help with your design? The right ones when used can add life to the designs. Animating the illustrations can be a pretty cool feeling, be it a full length or simply, super-short cartoon.

Best animation Tools to use

1. Piskel:

This online free tool is used to create animated pixel art and sprites. Register with your Google Account to access it privately or publicly. You are provided your created image’s live preview. Also is offered the option to import animated GIFs, BMPs, JPGs and PNGs. It is available for Linux, Mac and Windows.

2. OpenToonz:

This free tool is also available in premium format as Toonz Premium. It features all essential tools including drawing tools, scripting, effects, tweening, etc. New features are regularly introduced. It is available for Windows and Mac. Also is offered open-source version.

3. Spine:

Digital artists can get access to its limited trial version for free before switching on to the paid one. It allows animation of existing artwork. However, no illustration tools are included in it. You can animate characters. Also is offered Free-Form Deformation (FFD) tool and dope sheet.

4. Aseprite:

Its trial version is for free. It is an amazing pixel art and animated character design It offers layer support, playback modes, onion skins, custom brushes, shading modes and alpha channel control. You may export/import different formats like animated GIFs, sprite sheets and PNGs.

5. FlipBook:

It comes with a small fee once the trial offer is completed. This graphic app is best suited to develop traditional 2D animation. You can scan, draw as well as import various things. It includes cels, backgrounds, movies, and overlays. Also can be added sound. Once done, you may export full animated movies or images.

6. Pencil 2D:

It is a freely accessible cross-platform 2D animation and drawing app, meant for hand-drawn animations. You can focus on game design, animation and art and not its interface. It also supports vector and raster, with options to export/import different formats.

7. Moho Pro and Moho Debut:

This 2D animation vector-based program comes with varied price formats. It can be used by both beginners and professionals alike. They are both loaded with lots of pre-created characters and content to ignite your imagination. Debut version allows using of character wizard. You may use auto trace option and import own images. Pro users can avail features like motion blurs, FBX support, frame-by-frame capabilities, etc.

8. TVPaint Animation:

Digital artists find it quite useful although it is pricey in this lot. Using its trial version can give an idea. It has ‘professional’ tool set, helping to render fully-animated scenes right from beginning to finish. With bitmap technology, you will be able to animate natural renderings, such as watercolor, gouache, pen, crayon, oil painting, image-by-image, etc.

9. Synfig Studio:

This open-source, cross-platform, powerful 2D animation and drawing tool is free to use. It is more complicated when compared with other animated character design apps available. You can get full control on almost every aspect associated with your animation. It offers features like layers, masking, fills, brushes, etc.

10. Toon Boom Harmony:

Many consider it as animation tools’ de factor standard. There are three versions available: Premium, Advanced and Essentials. Also are offered three license options like Annual, Monthly and Perpetual. Using its animation and illustration tool, you may paint, draw and sketch in vector and bitmap formats. Also is offered advanced color palettes, special effects, frame-by-frame animation and deformers.

The above mentioned animation Tools list is worth a second look and use. You just need to find out the one that best fits your needs.