LibreSprite vs LoongBones

LibreSprite is a free, open-source program for creating and animating sprites. It provides real-time animation previews and onion skinning, with sprites arranged in layers and frames. Users can edit multiple sprites at once, draw in tiled mode, and use pixel-precise tools such as filled contour, polygon, and shading mode. The program includes ready-to-use palettes and supports creating custom ones. Listed export formats include PNG, GIF, JPEG, BMP, PCX, TGA, ICO, FLI/FLC, WebP, and ASE; sprite-sheet export is also listed. Scripting methods cover loading palettes, cropping and resizing sprites, and saving them. LibreSprite is available for Windows, macOS, Linux, and Android. The project developed independently after originating as a fork of an Aseprite commit covered by GPL version 2. Version 1.0 is listed as supported, and the project security page reports no published advisories. The plan is free.

LoongBones is a 2D skeletal animation solution with an online editor and a runtime player. The browser-based editor uses HTML5 and canvas, so it requires no installation, and it can create, modify, and export animation data, images, frame sequences, and other digital assets. Its tools include mesh deformation, bone binding, inverse kinematics, collision, and mesh curve deformation. Imports include PSD files, images, texture atlases, LoongBones projects and data, and supported Spine files. Exports include animation formats, images, sprite sheets, and GIFs, with plugins for additional formats. The runtime plays LoongBones animation data and supports Egret, Cocos, PixiJS, Unity, and Unreal; it is described as open source, free to download, and MIT-licensed. The product also says it supports AI-generated animation and has integrated DeepSeek. A seven-day free experience includes 100M storage and up to 10 projects. Membership costs 19.90 CNY a month or 199.90 CNY a year. The listed platforms include Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, self-hosted, web, and Windows.