I'm a developer currently working on an indie game which is kind of like if Diablo 2 was done as a 2D platformer. I'd say it's probably most similar in style to the open world Castlevania games (i.e. Symphony of the Night). The style I'm going for is the less cartoon-y, non-outlined kind of pixel art. This piece is the closest I've found to what I have in mind. It's got a somewhat minimalist feel, but it's got enough detail that I could have a number of unique and distinct avatar pieces that can be equipped. Also, not just the style itself, but the scale is also what I had in mind. The size and proportions of the people and environment are exactly what I am looking for.

I'd need someone who could do animation for the avatar pieces that the player sprite is composed of, and also animated monster sprites. I will also need tilesets for the environment. The work could be split among more than one artist, if for example you're good with environments but not an animator, as long the general art style can be mimicked.

For the moment I would need:
 1. A minimum of two tilesets.
 2. A minimum of one player sprite (composed of individual avatar pieces).
 3. A minimum of two monsters.

If you're interested, here's the technical specs document I wrote.

Artwork Technical Specifications:

A. GENERAL TILESET SPECIFICATIONS

 1. Size

   a. The dimensions of a tile must be 32x32.

 2. Parallax Layers

  a. The engine supports multiple parallax layers, so a tileset would have to contain some tiles
     which would comprise a background layer in the distance, for maps where this is appropriate,
     such as those set outdoors.

     A middleground layer in the less-far-away-than-background distance would be neat, but it's
     not a requirement. Similarly, a foreground layer would also be neat if done well, but that
     can be tricky as it may obscure the gameplay, so it is also not a requirement. If you think
     either of those would significantly add to the quality, go for it, otherwise don't worry about it.

 3. Non-parallax layers

   a. The main game area consists of 3 layers which scroll in tandem, rather than in parallax.
      There is a layer for its background, the terrain layer, and a layer for its foreground.
      In a sense, the terrain layer is irrelevant to the artist, because it's invisible and
      simply has the graphics overlayed on top of it in the foreground layer, but I think it
      makes sense to at least be aware of it.

 4. Slope Tiles

   a. Each tileset must have two types of slope geometry: a 45 degree slope that spans a single
       tile, and a 26.5 degree slope that spans two tiles.

Single Tile Slope:
Double Tile Slope:  

   b. The slopes should have either an overlaying tile on top of the slope geometry or a
       background tile behind it, making it appear more natural and less linear. Some examples
       from Castlevania:

A banister overlaying a slope:

Stairs in the background of a slope:

Crumbling bricks overlaying a slope:


      This should also be kept in mind for the player sprite as well, so situations where
      it looks like one leg isn't making contact with the floor can be avoided.
   
This is the kind of thing I'm looking to avoid:


   c. The camera angle should be facing directly forward, not angled slightly downward,
      as seen in this screenshot from Contra 3 for example.



 5. Terrain Tiles

   a. If appropriate there should be tiles which serve to "un-flatten" the terrain.
       Flat terrain obviously makes sense sometimes, but in some cases, for example,
       rocks or grass, it should have an irregular look to it. There will need to be
       terrain tiles for the floor, walls, the ceilings, slopes and the four types
       of corners.
   
       The following screenshot shows the Mimiga Village tileset from Cave Story, which
       uses terrain tiles on the floor, ceiling, walls, corners, and slopes.



B. PLAYER CHARACTER SPRITE

 1. Paper Doll Avatar System

    a. The player sprite is rendered with a paper doll avatar system. The idea is the avatar
        pieces can be collected and equipped, so the style should be detailed enough that different
        pieces of equipment can be distinguished from one another and unique in appearance
        (i.e. not just a matter of swapping the pallet.)

2. The avatar pieces are as follows:
   
    a. Hat/Helmet
    b. Armor/Body
    c. Boots/Shoes
    d. Weapon
    e. Shield
    f. An accessory piece that could be either behind or in front of the other avatar pieces,
        or maybe multiple layers allowing it to be both in front and behind.

       For example a cape would be an accessory behind the other pieces, a scarf would be in
       front, and a Clint Eastwood style poncho that would have both a back and a front layer.

       At the moment, this isn't a necessity, just something to consider.

    g. Note: Because avatar pieces are collectible items, they will each need an icon that will
        be displayed in the game when dropped by a monster, or any other method of obtaining
        equipment.

 2. The avatar pieces will need animations for the following player states:

    a. Idle     
    b. Duck/Kneel
    c. Run/Walk
    d. Jump (upward movement)
    e. Fall (downward movement)
    f. Dash Forward
    g. Backdash
    h. Attack
       - Attack animations might vary slightly for different weapon types. For example swinging a
         short sword would require a different animation than swinging a large hammer weapon.

    i. Block (raised shield)
    i. Take Damage
    j. Death     

 3. It should be noted that some of the above states can actually share common elements.
    For example, you will be able to attack while jumping, so while the legs might be different,
    the same upper body animation could be used for both a standing attack and a jumping attack.

C. MONSTERS

  1. Monsters will need to have three states: Idle, attacking and moving. I'll leave it up to you how you
      want to do that. Moving might be walking, flying, jumping etc. Attacks might be melee or projectiles.