I picked pico-8 as the engine simply because I know I work better with constraints and the limited size and capabilities of it would ensure I would not attempt perfection since I know I do not have the skills to reach it anyway. I have been a professional developer for 10+ years so code syntax is not my biggest issue, but knowing how to architect things, deal with the art and sound.
By sticking within what pico-8 provides I thought I could achieve this, where I had previously failed with tools like Game Maker.
Pico-8 really seems like a great first experience with game development.
Hmmm, maybe time to check how far lexaloffle has progressed on voxatron, the voxel version of which pico-8 is a spinoff.
I LOVE PICO-8! It takes everything fun about retro game development and removes or replaces all of the frustrating part. Some things I love are…
It just works. Outside of PICO-8, I spend so much time implementing controller input, fullscreen toggle, sound setup… In PICO-8 it’s all done fore me.
With a simple export command I can send any game I make to friends (for free) and I know it’ll just work on Windows, Linux, Mac, and any web browser / smart phone.
I love that it’s a fantasy console with a set resolution, 16 colors, number of buttons on the controller, size of games…
“Cartridges” are PNG images with the code embedded into them. In other words, the “box art” image for the game is the actual game you load into PICO-8.
Games are made in the Lua programming language, which I like to describe as “Python but easier”.
It’s entirely self contained. Code, sprites, maps, sound effects, and music can all be made in the PICO-8 environment itself.
And one of the best parts, NO ONLINE REQUIRED. It comes with an instruction manual in plain text (so happy I’m gonna cry) and contains literally everything you need to know, from the first time you open it to advanced features. Just like 8-bit micros did back in the day.
…I’m not used to paying for software, so I was hesitant to spend the $15 on it. But after spending one weekend making my first game, I honestly felt like I’d already got my money’s worth, it was that much fun!
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