show
Display sprites with colored terminal output using ANSI true-color.
Usage
pxl show [OPTIONS] <FILE>
Arguments
| Argument | Description |
|---|---|
<FILE> | Input file containing sprite definitions |
Options
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
--sprite <SPRITE> | Sprite name (if file contains multiple sprites) |
--animation <ANIMATION> | Animation name to show with onion skinning |
--frame <FRAME> | Frame index to display (for animations, default: 0) |
--onion <ONION> | Number of frames before/after to show as onion skin |
--onion-opacity <OPACITY> | Ghost frame opacity (0.0-1.0, default: 0.3) |
--onion-prev-color <COLOR> | Tint color for previous frames (default: #0000FF blue) |
--onion-next-color <COLOR> | Tint color for next frames (default: #00FF00 green) |
--onion-fade | Decrease opacity for frames farther from current |
-o, --output <OUTPUT> | Output file (PNG) for onion skin preview |
Description
The show command renders sprites directly in the terminal using ANSI true-color escape codes. This provides instant visual feedback without generating files.
For animations, onion skinning displays ghost frames before and after the current frame, helping visualize motion.
Examples
Basic preview
# Show a sprite in terminal
pxl show sprite.pxl
# Show a specific sprite from multi-sprite file
pxl show sprites.pxl --sprite hero
Animation preview
# Show first frame of animation
pxl show animation.pxl --animation walk
# Show specific frame
pxl show animation.pxl --animation walk --frame 2
Onion skinning
# Show with 2 frames of onion skin on each side
pxl show animation.pxl --animation walk --onion 2
# Custom onion skin colors
pxl show animation.pxl --animation walk --onion 2 \
--onion-prev-color "#FF0000" \
--onion-next-color "#00FF00"
# Fading onion skin (farther frames more transparent)
pxl show animation.pxl --animation walk --onion 3 --onion-fade
# Higher opacity ghost frames
pxl show animation.pxl --animation walk --onion 2 --onion-opacity 0.5
Export onion skin view
# Save onion skin preview as PNG
pxl show animation.pxl --animation walk --onion 2 -o preview.png
Terminal Requirements
This command requires a terminal that supports:
- ANSI true-color (24-bit color)
- Unicode block characters (▀, ▄)
Most modern terminals support this, including:
- iTerm2, Terminal.app (macOS)
- Windows Terminal
- GNOME Terminal, Konsole (Linux)
- VS Code integrated terminal