Where to find Game Assets : Open Game Art alternatives

If you’re entering into game development and looking for free or cheap assets to kickstart your project, there are ample resources available if you know where to look. Often, people become aware of these resources in game development courses. Open Game Art comes to mind as one of the popular choices, which hosts game assets free for use.

Most such courses use either Unity or Unreal Engine, and their respective platforms come with their own Asset Stores as well. However, you may wish to explore different sources of game assets if you’re looking for something specific to support your direction/art style.

We are here to help so that you can start doing the important stuff : making games.

Numerous sites offer free assets that save you valuable time and effort throughout your game development journey. These sites go beyond simple game art, empowering you to craft an entire virtual world of your own. In this blog, we’ll explore some of the best platforms where you can find such assets.

Itch.io

Itch.io is a prominent digital marketplace. It offers a blend of both free and premium game assets, catering to a diverse range of developers’ needs. Unlike OpenGameArt, the assets on Itch.io do not fall under the same licenses, so it’s essential to be mindful of their usage rights. While a significant portion of the marketplace consists of premium assets that require purchasing before use, there is also a generous selection of free assets available under the designated “free game assets” category.

To make the most of your search, ensure you use the filtering options to find assets that match your specific requirements. Itch.io houses a wide variety of assets, ranging from 8-bit to 16-bit graphics and even 3D renders, catering to the needs of developers working on games of varying complexity and styles.

The Itch.io community also offers a wide selection of completed games for sale, and interestingly, some of these games are entirely free, providing an opportunity to explore and play with other creators’ work.

Game Art 2D

Game Art 2D boasts an extensive gallery of royalty-free game assets. It offers a diverse range of styles, including sprites, tilesets, and even some basic concept art. While the majority of these assets do come with a price tag, fear not, as the website also features a freebies category with some fantastic offerings, which are under Creative Common Zero (CCO) a.k.a Public Domain license.

It’s worth noting that Game Art 2D’s library may be smaller compared to other marketplaces, resulting in a slightly more limited selection of free assets. Nevertheless, the freebies available are of high quality and can be a valuable addition to your game development arsenal.

Game Creator Store

Game Creator Store is a game asset marketplace, offering creators worldwide access to high-quality resources. It particularly caters to indie developers, providing them with affordable and top-notch game assets. With its diverse collection of 2D sprites and characters, this platform becomes the perfect environment to enhance your gaming projects, be it a side-scroller, RPG, or any other genre. You can discover and obtain an extensive range of 2D models, from creatures and humans to robots and much more.

In addition to 2D assets, the Game Creator Store offers a diverse selection of 3D props that are readily available for integration into your gaming project. With thousands of options to explore, you can easily find the perfect 3D furniture, clothing, tools, and weapons to enhance both your game’s interior and exterior settings. Its remarkable 3D vegetation collection features a variety of plants, flowers, trees, and terrain options that will add depth and realism to your game. Whether you need assets for indoor scenes or outdoor landscapes, Game Creator Store has you covered.

Kenney Assets

Kenney Assets, developed by UNI Technologies, is a remarkable platform that offers an extensive collection of free game assets for creators. With thousands of sprites, sound effects, and 3D models at your disposal, you have everything you need to enhance your games. The best part is that Kenney Assets is licensed under the generous public domain.

Whether you’re creating board games or tabletop RPG environments, Kenney Assets has you covered with information symbols for board games, top-down tiles for dungeons and RPG settings, and various weapons, characters, and items. Additionally, the platform provides vector source files and allows you to create your unique monsters by combining different mouths, eyes, and limbs in six different colors.

Furthermore, Kenney Assets offers a collection of 80 tiles in four colors, perfectly compatible with Creature Mixer and Pixel Platformer. In essence, this platform stands out as the ultimate go-to resource for game developers.

Craftpix

CraftPix is a relatively newer game asset site compared to others on this list, but boasts a substantial library. CraftPix offers a diverse range of assets, including some truly innovative and unusual finds such as casino GUIs for mobile games and custom 2D backgrounds for side-scrollers.
While the majority of premium content is paid, there’s also a generous selection of freebies available. Currently, there are around 60+ free assets, featuring backgrounds, characters, and various GUI elements. Although smaller in comparison to sites like Itch, CraftPix stands out with its unique offerings that can’t be found elsewhere, making it a valuable resource for developers seeking distinctive and fresh assets for their projects.

Key takeaway

One thing worth noting is that the majority of these game asset sites are built and curated primarily by the creators themselves. This means that artists have significant control over the availability of free assets.

If you happen to be an artist or digital designer, consider contributing some of your work to these platforms. Doing so not only helps build recognition for your creations but also allows you to showcase and promote both premium assets and freebies, providing an opportunity to earn additional income.

Regardless of whether you’re a creator or a developer, it’s evident that the demand for game assets continues to grow steadily year by year, making these resources increasingly essential in the gaming community.