Smooth Rotation with Pixel Art?

[UnusualOranges]

I've been trying to get smooth rotation on small pixel art for a long time now.

Here's an example of what I'm looking for: https://imgur.com/a/pixel-rotation-stuff-doTn40f

Things I've tried:
-Scaling all of the art up. (inflates game size and makes ripping sprites more difficult.)
-Scaling all of the objects up. (doing this currently, makes placing objects hard and sucks.)
-Using lens to zoom in. (zooms in, but doesn't change how anything looks.)

I've been at this on and off for like a month now and i'm pretty sure that a fusion game has done something like this before. Please help!!