But how do you print it? Do ya just use a regular printer?

I know i'm not one to talk when it comes to things like this, but the first thing that pops out at me is that there is a ton of banding and in general pillow shading.

I wish I could make a visual reference but I'm not to good at pixel art YET so I'll just explain it. It looks like it is brand new, if it is some kind of battle-bot then it should have gunshot holes and scratches. Also the pillow shading is EVERYWHERE.

Ok so you might (probably, more like definitely) of seen this before but really if your making pixel art you just GOT to check these tutorials out http://www.petesqbsite.com/sections/tutorials/tuts/tsugumo/default.htm and for sprites in particular go here http://www.petesqbsite.com/sections/tutorials/tuts/tsugumo/chapter8.htm. "But I don't want to read all that!" Well if thats the case then I'll give a short summary on how to make small (16x16) sprites. First of all, if you want to take a massive (like your first one) and make it tiny you got to LOSE the outline (as setz pointed out). Second of all it's a good idea to go SD style (SD stands for "Super Deformed") in a 16x16 sprite you can't have the legs more that 2 px or your head wont have ANY room for detail so it is best to go with a template like FF (Final Fantasy) and SoM (Secret of Mana) witch is the following in pete's words: "Now the first thing you have to know about FF2 sprites, is that they're all divided up in a certain way...This is a 16x16 box that you see above the text...Along the side is a line of orange, yellow, orange. Those lines are a guide of where everything goes. In an FF2 sprite, the waist down is given 3 pixels (the bottom orange guide), the torso from the neck to the waist is given 3 pixels as well (the yellow guide), and the head is given a massive 10 pixels (the top orange guide)." So in my summary, top orange for head and hair and elbow, yellow for torso to neck, bottom orange for torso and down. Of course after seeing this you might just forget ALL about 16x16 sprites and just do bigger
ones. But really if you follow pete's tutorial then your safe (it's failsafe, foolsafe, noobsafe, and pixelnoobsafe! Isn't that amazing?).

This is a critique forum. You get critique and you put it to use and you get better. You don't have to like the edits you're getting, but please appreciate them.

I DO appreciate them, sorry if it didn't seem like it.

Besides the JPEG issue (seriously, smart people are telling you it's a problem, why argue?) I didn't know that he had a mustache. I thought the mustache was his mouth and the mouth was an underline/underlip part of the mouth to make it look like he was frowning and grunting in horror.

"Smart people are telling you it,s a problem, why argue?" Thats like saying "Your friend your stupid, why argue?" I'm just expressing my opinion, just cause some "Smart Person" tells you something doesn't mean you have to listen.

Also, jpg compression adds colours. The gif/png one has 111 colours (which is a needlessly huge amount and makes me think your smiley was shrank down from a bigger version), while the jpg one has over 200 colours.

I also agree that the mustache thing is not at all obvious. I read it like infinitegames.

It was not shrunken down, it is supposed to be gradient, I don't get what your guys problem is with so many colors... And I came here to C AND C (Critique and Comments) not just critique, so please tell me how I can fix the mustache