8-Bit Creativity Unlocked

Welcome to issue 17 of the Ninja Sparks newsletter!

Over the last few weeks I’ve been stepping away from the computer and doing more analogue things. I just finished the Crookhaven book series, which I picked up at the library with my son (he’s the real bookworm in the family). The final book has just come out, so the timing was perfect.

I also read a graphic novel and thought, why not make one myself? So I’ve written an outline, sketched thumbnails, and started designing characters — all on paper with pens and pencils. I even found a printer, so this might actually get finished. My wife has been telling me for years to make smaller projects that don’t spiral out of control. So instead of a 20-part cartoon series, I’m making a short comic. Probably sensible.

All that said, I’m not entirely off the computer and have been doing some work on beep8. I’m currently making a library of sound effects that can be easily used by anyone, and will make a page on the beep8 website where they can be previewed. The map editor is increasingly complete as well. Key Kwest is now almost a complete game with music and sound effects (missing a few - hence the detour into the sound library). It’s not finished yet, but the goal of letting people create games without coding is getting closer - which will be fun!

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GB Studio

GB Studio is a free game maker that lets you build real Game Boy games without writing code. You get a drag-and-drop editor for maps, characters, and dialogue, plus a built-in music tracker for authentic chiptune soundtracks.

It’s great for beginners, but it also has more advanced features if you want to dive into scripting. The games you create can run in a browser, work in emulators, or even be flashed onto a cartridge to play on original Game Boy hardware.

Teachers can use it to get students thinking about design, storytelling, and constraints of retro hardware. Creatives can use it to prototype ideas quickly, build interactive fiction, or just make something cool to share online. And because it’s open source, there’s a thriving community with tutorials, forums, and plenty of shared assets to get you started.

For art, I recommend Aseprite, but you’ll also find loads of free and paid graphics packs on Itch.io, along with the GB Studio download. It’s available for Windows, macOS, and Linux.

Try GB Studio

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Play Tiles

I mention Play Tiles because it’s a) very clever, and b) plays Game Boy games (made with GB Studio).

Play Tiles is a physical joypad that attaches to your phone screen through a friction-based grip, adding buttons to the screen. Presumably it will work with any touchscreen device, and potentially I could make it work with beep8 - I am looking forward to getting one so I can try it out! One of the things I dislike about mobile gaming is the lack of tactile feedback and Play Tiles addresses this really nicely and in a cost-effective way.

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I Built The Zelda Wind Waker Boat In Real Life (and Sailed It)

Not me personally, but Littlejem, a British cosplayer and maker, has built a real-life version of the King of Red Lions from The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. They documented the entire process on their YouTube channel and I love it. The King of Red Lions is a massive part of Wind Waker, and as you’re probably noticing I am obsessed with everything Zelda. There’s a cheeky engine attached to the boat, so it’s not actually sailing, but I’ll forgive them because they got the vibe just right.

Watch the video here

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Sparked Discoveries

Here’s a handful of links I found intriguing recently:

Winamp Skin Museum

This is a fun site for the older readers who remember Winamp. It showcases the skins that were made for the popular media player. This was before the days of endless streaming when I used to hoard MP3s and play them in the Winamp player. It feels very quaint now but it was a big part of the internet in the early 2000s. Reading the about page, I found out it’s actually a custom front end for the Internet Archives Winamp collection.

Historical Tech Tree

Historical Tech Tree shows a timeline of technological advancements throughout history, highlighting key inventions and the innovations that followed. It starts way back in the Stone Age and covers everything from tools to modern computing. Click on an invention and it gives you more information. There’s a search that lets you jump between years and inventions, and a mini-timeline that lets you skip around quickly. There’s a lot covered, it’s very comprehensive, and I really like it.