Photo by Piotr Baranowski: https://www.pexels.com/photo/black-and-white-photography-of-a-vintage-computer-22763683/
Ever dreamt of creating your own pixelated adventure, a callback to the golden age of 8-bit and 16-bit gaming? This guide will walk you through the essential steps to design and develop your very own retro video game, complete with helpful links to get you started on your journey.
1. The Big Idea: Conceptualization
Before you draw a single pixel or write a line of code, you need a solid concept. Think about the classic games you love. What made them so memorable?
- Genre: Will it be a side-scrolling platformer like Super Mario Bros., a top-down adventure like The Legend of Zelda, a scrolling shooter like Gradius, or a role-playing game (RPG) like Final Fantasy?
- Core Mechanics: What is the main thing the player will do? Jumping, shooting, exploring, solving puzzles? Keep it simple and engaging. Retro games thrived on straightforward, addictive gameplay.
- The Hook: What makes your game unique? A novel gameplay mechanic, a compelling story, or a distinctive art style?
Helpful Link:
- Gamasutra (now Game Developer): Offers in-depth articles on game design theory and post-mortems of classic games. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/
2. The Look: Art Style and Visuals
The heart of retro gaming lies in its pixel art aesthetic. This distinctive style was born from technical limitations but has since become a beloved art form.
- Choose Your Era: Decide if you’re aiming for the simple, blocky charm of the 8-bit era (NES, Sega Master System) or the more detailed and colorful 16-bit style (SNES, Sega Genesis). This choice will influence your color palette and sprite complexity.
- Learn the Basics of Pixel Art: Understand concepts like “jaggies” (awkward diagonal lines), color theory for limited palettes, and how to create expressive characters and environments with a small number of pixels.
- Tilesets: To build your game world efficiently, you’ll use tilesets – a collection of reusable square tiles that can be arranged to create levels.
Helpful Links:
- Lospec: A fantastic resource for pixel art tutorials, palettes, and software recommendations. https://lospec.com/
- Piskel: A free and easy-to-use online pixel art editor. https://www.piskelapp.com/
- Aseprite: A popular and powerful paid pixel art tool with features specifically for game development. https://www.aseprite.org/
3. The Sound: Music and Audio
The iconic bleeps and bloops of chiptune music are as crucial to the retro experience as the visuals.
- Chiptune Basics: Chiptune music is created using the sound chips of old computers and consoles, resulting in a distinctive electronic sound. It’s characterized by simple waveforms (square, triangle, sine) and arpeggiated chords.
- DAWs and Trackers: You can create chiptunes using a modern Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) with specific plugins that emulate old sound chips, or you can use a “tracker,” a type of music software that was popular during the demoscene and early game development days.
Helpful Links:
- BeepBox: A free and incredibly intuitive online tool for creating chiptune melodies. https://www.beepbox.co/
- FamiTracker: A more advanced, free tracker for creating authentic NES-style music. http://famitracker.com/
- OpenGameArt: A great source for free-to-use sound effects and music, including a wide variety of retro sounds. https://opengameart.org/
4. The World: Level Design and Narrative
A good retro game needs a world that is fun to explore and a story, however simple, to motivate the player.
- Level Design Principles: Focus on creating a good “flow” for the player. Introduce new mechanics in a safe environment before testing the player’s skills. Gradually increase the difficulty. For platformers, consider the placement of platforms, enemies, and power-ups to create a challenging but fair experience.
- Retro Storytelling: Stories in retro games were often simple due to technical constraints. A kidnapped princess, an invading alien force, or a quest for a powerful artifact are all classic tropes. You can tell your story through brief in-game text, short cutscenes, or even through environmental details.
Helpful Links:
- GDC (Game Developers Conference) YouTube Channel: Contains numerous talks on level design from industry professionals. Many principles discussed can be applied to 2D games. https://www.youtube.com/c/gdconf
- Extra Credits: A YouTube channel that often breaks down game design concepts, including narrative and level design, in an accessible way. https://www.youtube.com/user/ExtraCreditz
5. The Engine: Bringing It All Together
A game engine is the software framework you’ll use to build your game. Many modern engines are surprisingly easy to use and have excellent support for 2D retro-style games.
Helpful Links for Free Game Engines:
- Godot Engine: A powerful and completely free and open-source game engine with a dedicated 2D workflow. It’s a favorite among indie developers. https://godotengine.org/
- GDevelop: A no-code, open-source game engine that is great for beginners. You can create the logic of your game using a visual event system. https://gdevelop.io/
- PICO-8: A “fantasy console” with a built-in editor for creating small, 8-bit style games. It has a very active and creative community. https://www.lexaloffle.com/pico-8.php
6. The Community: Getting Help and Sharing Your Work
Don’t be afraid to ask for help or share your progress! The indie game development community is incredibly supportive.
Helpful Links:
- /r/gamedev on Reddit: A large and active community for game developers of all skill levels. https://www.reddit.com/r/gamedev/
- Itch.io: A fantastic platform for hosting and selling indie games. It’s also a great place to find game jams, which are events where you create a game in a short amount of time, often with a specific theme. https://itch.io/
- TIGSource Forums: A long-standing and respected forum for independent game developers. https://forums.tigsource.com/
Bonus Tip: Free Assets to Get You Started
If creating all your own art and sound feels overwhelming at first, there are many resources for free, ready-to-use assets.
Helpful Links:
- Kenney.nl: Offers a massive collection of high-quality, free game assets, including many with a retro aesthetic. https://www.kenney.nl/assets
- OpenGameArt: As mentioned before, a treasure trove of free sprites, tilesets, sound effects, and music. https://opengameart.org/
Creating a video game is a challenging but incredibly rewarding experience. By starting small, focusing on the fundamentals of what makes retro games great, and utilizing the wealth of free resources available, you can bring your own nostalgic vision to life. Good luck, and have fun!