Pixel Art Lab acts as a bridge between your creative vision and your screen. It connects the power of artificial intelligence with the precision of Aseprite. You provide the instructions, and the software draws the images. It checks its own work, identifies mistakes, and fixes them until the art satisfies your request.
This guide helps you set up the software on your Windows computer. Follow these steps in order to ensure everything works as intended.
You must have the Aseprite software installed on your machine. This tool serves as the canvas for your project. Download and install it from the official Aseprite website. Note the location of the installed file, as you will need to point Pixel Art Lab to this folder later.
Pixel Art Lab requires specific background tools to function. Install Node.js version 20 or higher by visiting the official Node.js website. Download the Windows installer and follow the standard installation prompts. Additionally, install the Go programming language, version 1.23 or higher, to allow the internal tools to communicate with the drawing software.
The app relies on OpenRouter to process your art requests. Visit the OpenRouter website and create an account. Generate an API key from your user settings. Copy this key and save it in a secure location, as you will need it when you open the application for the first time.
To acquire the latest version of the software, visit the repository page and select the main download option.
Once you download the files, extract the contents to a folder on your computer. Open this folder and locate the configuration file. Enter your OpenRouter API key into the designated field. Ensure you provide the path to your Aseprite installation within the same configuration file to allow the two programs to talk.
After you configure the settings, run the application file from the folder. A window will appear where you can type your prompts. Be specific with your requests. For example, tell the app to "draw a small red apple with white highlights." The tool will generate a preview, analyze its own actions, and refine the result. You can watch the history of these iterations in the side panel.
If the app does not draw, check that your Aseprite path is correct in the configuration file. Verify that you have an active internet connection to contact OpenRouter. Ensure that your API key has sufficient credits for the generation process.
Keywords: pixel art, generative art, artificial intelligence, aseprite, windows software