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Pyxel is a retro game engine for Python.
With simple specifications inspired by retro gaming consoles, such as displaying only 16 colors and supporting 4 sound channels, you can easily enjoy making pixel-art-style games.
The development of Pyxel is driven by user feedback. Please give Pyxel a star on GitHub!
Pyxel's specifications and APIs are inspired by PICO-8 and TIC-80.
Pyxel is open source under the MIT License and free to use. Let's start making retro games with Pyxel!
- Runs on Windows, Mac, Linux, and Web
- Programming in Python
- 16-color palette
- 3 256x256-sized image banks
- 8 256x256-sized tilemaps
- 4 channels with 64 definable sounds
- 8 music tracks combining any sounds
- Keyboard, mouse, and gamepad inputs
- Image and sound editing tools
- User-extensible colors, channels, and banks
After installing Python3 (version 3.8 or higher), run the following command:
pip install -U pyxel
When installing Python using the official installer, make sure to check the Add Python 3.x to PATH
option to enable the pyxel
command.
After installing Homebrew, run the following commands:
brew install pipx
pipx ensurepath
pipx install pyxel
To upgrade Pyxel after installation, run pipx upgrade pyxel
.
After installing the SDL2 package (libsdl2-dev
for Ubuntu), Python3 (version 3.8 or higher), and python3-pip
, run the following command:
sudo pip3 install -U pyxel
If the previous command fails, consider building Pyxel from source by following the instructions in the Makefile.
The web version of Pyxel does not require Python or Pyxel installation and runs on PCs, smartphones, and tablets with supported web browsers.
For detailed instructions, please refer to this page.
After installing Pyxel, you can copy the examples to the current directory with the following command:
pyxel copy_examples
The following examples will be copied to your current directory:
01_hello_pyxel.py | Simplest application | Demo | Code |
02_jump_game.py | Jump game with Pyxel resource file | Demo | Code |
03_draw_api.py | Demonstration of drawing APIs | Demo | Code |
04_sound_api.py | Demonstration of sound APIs | Demo | Code |
05_color_palette.py | Color palette list | Demo | Code |
06_click_game.py | Mouse click game | Demo | Code |
07_snake.py | Snake game with BGM | Demo | Code |
08_triangle_api.py | Demonstration of triangle drawing APIs | Demo | Code |
09_shooter.py | Shoot'em up game with screen transitions | Demo | Code |
10_platformer.py | Side-scrolling platform game with map | Demo | Code |
11_offscreen.py | Offscreen rendering with Image class | Demo | Code |
12_perlin_noise.py | Perlin noise animation | Demo | Code |
13_bitmap_font.py | Drawing a bitmap font | Demo | Code |
14_synthesizer.py | Synthesizer using audio expansion features | Demo | Code |
15_tiled_map_file.py | Loading and drawing a Tile Map File (.tmx) | Demo | Code |
16_transform.py | Image rotation and scaling | Demo | Code |
99_flip_animation.py | Animation with flip function (non-web platforms only) | Demo | Code |
30sec_of_daylight.pyxapp | 1st Pyxel Jam winning game by Adam | Demo | Code |
megaball.pyxapp | Arcade ball physics game by Adam | Demo | Code |
8bit-bgm-gen.pyxapp | Background music generator by frenchbread | Demo | Code |
The examples can be executed with the following commands:
cd pyxel_examples
pyxel run 01_hello_pyxel.py
pyxel play 30sec_of_daylight.pyxapp
In your Python script, import the Pyxel module, specify the window size with the init
function, and then start the Pyxel application with the run
function.
import pyxel
pyxel.init(160, 120)
def update():
if pyxel.btnp(pyxel.KEY_Q):
pyxel.quit()
def draw():
pyxel.cls(0)
pyxel.rect(10, 10, 20, 20, 11)
pyxel.run(update, draw)
The arguments of the run
function are the update
function, which processes frame updates, and the draw
function, which handles screen drawing.
