Pixel Grotto
LightNews LightNews
banner
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
Pixel Grotto
@pixelgrotto.bsky.social
1.1K followers 310 following 400 posts
Jeremy • TTRPG designer • Three Sails Studios developer, editor and co-owner • Rock Paper Shotgun guides writer • https://pixelgrotto.carrd.co/
Posts Replies Media Videos
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
Penned a comparison between the retro-styled ninja games of 2025, Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound and Shinobi: Art of Vengeance. Who comes out on top? Also a special shoutout to @kimimithegameeatingshemonster.com for their excellent critique of Shinobi, which I mention here

www.tumblr.com/pixelgrotto/...
A screenshot of Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound, showing a pixel perfect Kenji standing under a torii gate, his blue ninja scarf flapping in the breeze behind him. Some deceased jarheads lie on the ground not far away by two stone lions. A screenshot from Shinobi: Art of Vengeance, showing Joe Musashi standing on a boat that's arriving on a pier. A gorgeous lantern festival city looms behind him in a diorama of reds and yellows.
December 7, 2025 at 4:22 PM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
Draconic Codex is out and I wrote the new lore/stats for the Horned Dragon, so go check it!

I made it so that Horned Dragons shed fragments of their horns and then throw them as projectiles against enemies. I was inspired by Gambit using Kinetic Card in Marvel vs Capcom, thank you very much
An image from Pathfinder Lost Omens - Draconic Codex showing the Horned Dragon, a massive green behemoth with a horn on its snout and moss growing over its wings. Various arrows on the page highlight key aspects of the dragon, like its split tail and grass-like scales A piece of text from the book: "When poison doesn’t suffice, horned dragons are quick to crush or impale their enemies with a solid headbutt. A select few also shed fragments of their horns, which they hide beneath the crevasses of their scales, using them as impromptu weapons in the same way that a human would wield hidden throwing daggers. These projectiles are used to impale enemies on high points that overlook the dragon’s domain, such as tall trees or cliffsides. The body remains there until consumed by birds of prey, and when the corpse falls, the dragon recovers the horn “dagger” for future usage. This practice is common in the Maharev region of Qadira, where horned dragons rub sand on their horns in an act that seems to facilitate the shedding process."
December 4, 2025 at 10:15 AM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
I asked my wife what her brain would look like if it were a video game. She surprised me with MANIAC MANSION, of all things, because she'd seen the game's map on social media and thought the multicloured, many-doored rooms were a fun representation of her ADHD 😁

Anyway, this is why I married her
A selection of brightly-coloured rooms from the NES version of Maniac Mansion, all placed together in a grid.
December 3, 2025 at 12:05 PM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
Get ready for a real blast from the past. Me circa…1993, 1994? Not sure when. All I know is that this Batman coloring book mask + He-Man jumper look is something that will never be surpassed
A picture of a much smaller me from long ago. I have an Asian bowl cut and am wearing a ridiculous costume which includes a blue cardboard Batman mask that barely covers my face, a red cape, and a Masters of the Universe jumper. I also have big boots on. I have a weird grin on my face and look supremely proud of my cosplay
November 20, 2025 at 10:28 PM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
Got my contributor’s copy today! It was fun to revitalize and redo the Caypin for 2e; I like my tentacle-faced friends very much 😀
A page from the Starfinder 2e Alien Core book showing the description and abilities of the Caypin, a reptilian creature with a huge collection of tentacles. The tentacles can separate from the head and a few of them are slithering across the page
November 12, 2025 at 1:04 PM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
What awesome paper. Also, the poster highlighted in the interview is incredible; what I would do to get a copy of it...
A Japanese poster from the '80s for the first NES Ninja Gaiden. It shows a cool image of Ryu viewing a dark castle on a faraway mountain as lightning strikes in the background, as well as a foreground image of Ryu standing before a demonic statue.
November 8, 2025 at 10:40 AM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
This year’s pumpkins are Baba Yaga’s hut on chicken legs and a frog/toad…a froad?
Two carved pumpkins glowing with light; one resembles a small house with chicken legs and feet while the other looks like a smug frog fella The pumpkin of Baba Yaga’s hut up close. Three windows, a roof, a wonky chimney, and stubby chicken legs The frog fella up close. He is spotty and has bulbous eyes. Carved out pumpkin bits were also used to make his feet
October 31, 2025 at 12:20 PM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
I remember first reading Tomonobu Itagaki's interviews in EGM in the early 2000s and marvelling at the balls on this guy. Ninja Gaiden's Xbox revival came out around then and I'll always remember this ad which embodied all of his attitude. 58 is too young to go. A real loss for the game industry.
An ad for Ninja Gaiden on the original Xbox, showing a black leather-clad Ryu Hayabusa kneeling in a cool pose while the words "Back...in black" are draped above him.
October 16, 2025 at 9:26 AM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
Moving house and found the busiest character sheet ever for one of the many iterations of my first D&D character

