5 ms·

I wish PICO-8 was free (libre) software.

crispyalmond 5y ago
There is TIC-80[0] and PixelVision8[1] (interesting license) but I agree. It would be awesome for PICO-8 to be free (libre) software. [0] https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80 https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80 [1] https://github.com/PixelVision8/PixelVision8 https://github.com/PixelVision8/PixelVision8
meheleventyone 5y ago
But why? It’s so cheap and so much love and dedication has gone into it. I bought my copy literally years ago and it’s provided so much joy. I actually kinda wish the opposite that there were more small projects that could have this kind of humble success. Particularly in a world where much more profit motivated enterprises give free software a shitty stick.
- roywiggins 5y ago
  Open source would make ports to more platforms substantially easier, there's a pretty good RetroArch core, but it isn't perfect.
- myfartsarefoul 5y ago
  But why not? They can still charge for it and have a FOSS dev model. Nobody who wants this without paying for it is going to have trouble getting it.
83457 5y ago
Seems like the sort of beloved project with solo maintainer that could go open source in the future. I wonder if there is a common approach to allow this to happen like open source foundation working with him plus community fundraising. I'd support such an effort with 10x the amount I paid for the product.
- lc9er 5y ago
  A very similar open source project, Tic-80[0], already exists. It has tools for sprite generation and music creation. It also supports Lua, in addition to Fennel (natively), JS, Wren, and Moonscript. [0] https://tic80.com/ https://tic80.com/
  - huachimingo 5y ago
    (micro)Python support is on the way, check their github.
  - TedDoesntTalk 5y ago
    I could not get tic-80 games to work on my phone chrome browser. Does it work with mobile devices?
zemo 5y ago
I'm bothered by this comment. PICO-8 is one of the most vibrant communities in existence for beginners making games. Thousands of people have made thousands of games with this software. The price point to purchase is extremely cheap, supports the person that created it, and the licensing allows people who purchase the engine to distribute it in their own games. It is one of the most open, empowering, user-supporting pieces of software in games. I think this community has a huge problem with thinking that releasing the source code to things automatically makes them accessible and automatically empowers other people, but there are plenty of open-source projects that are actively user-hostile. The reality is that all too often on this site when people say "I wish this was open source" they aren't saying that out of any interest for how that would make the project better or create a better community, but instead are saying it from a standpoint that only considers how it would benefit them personally.
- TedDoesntTalk 5y ago
  > The reality is that all too often on this site when people say "I wish this was open source" they aren't saying that out of any interest for how that would make the project better or create a better community, but instead are saying it from a standpoint that only considers how it would benefit them personally. Or from a philosophical standpoint
- thristian 5y ago
  I'm sure there's a lot of people who only say "I wish this were open source" because that would benefit them personally. I'm sure there's a lot of open-source projects that are the exact opposite of vibrant communities, and the exact opposite of empowering and user-supporting. However, as a great man once said, "No Taxation Without Representation". People using PICO-8 and writing games for PICO-8 aren't paying taxes as such, but they are investing their time and creative energy, their efforts advertise the PICO-8 platform, and thus they enrich Lexaloffle just as surely as if they'd filled out a 1040 form. Some people want to be reassured that they have some measure of control over a thing before they invest time, money, or energy into it. It doesn't have to be open-source, but for software that's more legally sound and practical than staging an armed insurrection and writing a constitution. A lot of people probably don't care what Lexaloffle does as long as their existing games keep working, many people probably trust Lexaloffle's reign to remain benevolent and just indefinitely, and I don't know any reason (beyond human frailty) why that wouldn't be true. But some people want a better guarantee of future performance than mere past performance, and that's where (some) calls for open-source come from.
japhib 5y ago
Why? It’d be pretty simple to make a clone of, honestly, just SDL2 with some Lua bindings and some neat tools. The special part about it isn’t the code. It’s the concept of it, the execution, and the community that has grown up around it.
shoozza 5y ago
If you are interested, there are a few (incomplete) FLOSS clones: tac08, PX8 and picolove. I'm maintaining picolove but it's currently more of a pico-8 runtime than a virtual console.
rhn_mk1 5y ago
You can get that to some extent: https://github.com/picolove/picolove https://github.com/picolove/picolove
otikik 5y ago
Go ahead and do it then
- cogburnd02 5y ago
  do what?
  - otikik 5y ago
    Create an open source version of Pico-8
ChristopherDrum 5y ago
Supporting the developer and getting into the smart, welcoming community are well worth the trivial amount being asked for. There is something to be said about a project that is driven by a uniform philosophy to deliver a unique and singular product. I think a lot of projects suffer from a "too many cooks" problem, and lose sight of their guiding philosophy in an attempt to compromise with naysayers. Zep doesn't do that at all... almost to a fault... but I respect his vision and adherance to keeping PICO-8 a pure representation of his vision. If price is a problem for anyone, you may already own a copy. PICO-8 was (quietly?) included as part of the legendary itch.io mega "Bundle for Racial Justice."
- cogburnd02 5y ago
  I never said I had a problem donating money to help; what I have a problem with is lack of access to, and lack of share-ability (not sure if that's a word, but I'm going with it anyway) of the source code.