In an actual application, it is recommended to wrap Pyxel code in a class, as shown below:
import pyxel
class App:
def __init__(self):
pyxel.init(160, 120)
self.x = 0
pyxel.run(self.update, self.draw)
def update(self):
self.x = (self.x + 1) % pyxel.width
def draw(self):
pyxel.cls(0)
pyxel.rect(self.x, 0, 8, 8, 9)
App()
For creating simple graphics without animation, you can use the show
function to simplify your code.
import pyxel
pyxel.init(120, 120)
pyxel.cls(1)
pyxel.circb(60, 60, 40, 7)
pyxel.show()
A created script can be executed using the python
command:
python PYTHON_SCRIPT_FILE
It can also be run with the pyxel run
command:
pyxel run PYTHON_SCRIPT_FILE
Additionally, the pyxel watch
command monitors changes in a specified directory and automatically re-runs the program when changes are detected:
pyxel watch WATCH_DIR PYTHON_SCRIPT_FILE
Directory monitoring can be stopped by pressing Ctrl(Command)+C
.
The following special key actions are available while a Pyxel application is running:
Esc
Quit the applicationAlt(Option)+1
Save the screenshot to the desktopAlt(Option)+2
Reset the recording start time of the screen capture videoAlt(Option)+3
Save a screen capture video to the desktop (up to 10 seconds)Alt(Option)+8
orA+B+X+Y+DL
on gamepad
Toggles screen scaling between maximum and integerAlt(Option)+9
orA+B+X+Y+DR
on gamepad
Switch between screen modes (Crisp/Smooth/Retro)Alt(Option)+0
orA+B+X+Y+DU
on gamepad
Toggle the performance monitor (fps/update
time/draw
time)Alt(Option)+Enter
orA+B+X+Y+DD
on gamepad
Toggle fullscreenShift+Alt(Option)+1/2/3
Save image bank 0, 1, or 2 to the desktopShift+Alt(Option)+0
Save the current color palette to the desktop
Pyxel Editor can create images and sounds used in a Pyxel application.
You can start Pyxel Editor with the following command:
pyxel edit PYXEL_RESOURCE_FILE
If the specified Pyxel resource file (.pyxres) exists, it will be loaded. If it does not exist, a new file with the specified name will be created. If the resource file is omitted, a new file named my_resource.pyxres
will be created.
After starting Pyxel Editor, you can switch to another resource file by dragging and dropping it onto Pyxel Editor.
The created resource file can be loaded using the load
function.
Pyxel Editor has the following editing modes.
Image Editor
The mode for editing the image in each image bank.
You can drag and drop an image file (PNG/GIF/JPEG) into the image editor to load the image into the currently selected image bank.
Tilemap Editor
The mode for editing tilemaps that arrange images from the image banks in a tile pattern.
Drag and drop a TMX file (Tiled Map File) onto the tilemap editor to load its layer in the drawing order that corresponds to the currently selected tilemap number.
Sound Editor
The mode for editing sounds used for melodies and sound effects.
Music Editor
The mode for editing musics in which the sounds are arranged in order of playback.
Pyxel images and tilemaps can also be created using the following methods:
- Create an image from a list of strings using the
Image.set
function or theTilemap.set
function - Load an image file (PNG/GIF/JPEG) in Pyxel palette with
Image.load
function
Pyxel sounds can also be created using the following method:
- Create a sound from strings with
Sound.set
function orMusic.set
function
Refer to the API reference for the usage of these functions.
Pyxel supports a dedicated application distribution file format (Pyxel application file) that is cross-platform.
A Pyxel application file (.pyxapp) is created using the pyxel package
command:
pyxel package APP_DIR STARTUP_SCRIPT_FILE
If you need to include resources or additional modules, place them in the application directory.
Metadata can be displayed at runtime by specifying it in the following format within the startup script. Fields other than title
and author
are optional.
# title: Pyxel Platformer
# author: Takashi Kitao
# desc: A Pyxel platformer example
# site: https://github.com/kitao/pyxel
# license: MIT
# version: 1.0
The created application file can be run using the pyxel play
command:
pyxel play PYXEL_APP_FILE
A Pyxel application file can also be converted to an executable or an HTML file using the pyxel app2exe
or pyxel app2html
commands.