He started out as an emo ranger suffering from PTSD who thought his dwarven wife was dead. Ended as a jolly fellow who rescued her from the Shadowfell and shot Demogorgon in the face
An extremely busy 5e D&D character sheet showing handwritten stats and notes for Dyne Cinderpaw, a human ranger Two pages of meticulous, very packed handwritten notes and sketches showing Dyne’s abilities and the various encounters he had in his many quests. Somewhere along the line he reincarnated into a half-orc!
October 8, 2025 at 8:16 PM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
October is upon us. Truly the only month worth a damn
A screenshot from Quest for Glory IV: Shadows of Darkness showing the Hero standing outside of Mordavia's town gates at night. Pumpkins with Jack-o-Lantern faces shine in the darkness near him next to stays of hay and a scarecrow, exuding an eerie autumnal atmosphere
October 1, 2025 at 9:38 AM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
This site ranks me as a 4.2, which is about the average that Electronic Gaming Monthly gave Resident Evil Gaiden back in the day

I like RE Gaiden as an underrated experiment, I'll take it
A screenshot of Resident Evil Gaiden from EGM issue 155 showing either Chris Redfield or Barry Butron (I honestly cannot recall whose sprite that is) standing near some pipes with a big hole in the ground and two pixelated zombies nearby. The game's best feature is its "interesting battle system." The worst feature? "Graphics are dark and outdated." The reviews that EGM gave RE Gaiden. Respectively a 5.0 from John R., a 3.5 from Jonathan, and a 4.0 from Mark. None of them have great things to say about the game and they are all a bit picky
September 25, 2025 at 10:05 AM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
What other game lets you play as these incredible character options. Bill shall rise up to make the world a better place for those amongst the dung!
A Heroforge miniature of "Bill the Dung Farmer," a smiling fellow with a Friar Tuck haircut and mutton shops holding a sausage and a tankard of air. he wears dirty rags and sits on a big pile of what may very well be feces
September 16, 2025 at 9:46 AM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
The wind is blowing, the leaves are turning shades and finally I feel like we are entering the season of this Quest for Glory IV: Shadows of Darkness screenshot. Autumn makes me feel so much better
The Hero stands before the town gates of Mordavia in the 1993 computer game Quest for Glory IV: Shadows of Darkness. Orange pumpkins and stacks of hay lie nearby, along with a scarecrow, and the most prominent colours of the image are green and orange
September 15, 2025 at 1:50 PM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
Mockup of a zone-based battle system inspired by 16-bit RPGs, using sprites made by @13thhr.bsky.social. For a homebrew TTRPG system I've been drafting for us to play around with. (The systems we've previously used have been good but haven't 100% fit our purposes, so why not make our own?)
A horizontal battle screen reminiscent of something from a 16-bit Final Fantasy game, but with more neon synthwave vibes. The ground is split into four Zones. Three player characters holding axes, a sword, and a bow are in Zone 1. Four bandits wearing cloaks and masks are in Zone 2.
September 12, 2025 at 12:03 PM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
I somehow managed to mention not just one, nor two, but FOUR vaporware fan games that I followed in my younger days in this lovely article...

Where are my Chrono Resurrection/Card Sagas Wars/Indiana Jones and the Fountation of Youth/Hero 6 peeps at
A 3D Crono model from the unfinished fangame Chrono Resurrection. He's standing in an equally cool 3D recreation of Magus' Throne Room from Chrono Trigger. A title logo from the unfinished fangame Card Sagas Wars, showing awesome pixel sprites of a variety of popular video game characters - including Link, Samus, Cloud, Crono, and Megaman - about to fight each other. A very nicely illustrated pixel art Indy stands in front of a huge yellow snake statue in this mockup from the unfinished fangame Indiana Jones and the Fountain of Youth. The title screen from the unfinished fangame Hero 6: Rite of Passage, showing a hero wearing a green tunic and red cloak standing atop the head of a giant.
September 2, 2025 at 3:32 PM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
The whole Infinity Blade series (the only mobile franchise worth a damn)
pixelgrotto.tumblr.com/tagged/infin...

And last but certainly not least...

Tomb Raider: The Unicorn Quest (fangame made by my brother @13thhr.bsky.social in Klick & Play; good stuff)
pixelgrotto.tumblr.com/post/1410295...
Screenshot from Infinity Blade 2. The main female protagonist wields twin daggers while facing down a huge enemy about to bash her with a broken pillar. The title screen of Tomb Raider: The Unicorn Quest. Cue a picture of a unicorn, weirdly saturated colors, and a charming low-budget late '90s presentation. "By J&J Productions, Version 2.0, Press Enter to Begin..."
August 27, 2025 at 1:01 PM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
Castle of Shadows (weird Chinese Castlevania knockoff)
pixelgrotto.tumblr.com/post/7048340...

Hard Wound: Lord of the Underworld (obscure Chinese mobile beat-'em-up)
pixelgrotto.tumblr.com/post/6658906...

