The art of making a good game

Pixel Art... Why Pixel Art?!

It is no secret that indie devs go for retro-style games because they are easier.

There is no 3D modelling, no ray-tracing, and no YouTube videos with commentators sucking through their teeth when the title dips to 30 fps instead of 60. We can just say: "It is meant to have a low frame rate. It is retro!"

But beyond that, 16-bit inspired titles can just look gorgeous. Take Stardew Valley for example. Who looks at that game and goes "blergh"? No one. Stardew Valley is a thing of beauty. We all want to live there. Shut up and take my parsnips.

The Original Vision: A Quaint Stardew Vibe

So when we started work on Aisle Survive, this was my first reference point for Jack (the developer) and Miky (the artist.)

Initially, the game was going to be set in a quaint English village, very much in the vein of Stardew.

But then Discounty came out, and it looked like exactly the kind of game we were planning – it even had pixel art! The mechanics were different, sure, but visually it was very, very similar.

The Panic Pivot: From Village to Cybercity

In hindsight, this was the best thing that ever happened to us, because it forced us to pivot.

If Discounty was going to be set in a village, we’d do a city.

If Discounty was going to have angry old people, we’d have robots.

The art changed, and the story changed – for the better, I’d argue.

We now find ourselves in a grim, grimy, noirish and neon-lit cybercity, where a revolution brews… It’s exciting, isn’t it?

Overall, though, I must be honest – I just love pixel art.

Maybe it’s a nostalgia thing. I’m a child of the 90s, after all; my first video games were Sonic the Hedgehog and Echo the Dolphin and Streets of Rage. To an extent, I’m making the game that the child inside me wants to play.

Come join me there.

And on Discord!