There is TIC-80[0] and PixelVision8[1] (interesting license) but I agree. It would be awesome for PICO-8 to be free (libre) software. [0] https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80 https://github.com/nesbox/TIC-80 [1] https://github.com/PixelVision8/PixelVision8 https://github.com/PixelVision8/PixelVision8

meheleventyone 5y ago

But why? It’s so cheap and so much love and dedication has gone into it. I bought my copy literally years ago and it’s provided so much joy. I actually kinda wish the opposite that there were more small projects that could have this kind of humble success. Particularly in a world where much more profit motivated enterprises give free software a shitty stick.

roywiggins 5y ago
Open source would make ports to more platforms substantially easier, there's a pretty good RetroArch core, but it isn't perfect.
myfartsarefoul 5y ago
But why not? They can still charge for it and have a FOSS dev model. Nobody who wants this without paying for it is going to have trouble getting it.

83457 5y ago

Seems like the sort of beloved project with solo maintainer that could go open source in the future. I wonder if there is a common approach to allow this to happen like open source foundation working with him plus community fundraising. I'd support such an effort with 10x the amount I paid for the product.

lc9er 5y ago
A very similar open source project, Tic-80[0], already exists. It has tools for sprite generation and music creation. It also supports Lua, in addition to Fennel (natively), JS, Wren, and Moonscript. [0] https://tic80.com/ https://tic80.com/
- huachimingo 5y ago
  (micro)Python support is on the way, check their github.
- TedDoesntTalk 5y ago
  I could not get tic-80 games to work on my phone chrome browser. Does it work with mobile devices?

zemo 5y ago

I'm bothered by this comment. PICO-8 is one of the most vibrant communities in existence for beginners making games. Thousands of people have made thousands of games with this software. The price point to purchase is extremely cheap, supports the person that created it, and the licensing allows people who purchase the engine to distribute it in their own games. It is one of the most open, empowering, user-supporting pieces of software in games. I think this community has a huge problem with thinking that releasing the source code to things automatically makes them accessible and automatically empowers other people, but there are plenty of open-source projects that are actively user-hostile. The reality is that all too often on this site when people say "I wish this was open source" they aren't saying that out of any interest for how that would make the project better or create a better community, but instead are saying it from a standpoint that only considers how it would benefit them personally.

TedDoesntTalk 5y ago
> The reality is that all too often on this site when people say "I wish this was open source" they aren't saying that out of any interest for how that would make the project better or create a better community, but instead are saying it from a standpoint that only considers how it would benefit them personally. Or from a philosophical standpoint
thristian 5y ago
I'm sure there's a lot of people who only say "I wish this were open source" because that would benefit them personally. I'm sure there's a lot of open-source projects that are the exact opposite of vibrant communities, and the exact opposite of empowering and user-supporting. However, as a great man once said, "No Taxation Without Representation". People using PICO-8 and writing games for PICO-8 aren't paying taxes as such, but they are investing their time and creative energy, their efforts advertise the PICO-8 platform, and thus they enrich Lexaloffle just as surely as if they'd filled out a 1040 form. Some people want to be reassured that they have some measure of control over a thing before they invest time, money, or energy into it. It doesn't have to be open-source, but for software that's more legally sound and practical than staging an armed insurrection and writing a constitution. A lot of people probably don't care what Lexaloffle does as long as their existing games keep working, many people probably trust Lexaloffle's reign to remain benevolent and just indefinitely, and I don't know any reason (beyond human frailty) why that wouldn't be true. But some people want a better guarantee of future performance than mere past performance, and that's where (some) calls for open-source come from.

japhib 5y ago

Why? It’d be pretty simple to make a clone of, honestly, just SDL2 with some Lua bindings and some neat tools. The special part about it isn’t the code. It’s the concept of it, the execution, and the community that has grown up around it.

shoozza 5y ago

If you are interested, there are a few (incomplete) FLOSS clones: tac08, PX8 and picolove. I'm maintaining picolove but it's currently more of a pico-8 runtime than a virtual console.

rhn_mk1 5y ago

You can get that to some extent: https://github.com/picolove/picolove https://github.com/picolove/picolove

otikik 5y ago

Go ahead and do it then

cogburnd02 5y ago
do what?
- otikik 5y ago
  Create an open source version of Pico-8

ChristopherDrum 5y ago

Supporting the developer and getting into the smart, welcoming community are well worth the trivial amount being asked for. There is something to be said about a project that is driven by a uniform philosophy to deliver a unique and singular product. I think a lot of projects suffer from a "too many cooks" problem, and lose sight of their guiding philosophy in an attempt to compromise with naysayers. Zep doesn't do that at all... almost to a fault... but I respect his vision and adherance to keeping PICO-8 a pure representation of his vision. If price is a problem for anyone, you may already own a copy. PICO-8 was (quietly?) included as part of the legendary itch.io mega "Bundle for Racial Justice."

cogburnd02 5y ago
I never said I had a problem donating money to help; what I have a problem with is lack of access to, and lack of share-ability (not sure if that's a word, but I'm going with it anyway) of the source code.