-
width
,height
The width and height of the screen -
frame_count
The number of the elapsed frames -
init(width, height, [title], [fps], [quit_key], [display_scale], [capture_scale], [capture_sec])
Initialize the Pyxel application with the screen size (width
,height
). The following options can be specified: the window title withtitle
, the frame rate withfps
, the key to quit the application withquit_key
, the display scale withdisplay_scale
, the screen capture scale withcapture_scale
, and the maximum recording time of the screen capture video withcapture_sec
.
Example:pyxel.init(160, 120, title="My Pyxel App", fps=60, quit_key=pyxel.KEY_NONE, capture_scale=3, capture_sec=0)
-
run(update, draw)
Start the Pyxel application and call theupdate
function for frame update and thedraw
function for drawing. -
show()
Show the screen and wait until theEsc
key is pressed. -
flip()
Refresh the screen by one frame. The application exits when theEsc
key is pressed. This function is not available in the web version. -
quit()
Quit the Pyxel application.
-
load(filename, [excl_images], [excl_tilemaps], [excl_sounds], [excl_musics])
Load the resource file (.pyxres). If an option is set toTrue
, the corresponding resource will be excluded from loading. If a palette file (.pyxpal) with the same name exists in the same location as the resource file, the palette display colors will also be updated. The palette file contains hexadecimal entries for the display colors (e.g.1100FF
), separated by newlines. The palette file can also be used to change the colors displayed in Pyxel Editor. -
user_data_dir(vendor_name, app_name)
Returns the user data directory created based onvendor_name
andapp_name
. If the directory does not exist, it will be created automatically. It is used to store high scores, game progress, and similar data.
Example:print(pyxel.user_data_dir("Takashi Kitao", "Pyxel Shooter"))
-
mouse_x
,mouse_y
The current position of the mouse cursor -
mouse_wheel
The current value of the mouse wheel -
btn(key)
ReturnTrue
if thekey
is pressed, otherwise returnFalse
. (Key definition list) -
btnp(key, [hold], [repeat])
ReturnTrue
if thekey
is pressed in that frame, otherwise returnFalse
. Ifhold
andrepeat
are specified, after thekey
has been held down forhold
frames or more,True
is returned everyrepeat
frames. -
btnr(key)
ReturnTrue
if thekey
is released in that frame, otherwise returnFalse
. -
mouse(visible)
Show the mouse cursor ifvisible
isTrue
, and hide it ifvisible
isFalse
. The cursor's position continues to update even when it is hidden.
-
colors
List of the palette display colors. The display color is specified by a 24-bit numerical value. Usecolors.from_list
andcolors.to_list
to directly assign and retrieve Python lists.
Example:old_colors = pyxel.colors.to_list(); pyxel.colors.from_list([0x111111, 0x222222, 0x333333]); pyxel.colors[15] = 0x112233
-
images
List of the image banks (instances of the Image class) (0-2)
Example:pyxel.images[0].load(0, 0, "title.png")
-
tilemaps
List of the tilemaps (instances of the Tilemap class) (0-7) -
clip(x, y, w, h)
Set the drawing area of the screen from (x
,y
) with a width ofw
and a height ofh
. Callclip()
to reset the drawing area to full screen. -
camera(x, y)
Change the upper-left corner coordinates of the screen to (x
,y
). Callcamera()
to reset the upper-left corner coordinates to (0
,0
). -
pal(col1, col2)
Replace colorcol1
withcol2
when drawing. Callpal()
to reset to the initial palette. -
dither(alpha)
Apply dithering (pseudo-transparency) when drawing. Setalpha
in the range0.0
-1.0
, where0.0
is transparent and1.0
is opaque. -
cls(col)
Clear screen with colorcol
. -
pget(x, y)
Get the color of the pixel at (x
,y
