I’ve read several articles about this topic, but I still don’t get what exactly a sprite is, why it’s used in game dev, and how it’s different from any other image.
In: Technology
A sprite is just a way of describing an image that is used to represent an object that isn’t static. For instance, in Super Mario Bros, Mario has a sprite, as do Goombas, Piranha Plants, and other enemies. Things like the ground or pipes are images and not sprites. Some things are a combination, such as the flagpole being an image, but the flag itself being a sprite.
Often times, sprites use slightly different tools for how they’re done programmatically. The main distinction is the use of a Sprite Sheet, which is a whole series of images that represent the object in different states. For instance, Mario has sprites for standing, some for walking, jumping, ducking, firing a fire flower, and so on. Rather than reference a different image for each state, the system can just reference a different position on the sprite sheet.
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