I’ve been working towards a 1.0 release of Novaboard and that is leading me to think more seriously about making the project sustainable.
Alongside this post I’m shipping 0.11.0, one of the largest updates the app has ever had. The full list lives on the changelog, fair warning, it is a looooong one.
These 0.X versions are still alpha: things can change and the file format isn’t locked yet. But the shape of the app is settling, and 1.0 is close enough that it’s worth talking about what happens then.
Monetization
The current plan is a one-time purchase on Steam, Itch (desktop downloads), and the mobile stores once the respective versions are ready. No subscription for the core app. If you buy it, you own that version. I think this model is what will resonate better with the target audience of pixel artists and indie game developers.
The free web version stays up on the site and on Itch’s web embed, so anyone can try the full app in the browser before paying for the desktop or mobile build. That’s the model: web is the demo, desktop and mobile are the paid products. I am working on making the desktop version integrate better with the file system and engines so that the workflows are smoother than using the web version.
I’m still figuring out how to balance the free web version with the paid desktop builds. I want the web version to stay useful as a way to try the app, but it also needs to make sense for the desktop versions to exist as paid products. I may experiment with things like ads or slightly limiting the web version, depending on how things play out.
I considered adding a subscription for optional extras like cloud sync or multi-user editing, but it would sit on top of the one-time purchase and never gate features that exist today. I’m open to feedback on any of this.
The app will cost around $14.99, on each platform. Unfortunately I have not found a way to sell it once and be available on all platforms, which forces me to sell a copy for each platform you use. For example, you’d need to buy the app separately on Steam and on iOS. If anyone knows a better way to handle this without going subscription-based, I’m all ears.
How Novaboard differentiates
To stand out from other pixel art apps, Novaboard has to offer unique or better features than what’s already out there. Aseprite is the obvious leader in the pixel art space, for good reasons, so I have to offer things it doesn’t. My plan is to focus heavily on animation and game development, while also exploring ideas around organization and smaller niches.
Animation
For animation we’ve started reshaping the timeline and tools, taking inspiration from Flash and Animate. This new structure is more focused on animation workflows and should make things like tweening and effects much easier to build on top. So keyframes, tweening, and clip layers for embedding one board inside another as a reusable, animatable piece. I plan to keep going in this direction, adding things like animation effects: wave effects, path tweening, shape transformations, etc.
Organization
Novaboard is built on top of the concept of a workspace where all your boards live and can be referenced from each other. I hope this ends up useful for indie game developers, but honestly the idea still needs to be validated. If it ends up slowing people down instead of helping them, I might drop it for a more traditional “open file in a tab” workflow.
Another piece of this workspace idea: panels can pop out into floating windows, or even separate browser windows. So you can throw the timeline on a second monitor, float the color picker wherever, or group panels into their own floating containers.
I built it from the ground up thinking about bringing things together in a single workspace. Every file opened in it is called a “board”, thinking of a clipboard where the file sits and can be edited. Originally I even thought of supporting multiple file types (text, video, audio), but friends warned me about the scope creep and I decided to only focus on pixel art.
Game development
After some conversations on Twitter, people mentioned that a good slice and exporting system, one that includes custom data for engines, would be really helpful. With that in mind I reworked how exporting works in Novaboard. Each board can now have multiple export configs, each with its own purpose. I even plan to add an extra “adjustment layer” on top of each export config so users can, for example, apply a color correction filter to only that area being exported. That way multiple assets can come from the same source.
As part of that rework I also added MP4 and WebM video export, so you can ship a proper video of your animation instead of a GIF that weighs 10x more.
Game engine integration is still early, and while the Godot 4 export is rough around the edges, it maps out the direction the app is heading in.
Niche areas
Some of my family members like to do cross-stitch, and I also saw a Steam review asking for cross-stitch export options on Aseprite. For both reasons there’s now an export option for “crafts” with 4 color palettes, one for each of the companies that make the threads. I had to dig through each company’s website to find pictures of threads and build my own RGB to thread color mapping. On the back of that I also plan to add fuse beads color palettes.
Little corners like this won’t carry the app on their own, but they’re fun to build and they reach people that the pixel art pitch wouldn’t.
What’s next
As you can see, I really enjoy programming and building the tool, which tends to pull my focus toward code and away from promoting the app. That has been a recurring pattern across my projects, Novaboard included.
Going forward, expect more marketing and polish work from me and fewer new features. This version already included a new logo and a landing page refresh, a first step in that direction.
Feature-wise, the focus is on polishing the desktop version so I can start selling it on Itch and Steam in the next month or so. Mobile is already in early alpha, but real focus on it kicks in after the desktop launch, for release on the App Store and Google Play.
Closing
If you enjoy the app, or just want to support this endeavor, consider engaging with it: use it, share it, and critique it. Leaving a rating on Itch, joining the Discord, or reaching out on Twitter all help a ton. Novaboard isn’t at 1.0 yet, but the direction is clear and every release is bringing it closer.