Pico-8

The Pico-8 (stylized as PICO-8) is a virtual machine and game engine created by Lexaloffle Games. It is designed to mimic a "fantasy video game console,"[1] by emulating the harsh hardware limitations of the video game consoles around the 1980s. The goal of this is to spur one's creativity and ingenuity in producing games, and avoid being overwhelmed with the many possibilities of modern tools and machines. Such a design also allows Pico-8 games to have a familiar look and feel.[2] The coding is accomplished through a Lua-based environment,[3] in which users can create music, sound effects, sprites, maps, and games. Users are able to export their games as an HTML5 web game or to upload creations to Lexaloffle's official BBS where other users are able to play the games in a web browser, and view the source code.[4] Pico-8 games can also be exported to "binaries", which will run on Windows, macOS, or Linux.[5]

Pico-8
Developer(s)Lexaloffle Games
Available inLua
TypeVirtual machine, Game engine
Websitewww.lexaloffle.com/pico-8.php 

The Pico-8 program integrates a Lua code editor, sprite and map creation tools, and an audio sound effect and music editor. The program can load games saved locally on a computer, in the form of text or as specially encoded .png images. The interface also supports a splore mode, where games uploaded to the BBS can be previewed and then played in the Pico-8 program. The PocketCHIP miniature computer shipped preloaded with Pico-8.[6]

The release of Pico-8 attracted the attention of programmers and video game developers who enjoyed the challenge of developing under these limitations, and spurred the development of similar game engines with intentional retro-style limitations. These engines are now commonly dubbed "fantasy consoles," based on a definition of the term on Pico-8's website, and roughly simulate the strict limitations of old game consoles and computers. Among these are TIC-80, which styles itself as a "fantasy computer," and Pixel Vision 8, which allows the user to specify the simulated hardware limitations they wish to develop under. The development of fantasy consoles, as well as development of games for them, has evolved into its own, almost exclusively hobbyist, sub-community of game development and programming.

Pico-8 has also seen interest among the demoscene, due to its harsh restrictions attracting programmers and musicians who wish to make retro-style demos for the console.[7][8][9]

Pico-8 gained additional attention in 2018 with the release of Celeste. Originally created as a Pico-8 game for a game jam, Celeste Classic became one of the most popular games on the Pico-8 BBS, prompting the developers to expand the concept into a more expansive, fully realized game. The original Pico-8 version of Celeste is fully playable as an easter egg in the full version of the game.

Capabilities

Pico-8 games, as well as the program's interface itself, are limited to a 128x128 pixel, sixteen-color and secret sixteen-color display, with a 4-channel audio output.[10]

Display
The 16-Colour Palette of Pico-8 along with the extra 16-Colours

The Pico-8 colour palette is licensed under CC0, and contains the following colours:

Pico-8 Colour Palette
Number Name RGB Value in Hexadecimal Colour
0 Black #000000
1 Dark Blue #1D2B53
2 Dark Purple #7E2553
3 Dark Green #008751
4 Brown #AB5236
5 Dark Gray #5F574F
6 Light Gray #C2C3C7
7 White #FFF1E8
8 Red #FF004D
9 Orange #FFA300
10 Yellow #FFEC27
11 Green #00E436
12 Blue #29ADFF
13 Indigo #83769C
14 Pink #FF77A8
15 Peach #FFCCAA
16 Dark Brown #291814
17 Midnight Dark Blue #111D35
18 Dark Maroon #422136
19 Ultra-Dark Green #125359
20 50% Dark Brown #742F29
21 Dark Purple #49333B
22 Dark-Saturated Tan #A28879
23 Bright Yellow #F3EF7D
24 50% Dark Red #BE1250
25 Reddish-Orange #FF6C24
26 Greenish-Yellow #A8E72E
27 50% Dark Green #00B543
28 50% Dark Blue #065AB5
29 50% Dark Purple #754665
30 Reddish-Pink #FF6E59
31 Reddish-Tan #FF9D81

References
  1. Debock, Arnaud (August 2015). PICO-8 Zine #1. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
  2. "Pico-8 website". PICO-8 Fantasy Console. Retrieved 12 March 2020.
  3. Wawro, Alex (May 3, 2016). "PICO-8 'fantasy console' to become an actual handheld console -- sort of". Gamasutra. UBM TechWeb. Archived from the original on November 17, 2016. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
  4. "PICO-8 BBS". Lexaloffle. Retrieved 20 February 2019.
  5. "PICO-8 Fantasy Console". www.lexaloffle.com. Retrieved 2020-05-15.
  6. "PocketCHIP online documentation". Next Thing Co. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
  7. "Puroresu No Seishin, a demo made with Pico-8". Lexaloffle. Retrieved 12 March 2020.
  8. "Ad Astra". Lexaloffle. Retrieved 12 March 2020.
  9. "PICOCHAK". Lexaloffle.
  10. Hossam, Mostafa (August 16, 2016). "Alone in the Dark is still creepy in its brightly-colored remake". Kill Screen. Archived from the original on November 17, 2016. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
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