Hybrid: Eternal Whisper (great Korean mobile game) pixelgrotto.tumblr.com/post/7392568...
Screenshot from Castle of Shadows. The main character (who looks like he's wearing a white version of M. Bison's outfit) holds a huge sword and faces off against a vast array of enemies, including fire lizards and floating green guys with candles on their heads. Screenshot from Hard Wound. This one looks a bit like Streets of Rage but on a smaller scale. The main character uses a huge guitar to attack a slew of oncoming enemies in a junkyard. Screenshot of Hybrid: Eternal Whisper. The anime boy protagonist is about to cast a spell and has created a pixelated pentagram around him as wolf enemies attack. He's got a magical combo of 243 hits.
August 27, 2025 at 1:01 PM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
Path to the Sky (dead roguelike that had lots of potential) pixelgrotto.tumblr.com/post/1400783...

Fates Forever (animal fantasy MOBA made by Discord devs) pixelgrotto.tumblr.com/post/1443952...

Crimson Shroud (well-known, but trapped on the 3DS store) pixelgrotto.tumblr.com/post/8563863...
Screenshot of Path to the Sky, showing a pixel art sky fortress composed of blocks and a small character with a big shield on their back. The UI of the game is vaguely Zelda-like. Key art for Fates Forever, showing several anthromorphic fantasy animals, including a red panda holding a staff, a rogue bunny girl, and a boar who looks like an RPG barbarian. Artwork for Crimson Shroud which shows the three main characters (looking like they're about to explore lost ruins) and the game's logo, which hints at its D&D-inspired gameplay via a glowing dice.
August 27, 2025 at 1:01 PM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
Been reading Vinland Saga and was stuck by this panel. Morbid beauty
A panel from Vinland Saga showing a skeleton decaying in a field of flowers. Butterflies fly above the bones as grass and sprouts shoot up in between its scattered ribs. There is a single word balloon that reads: “It is death that completes a man.”
August 6, 2025 at 7:02 PM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
Found this artwork I drew in 2004 as a high school kid. I called it "Dreams." I remember not liking it back then but I find myself moved by it today.

(It's really small because this is an actual low-res scan from that year. I think the original is in my parents' house)
A color pencil drawing of a ginger-haired boy in vaguely fantasy/medieval garments lounging by the base of a tree located on a cliff. In the background is a forest, river, and vista of purple mountains. The clouds in the sky are forming the shape of a dragon.
July 10, 2025 at 3:13 PM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
The character sheets that Ramona has done for us are real beauts! The prompt was to make 'em look reminiscent of an actual licence from the Mappa Mundi institute and to evoke a chronicle-like feel.
The Mappa Mundi RPG Character Sheet, featuring a nature-esque aesthetic with ornate edges reminiscent of tree bark and parchment flairs. The Mappa Mundi RPG Chronicle Sheet - this one looks like two open pages in a book, with space for players to take notes on locations, creatures, and monsters they find on their way. Leaf and tape decorations on the side add to the book feel. The Mappa Mundi RPG Solo Supplement Team Sheet - this resembles the Character Sheet, but has four spaces to allow a Narrator to take command of a team of Chroniclers.
July 8, 2025 at 8:18 PM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
Wizard pondering orb
(I later transformed into a wizard as well for solidarity)
Me, a bald dude with glasses, clad in a Google Meetings filter that gives me a fucking wizard hat and long hair/beard
July 4, 2025 at 9:06 PM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
Been skimming the Daggerheart PDF and the section on portraying disabilities is nice to see in a big budget fantasy TTRPG product. I wish there had been another page or so devoted to neurodiversity, but this is a good precedent to set. (Shoutout to @ilananight.bsky.social who wrote this bit)
A Daggerheart PDF on an iPad showing a section entitled “Playing Disability with Purpose and Respect.” There are some sketches on the page showing frog and dragon humanoids with prosthetic limbs.
July 1, 2025 at 9:13 PM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
Visited Stonehenge today. Pretty cool; makes me think of all the possibilities and beauty that abounded in Britain prior to the Romans.

Also, I know that druids really didn’t have anything to do with these rocks, but I will always remember my first introduction to Stonehenge in King’s Quest VI
A photograph of Stonehenge, showing the circular stone ruins under a sprawling, cloudy sky of blue A screenshot of King’s Quest VI: Heir Today, Gone Tomorrow, showing Alexander the protagonist captured by a group of brown robe-wearing druids who are taking him to a bonfire surrounded by Stonehenge-esque rocks.
June 25, 2025 at 10:01 PM
pixelgrotto.bsky.social
In the latest episode of @13thhr.bsky.social's podcast, I hopped on to chat about the Wizardry anime from 1991. Fun discussion! We talked about Wizardry's enduring popularity, the history of CRPGs, and why ninja always show up in Japanese roleplaying games podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...
The VHS box cover for the 1991 Wizardry anime, featuring a group of protagonists - including a green-haired fighter, a female elf mage, and a blue-clad ninja - bordered by the red winding dragon design that makes up the Wizardry logo.
June 18, 2025 at 9:37 AM