The simple joys of casual game development

A few months ago, I embarked on a journey into the world of casual game development. Using simple, constrained environments like Pico-8 and TIC-80, I build small, often imperfect games purely for fun. This experiment has turned into a new and relaxing hobby.

My environment of choice: A fantasy console

Pico-8 is a compact game engine that feels like stepping back into the golden age of personal computing. With Lua as its programming language and integrated tools for coding, sprite creation, and sound design, you have everything to build a complete game inside a single environment.

Also, I think it’s a joy to use.

This is what Pico-8 loks like (two screenshots side by side, showing code editor and sprite editor):

Alternatively, TIC-80, an open-source project, offers similar features but seems to have a smaller community.

Here’s TIC-80’s sprite editor:

TIC-80 is free but Pico-8 also doesn’t cost much. Both have their charm, and I enjoy using either.

What makes it so enjoyable

Casual programming or sketching with these tools has become a delightful hobby for several reasons:

Anything goes: Though I call it game development, it’s not always about creating a complete game. I’ve created an 8x8 pixel windmill, animated spaceship exhaust particles, or sketched the intro scene to the Hobbit in pixel format. There’s a blank canvas and you can build almost anything you want.

No Pressure: This is a hobby. For me this means I’m looking for fun without deadlines or commercial goals. This makes it feel different from professional coding. It’s almost like grabbing a canvas and some paint at the end of a busy day: A digital way to unwind.

Simplicity: No classes, no dependencies, no build system. Lua’s simplicity lets me focus on creative problem-solving without the distractions of a complex programming language.

Creative constraints: Tiny resolution and a 16-color palette may sound like a limitation, but as always: Limitations are what spark creativity.

Hand-crafted: It’s you and the game editor, without any fancy tools. No AI-coding agent, no auto completion.

A simple hobby, no strings attached

I will continue creating animations, starting ten new ideas in an evening, and sometimes revisiting unfinished projects whenever the mood strikes. None of them may be completed or released, and that’s perfectly fine with me.