). -
pset(x, y, col)
Draw a pixel of colorcol
at (x
,y
). -
line(x1, y1, x2, y2, col)
Draw a line of colorcol
from (x1
,y1
) to (x2
,y2
). -
rect(x, y, w, h, col)
Draw a rectangle of widthw
, heighth
and colorcol
from (x
,y
). -
rectb(x, y, w, h, col)
Draw the outline of a rectangle of widthw
, heighth
and colorcol
from (x
,y
). -
circ(x, y, r, col)
Draw a circle of radiusr
and colorcol
at (x
,y
). -
circb(x, y, r, col)
Draw the outline of a circle of radiusr
and colorcol
at (x
,y
). -
elli(x, y, w, h, col)
Draw an ellipse of widthw
, heighth
and colorcol
from (x
,y
). -
ellib(x, y, w, h, col)
Draw the outline of an ellipse of widthw
, heighth
and colorcol
from (x
,y
). -
tri(x1, y1, x2, y2, x3, y3, col)
Draw a triangle with vertices (x1
,y1
), (x2
,y2
), (x3
,y3
) and colorcol
. -
trib(x1, y1, x2, y2, x3, y3, col)
Draw the outline of a triangle with vertices (x1
,y1
), (x2
,y2
), (x3
,y3
) and colorcol
. -
fill(x, y, col)
Fill the area connected with the same color as (x
,y
) with colorcol
. -
blt(x, y, img, u, v, w, h, [colkey], [rotate], [scale])
Copy the region of size (w
,h
) from (u
,v
) of the image bankimg
(0-2) to (x
,y
). If a negative value is assigned tow
and/orh
, the region will be flipped horizontally and/or vertically. Ifcolkey
is specified, it will be treated as a transparent color. Ifrotate
(in degrees),scale
(1.0 = 100%), or both are specified, the corresponding transformations will be applied.
bltm(x, y, tm, u, v, w, h, [colkey], [rotate], [scale])
Copy the region of size (w
,h
) from (u
,v
) of the tilemaptm
(0-7) to (x
,y
). If a negative value is assigned tow
and/orh
, the region will be flipped horizontally and/or vertically. Ifcolkey
is specified, it will be treated as a transparent color. Ifrotate
(in degrees),scale
(1.0 = 100%), or both are specified, the corresponding transformations will be applied. The size of a tile is 8x8 pixels and is stored in a tilemap as a tuple of(tile_x, tile_y)
.
text(x, y, s, col)
Draw a strings
in colorcol
at (x
,y
).
-
sounds
List of the sounds (instances of the Sound class) (0-63)
Example:pyxel.sounds[0].speed = 60
-
musics
List of the musics (instances of the Music class) (0-7) -
play(ch, snd, [tick], [loop], [resume])
Play the soundsnd
(0-63) on channelch
(0-3). Ifsnd
is a list, the sounds will be played in sequence. The playback start position can be specified bytick
(1 tick = 1/120 seconds). Ifloop
is set toTrue
, loop playback is performed. To resume the previous sound after playback ends, setresume
toTrue
. -
playm(msc, [tick], [loop])
Play the musicmsc
(0-7). The playback start position can be specified bytick
(1 tick = 1/120 seconds). Ifloop
is set toTrue
, loop playback is performed. -
stop([ch])
Stop playback of the specified channelch
(0-3). Callstop()
to stop all channels. -
play_pos(ch)
Get the sound playback position of channelch
(0-3) as a tuple of(sound_no, note_no)
. ReturnNone
when playback has stopped.
-
ceil(x)
Return the smallest integer that is greater than or equal tox
. -
floor(x)
Return the largest integer that is less than or equal tox
. -
sgn(x)
Return1
whenx
is positive,0
when it is0
, and-1
when it is negative. -
sqrt(x)
Return the square root ofx
. -
sin(deg)
Return the sine ofdeg
degrees. -
cos(deg)
Return the cosine ofdeg
degrees. -
atan2(y, x)
Return the arctangent ofy
/x
in degrees. -
rseed(seed)
Sets the seed of the random number generator. -
rndi(a, b)
Return a random integer greater than or equal toa
and less than or equal tob
. -
rndf(a, b)
Return a random floating-point number greater than or equal toa
and less than or equal tob
. -
nseed(seed)
Set the seed of Perlin noise. -
noise(x, [y], [z])
Return the Perlin noise value for the specified coordinates.
