How do you build on a feature-packed release like GIMP 3.0? Well, you just keep on building I guess — which is what the GIMP’s dedicated dev team is doing.

GIMP 3.2 is the next major release of this open source image editor, and is currently in development. An early build, version 3.1.2, is available for testing and already includes several new features that fans of the software are sure to find useful.

Chief among them is a brand new paint mode called Overwrite, specifically focused on use with the Pencil tool (but not exclusively – results may vary when used with other tools).

Overwrite mode, the GIMP team explains, will “directly replace the pixels over the area you paint, without blending the transparency values of the brush and the existing pixels in that area”. This should make it particularly useful for those working on pixel art.

GIMP 3.2 includes new text outline settings to make text outlines “grow inward, outward, or in both directions”. Photoshop converts will be more familiar with those options inside, outside or centre, respectively.

If you’ve ever been brave enough to rest your eyes on hero graphics I make for this blog, you may have noticed I’m a fan of strokes (i.e., outlines around images or text). I’ve found GIMP’s text outline options lacking in prior releases, so I’m pleased to see progress on that.

Sticking with things that Photoshop users may appreciate, GIMP 3.2 adds import support for .pat pattern files, initial export support for .psb, and early support for Photoshop curve/levels preset (.acv or .alv) files.

Like LibreOffice’s focus on interoperability with Microsoft Office, GIMP making it easier for users coming from Adobe software to work with their existing files and assets is a pragmatic move that meets design folks where they are, lowering the barrier to entry.

Beyond that, GIMP 3.2 sees UI buffs, including system dark/light mode detection on Windows and Linux (with an option to manually switch to a different theme mode), and adds a toggle to make brush previews use theme background and foreground colours.

There’s also support for adding non-destructive filters to channels, improvements to the CMYK Colour Selector calculation, an undo step is generated when using “Lock pixels”, and it’s possible to load, import and export with additional file formats:

  • APNG (import)
  • AVCI (import)
  • .hej2 (export)
  • JPEG 2000 (export)
  • PlayStation TIM (open, export)
  • Nokia OTA Bitmap
  • OpenEXR

You can download the GIMP 3.1.2 development release from the GIMP website, but as with all development builds, keep in mind it is not intended to be used full-time, or for working on important projects.

Ergo, it may crash, it may hang, it may contain more bugs than a rotten log — so report issues if you encounter ’em over on the GIMP GitLab issues page.