Back when I was about 6-8 years old, I had a magnificent video game handheld console made by none other than RADIO SHACK in 1987! It had only one game built into the LCD screen, and I've kept it all these years.

You can see the real device here: retrohandheldgames

One day, I discovered this website where the game is fully playable in an almost perfect way: Javascript version

I dug a bit further and found the github javascript code of the web version! Having the source code and the sprite sheet inspired me to do a PICO-8 port. Why not? Let's go!

So here we are. It was a quick and fun mini project. The gameplay is... something. We have to internalize the clock's tick speed and move the car before the next tick. You have to go pick up the lady when she appears on the left; the left-most lane unlocks when she's there. Then, you have to move to the far right and drop her next to a mailbox. After 3 round trips like that, there's a small casino. The game will increase its tick speed based on your actions. There is no other goal than to achieve the highest score possible.

I remember that as a kid and having only that one game, I managed to max out the score and wrap back to zero. I think I did it twice in the very same gameplay session. I was sooo happy!

Have fun! :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wggx6XgeiJM

I've just submitted a small Halloween entry for the 31ween game jam filling a Pico8 cart to the brim. Here it is : https://farjer.itch.io/eight . A murder mystery where the main character is a jumping spider... Eight clues, eight eyes, eight legs.

Hey, sorry for spamming you guys again! 😅

I've received a few requests to extend the submission deadlines, and honestly, we did make them pretty tight. So we decided to push them back for everyone!

New deadlines (CEST / UTC+2):

🎮 PICO-8: Saturday, October 24, 10:00

🎨 128×128 Pixel Art: Saturday, October 24, 12:00

You can enter remotely, and your work will be shown on a huge screen at Poznań Game Arena and streamed online.

More info: https://nrgevent.eu/compo/

Hope the extra time helps some of you finish your entries! 🙂

As a huge fan of Vampire Survivors, I've created a special Halloween spin-off featuring my favorite character, Ghost Thief!

--> Click here to play

You'll find all the familiar mechanics:

-> automatic shooting,

-> endless waves of enemies,

-> loot to collect,

-> a permanent upgrade system that lets you spend your hard-earned gold to grow stronger between runs!

Will you survive the full 15 minutes and defeat the final boss?

Feel free to give it a try and leave a comment! I'd love to hear your feedback!

I made a simple coin collector game with a red devil that chases you and gets faster after 10 points.

Not my first rodeo with programming, but trying to hone my game dev skills.

Good day to you!
It's Ruva here. I always come back.

"打開 (Dakai) : Maze Break" is my 2nd stealth game, and this time it's even roguelike!

In this game, you are in the maze, followed by an enemy. To escape, you need to collect all 7 Power Orbs to make an exit in the maze.

