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The Effect of CRTs on Pixel Art (2024)

315 points · 129 comments · tobr

  1. r3trohack3r · · focus · HN ↗
    > I also agree that modern, blocky pixel art often is a kind of misdirected, anachronistic nostalgia.

    Pixel art, for me, is the Gameboy Color and Gameboy Advanced which I never played on a CRDT.

    1. latexr · · focus · HN ↗
      Hear hear. I’m so tired of this pixel art elitism (exhibited in the article) which asserts with certainty that our fondness for pixel art comes from viewing it distorted on CRTs.

      The Game Boy was insanely popular, is part of many people’s introduction to and fondness for pixel art, and it had an LCD screen.

      1. vardump · · focus · HN ↗
        This is not elitism, it's about historical accuracy. This is how many remember the games of their youth.
        1. latexr · · focus · HN ↗
          > elitism

          I was being facetious with that word, I don’t believe it literally.

          > it's about historical accuracy.

          Historical accuracy means recognising not everyone had the same experience. Yes, many remember pixel art from CRTs, but many also remember it from LCDs.

          My criticism if of the idea that liking sharp pixels is “a kind of misdirected, anachronistic nostalgia”, a misremembering of the CRT days. Even before we consider LCDs, it is reductive to link this to nostalgia—pixel art is an art form that stands on its own.

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