Krita
Official screenshots
Krita combines flexible brush engines, layers, color management, seamless textures, and a 2D animation workspace for concepts, characters, backgrounds, and texture painting.
Why use it
It offers professional painting features, cross-platform support, and a fully free license that fits an indie art pipeline.
Where it fits
Use art, animation, audio, levels, and narrative to make the game easy to read and its world convincing.
What to check
It prioritizes painting over photo manipulation; large animation projects and complex vector work often benefit from companion tools.