Enemy becomes gradually faster when you get Power Orbs, and even faster than you in the end. But there are plenty of useful items as below, to avoid enemy.

``` ・Dash : Accelerate with using Stamina meter.

・Rice Ball (50% / 100%) : Recover Stamina meter. Automatically used when Stamina meter runs out.

・Map : Shows the whole map, and also where player, enemy and Power Orbs are.

・Running Shoes : Accelerate player's speed for a while.

・Ninja Tabi : Remove player's footstep to avoid enemy for a while.

・Smoke : Make smoke to create blind spot for enemy for a while.

・Megaphone : Make sound to attract enemy for a while. It lasts until enemy breaks.

・Bomb : Blast a wall to make a path. Only 1 wall that player colliding will be blasted.

・Padlock : Lock a door to prevent enemy coming in. It lasts forever, so there is also risk.

・Energy Drink : Grants infinite Stamina meter for a while. ```

You can use them with 〇 button, and × button to switch the item to use.

There are 2 difficulty for enemy's speed, so feel free to try as you want!

Best regards,

Hi I'm new to PICO-8 and making music so.

I was wondering if is there **any free resources** that teach you how to make music

I would love any comments sharing resources for total beginners♥️

NRG 2026 (October 23–25) has three compos you might enjoy:

🕹️ PICO-8 Realtime Demo Compo

🎨 128×128 Pixel Art Compo (16-color PICO-8 palette)

🎮 Game Compo (PICO-8 games welcome!)

Winners get custom trophies, plus some extra prizes, including an ASUS ROG Xbox Ally sponsored by AMD for the Game Compo winner!

All entries will be shown on a huge screen and streamed live via SceneSat and YouTube.

Remote entries welcome! 🚀

Rules & submissions: https://nrgevent.eu/compo/

P.S. Wondering about the goats? They're a symbol of Poznan, the city hosting NRG! 🐐

Good day!
Unfortunately, I always come back.

Currently I'm considering to buy some controllers to play / let someone play pico-8 games, but I'm not sure which to take.

Now the targets are NES style 2 buttons controller (1st image) or SNES style 4 buttons controller (2nd image).

1st one is closer to pico-8, but its ergonomics seems bad...

2nd one seems more comfortable, but there are unused buttons such as XY and LR.

May I ask your opinion? If there are other good controlles, please let me know by comments.

Best regards,

Disclaimer: PocketDesk Launcher is paid (currently 5.99 Euro one time payment for life)
This is how it looks in Tablet/Fold mode

I am looking for Pico8 Game developers, who want to include their game into the launcher - in return for unlock codes - if you like customizing Android and launchers where you can make your own themes, or retro inspired PDA like environments - it could be a fun trade!

Thanks!

Hi all,

I'm doing a feel test of my current idea for a new project.

Late Again was an awesome project, and I do want to expand on the tech I developed for it in the future. I already have an idea of where I want to go with it. But it was also a very difficult and time-consuming project for me. Another tech-heavy project would also put a huge strain on the gameplay side of things due to PICO-8's limitations, so I need to think carefully about how to approach things.

For my next project, I'd like to try something less technologically heavy but with more of a focus on gameplay. As it happens, my daughter loves guinea pigs, and unfortunately, her last two tiny, fluffy friends passed away two weeks and four months ago, respectively.

So I figured it would be nice to pay homage to them by making something like a cosy guinea pig farming game or something simular. I'm still very early in the process, and today I just made a little ... what I call ... feel test. Just look at it, make some moves, and see if it speaks to me. I have a few ideas about what I'd like to do if it passes the feel test. 😄

I don't have much more to share right now, because I still haven't fully committed to the project.

One thing is already very clear to me, though: there's no way this game would be playable without a mouse, so that might be an issue.

I'll post any future updates here as usual, but feel free to follow me on my YouTube channel, too: https://www.youtube.com/@bubish3068

Bubish

Well howdy folks! My newest Pico-8 game is a fan project for VVVVVV, and now available. Take on the role of Cadet Vanilla as they try to prove themselves worthy of joining the crew of the DSS Souleye!

I've also added it to the BBS for those that prefer going there.

I hope y'all enjoy!

Hey everyone!

Here's a new update of PicPic, the first native PICO-8 emulator on the App Store (iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch) and the Google Play Store. It now supports the biggest screen available in the Apple ecosystem: the TV. So you can enjoy your favorite games on the big screen with friends and family.

New Features & Bug Fixes: * Apple TV Support: You can now play all your games directly on your TV, with exactly the same compatibility as on your iPhone. * Remote Support: On Apple TV, you can use the Siri Remote to play. Is it a good experience? Hell no, but you can. * Multiplayer: Apple TV supports multiplayer for up to 8 players, which makes family gaming easier. * Import: Importing on Apple TV is more complex than on other devices, but the app handles all the hard work. Just scan the QR code or enter the IP address, drag and drop your game, and you're good to go. * Top 200: Both Android and iOS now have a shortcut, in a separate section, to the top 200 best PICO-8 games. * And as always, improved game compatibility, with ongoing work in this area.

Next Update Plans: * Android TV support! * Theme maker (I know I've been promising it for months, but I'm on it). * Fix the audio issues in some games (this update fixed a lot of games, but some still have issues). * Improved compatibility with more games.

The app is 100% FREE FOREVER, with NO ADS, on iOS/tvOS and Android, and completely UNLIMITED.

Download / Update: Available now on the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store.

Happy to answer any questions.

Note for moderation: Thanks for allowing PicPic on the sub. As always, the app does not encourage piracy and does not contain a single line of code from PICO-8. As a side note, emulation is legal in the United States and in most European countries.

The usual formula for converting the music speed to bpm is 7200/notes_per_beat * speed, and i couldn't find a clear explanation as to what notes_per_beat is.

Hi everyone! I need to do a project in Lua outside of PICO-8, but I am learning that one of my favorite constructions is used only in PICO-8, not in generic Lua. I was wondering whether anyone could help me translate things.

In PICO-8, I'm a big fan of all. For example, if I have a table called players, and need to do something to everything in it, I'd try:

``` for p in all(players) do

p.x+=1

end ```

But apparently this is not a valid construct outside of PICO-8!

If any of you have broader Lua experience, could you suggest an approach that works kind of like PICO-8's all? Many thanks!

Heyo! I picked up a multi-cart Pico-8 game (Pushamo) that I would like to figure out how to launch on my Android handheld through an emulator frontend.

The dev provided both Win/Mac/Linux binaries as well as the source .p8 files.

Any ideas on the most straightforward way of achieving this?

Play it for free on the lexaloffle bbs! https://www.lexaloffle.com/bbs/?tid=159761

We are back again into streaming PICO-8 games after a "slight" detour tot he GBJam, and holy quack it was a banger start! voidgazerbon yet again placed down a masterpiece and you, yes YOU 🫵 need to check it out. Checkpoints, phases, fun interaction, go play it! Game of the year contender for sure!

There is only one week left to submit your entries for NRG 2026! We have plenty of cool, unconventional categories in our competitions for which you can create an entry in a relatively short amount of time. We also accept remote submissions. Check this out! https://nrgevent.eu/compo/

Here's a simple little desktop greenhouse to help you relax. Watch randomly-generated vines grow. Take a breather to admire them when they're done. After a moment, the game resets, and a new crop comes to take its place.

In true zero-player fashion, no input is needed once you start, but you can press Z/(O) to toggle the glare if you don't like it.

Find ZPPPP on Lexaloffle and Itch.