Remember the original Super Mario Bros? Those evocative 8-bit graphics were the best that the hardware could manage at the time. Some games have since moved towards photorealism, but these pixel-heavy graphics have lived on as a nostalgic art style.
While brilliant iPhone and iPad-friendly games such as Kalimba and Super Phantom Cat 2 are beautiful examples of this blocky style, pixel art doesn’t just have to be something you enjoy. With these brilliant apps, it can be something you create, too.
Selfies built with bricks
Bricks Camera makes any moment a block party.
A camera app with a pixellation effect that really stacks up, it makes you and the world around you look like it’s made out of toy bricks – studs and all.
Whether you’re shooting a photo or making a share-worthy GIF, these blocks can be adjusted in size, letting you get the best look for the image. And all this without the worry of stepping on a stray brick in the middle of the night. Bonus!
Fill in the blanks
Colouring books are incredibly popular. Apps such as Pixel4u, Pixel and Voxel take that winning formula and add some byte. With each pixel numbered, and each number representing a colour, you can zoom in and fill the squares with their corresponding hue to create some pretty iPhone-friendly wallpapers.
It’s not just easy, but fun and relaxing.
Physical twist
The idea for New Pixels was sparked by a toy called the “Shapemaker”, a set of 25 curious wooden tiles that can be rearranged to create different patterns. Like its inspiration, New Pixels allows users to mix and match colourful, patterned tiles to make pixel art.
You can rotate shapes and alter the colour combos as well as changing the size of your canvas if more creative freedom is needed.
Why not try it and create your own pixelated avatar?