Pixelpart review
A focused particle-effects editor with engine plugins and a $24.99 one-time Professional plan.
Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
Pixelpart is a desktop editor for creating 2D and 3D particle-based visual effects for games. It is aimed at developers producing explosions, magic, weather and ambient particles, with tools for emitters, force fields, colliders, keyframes, motion paths, runtime inputs and triggers, and custom materials through shader graphs. It fits teams that need authored particle effects rather than a broad 2D animation suite.
The published plans show a Demo edition and a Professional edition priced at $24.99 USD as a one-time purchase. Demo includes future updates and bug fixes plus integration with game engines, but is limited to creating simple effects. Professional adds unlimited nodes and particle types, unlimited effect inputs and triggers, and unrestricted export to videos and sprites, while retaining future updates, bug fixes and engine integration. The pricing page notes that the price can vary by country and currency. There is no recurring subscription described in the published plan structure.
Pixelpart’s strongest fit is a workflow built around particle effects and engine delivery. Effects can be exported to sprite sheets, image sequences, animated images and video, or brought into Unity, Godot and GameMaker through plugins. The documented runtime targets include Windows, Linux, macOS, iOS, Android and Web/HTML5 through those plugins, while the editor itself is listed for Windows and Linux. Choose Pixelpart when particle authoring, runtime control and multi-engine export are central requirements. Choose another tool when the project needs broader character animation, scene animation or a general-purpose 2D animation workflow.
Pixelpart pros and cons
- Where it wins
- Particle emitters, forces, colliders, keyframes and motion paths
- Plugins for Unity, Godot and GameMaker
- Professional plan includes unrestricted sprite, image and video exports
- Where it doesn't
- Focused on effects authoring rather than general 2D animation
- Professional features require a paid one-time plan
- Desktop support is limited to Windows and Linux
Pixelpart fact sheet, pricing and score →
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