-
width
,height
The width and height of the image -
set(x, y, data)
Set the image at (x
,y
) using a list of strings.
Example:pyxel.images[0].set(10, 10, ["0123", "4567", "89ab", "cdef"])
-
load(x, y, filename)
Load an image file (PNG/GIF/JPEG) at (x
,y
). -
pget(x, y)
Get the color of the pixel at (x
,y
). -
pset(x, y, col)
Draw a pixel with the colorcol
at (x
,y
).
-
width
,height
The width and height of the tilemap -
imgsrc
The image bank (0-2) referenced by the tilemap -
set(x, y, data)
Set the tilemap at (x
,y
) using a list of strings.
Example:pyxel.tilemap(0).set(0, 0, ["0000 0100 a0b0", "0001 0101 a1b1"])
-
load(x, y, filename, layer)
Load the layer in the drawing orderlayer
(0-) from the TMX file (Tiled Map File) at (x
,y
). -
pget(x, y)
Get the tile at (x
,y
). A tile is represented as a tuple of(tile_x, tile_y)
. -
pset(x, y, tile)
Draw atile
at (x
,y
). A tile is represented as a tuple of(tile_x, tile_y)
.
-
notes
List of notes (0-127). The higher the number, the higher the pitch. Note33
corresponds to 'A2'(440Hz). Rest notes are represented by-1
. -
tones
List of tones (0:Triangle / 1:Square / 2:Pulse / 3:Noise) -
volumes
List of volumes (0-7) -
effects
List of effects (0:None / 1:Slide / 2:Vibrato / 3:FadeOut / 4:Half-FadeOut / 5:Quarter-FadeOut) -
speed
Playback speed.1
is the fastest, and the larger the number, the slower the playback speed. At120
, the length of one note becomes 1 second. -
set(notes, tones, volumes, effects, speed)
Set notes, tones, volumes, and effects using a string. If the length of tones, volumes, or effects are shorter than the notes, they will be repeated from the beginning. -
set_notes(notes)
Set the notes using a string made of 'CDEFGAB'+'#-'+'01234' or 'R'. It is case-insensitive, and whitespace is ignored.
Example:pyxel.sounds[0].set_notes("G2B-2D3R RF3F3F3")
-
set_tones(tones)
Set the tones with a string made of 'TSPN'. Case-insensitive and whitespace is ignored.
Example:pyxel.sounds[0].set_tones("TTSS PPPN")
-
set_volumes(volumes)
Set the volumes with a string made of '01234567'. Case-insensitive and whitespace is ignored.
Example:pyxel.sounds[0].set_volumes("7777 7531")
-
set_effects(effects)
Set the effects with a string made of 'NSVFHQ'. Case-insensitive and whitespace is ignored.
Example:pyxel.sounds[0].set_effects("NFNF NVVS")
-
seqs
A two-dimensional list of sounds (0-63) across multiple channels -
set(seq0, seq1, seq2, ...)
Set the lists of sound (0-63) for each channel. If an empty list is specified, that channel will not be used for playback.
Example:pyxel.musics[0].set([0, 1], [], [3])
Pyxel includes an "Advanced API" that is not mentioned in this reference, as it may confuse users or require specialized knowledge to use.
If you are confident in your skills, try creating amazing works using this as a guide!
Use the Issue Tracker to submit bug reports and feature or enhancement requests. Before submitting a new issue, make sure there are no similar open issues.
Anyone who manually tests the code and reports bugs or suggestions for enhancements in the Issue Tracker is very welcome!
Patches and fixes are accepted in the form of pull requests (PRs). Make sure that the issue the pull request addresses is open in the Issue Tracker.
Submitting a pull request implies that you agree to license your contribution under the MIT License.
Pyxel is licensed under the MIT License. It can be reused in proprietary software, provided that all copies of the software or its substantial portions include a copy of the MIT License terms and a copyright notice.
Pyxel is looking for sponsors on GitHub Sponsors. Please consider sponsoring Pyxel to support its continued maintenance and feature development. As a benefit, sponsors can consult directly with the Pyxel developer. For more details, please visit this page.