Bitsy vs PICO-8

Struggling to choose between Bitsy and PICO-8? Both products offer unique advantages, making it a tough decision.

Bitsy is a Games solution with tags like pixel-art, game-engine, game-editor, sprite-editor, tilemap-editor, 2d-games.

It boasts features such as Pixel art editor, Game engine, Drawing sprites, Drawing tiles, Drawing backgrounds, Building game worlds, Basic scripting capabilities and pros including Free and open source, Simple editing tools, Good for small games and experiments.

On the other hand, PICO-8 is a Gaming Software product tagged with retro, fantasy, console, lua, tiny-games.

Its standout features include Retro 8-bit aesthetic, Built-in code editor, sprite editor and sound effects editor, 128x128 pixel screen resolution, Lua programming language support, Cartridge sharing format (.p8) to easily share games, Mouse, keyboard and gamepad controller support, Export games to stand-alone executables, and it shines with pros like Easy to learn and use, Active community support, Very affordable, Cross-platform support, Encourages creativity with limitations.

To help you make an informed decision, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison of these two products, delving into their features, pros, cons, pricing, and more. Get ready to explore the nuances that set them apart and determine which one is the perfect fit for your requirements.

Bitsy

Bitsy

Bitsy is a free and open-source web-based pixel art editor and game engine designed for making small games and experiments. It features simple editing tools for drawing sprites, tiles, backgrounds, and building game worlds along with basic scripting capabilities.

Categories:
pixel-art game-engine game-editor sprite-editor tilemap-editor 2d-games

Bitsy Features

  1. Pixel art editor
  2. Game engine
  3. Drawing sprites
  4. Drawing tiles
  5. Drawing backgrounds
  6. Building game worlds
  7. Basic scripting capabilities

Pricing

  • Free
  • Open Source

Pros

Free and open source

Simple editing tools

Good for small games and experiments

Cons

Limited functionality compared to full game engines

Scripting capabilities are basic

Not suitable for large or complex games


PICO-8

PICO-8

PICO-8 is a fantasy console for making, sharing and playing tiny games and other computer programs. It feels like a regular console, but runs on Windows, Mac, Linux and inside browsers. Programs are written in Lua and share cartridges in .p8 format.

Categories:
retro fantasy console lua tiny-games

PICO-8 Features

  1. Retro 8-bit aesthetic
  2. Built-in code editor, sprite editor and sound effects editor
  3. 128x128 pixel screen resolution
  4. Lua programming language support
  5. Cartridge sharing format (.p8) to easily share games
  6. Mouse, keyboard and gamepad controller support
  7. Export games to stand-alone executables

Pricing

  • One-time Purchase

Pros

Easy to learn and use

Active community support

Very affordable

Cross-platform support

Encourages creativity with limitations

Cons

Limited resolution and color palette

No 3D support

Limited distribution options

Steep learning curve for total beginners