Giant Monsters on a Tiny Engine

The good news: I discovered PICO-8 a few weeks ago. 

The bad news: I discovered PICO-8 a few weeks ago.

That means I've put all my Godot projects on hold (temporarily!) to explore what PICO-8 can do. I've learned a LOT and I'm having so much fun. I've never found a game engine that's so awesome for rapid prototyping (it even beats Godot).

Here's why:

• I get stuck in analysis paralysis and perfectionism a lot. PICO-8 limits the options significantly and avoids that. No, I can't have any color I want. I can't have huge sprites. I can't do <insert XYZ>. It not only limits the options, but it limits the scope. Then the challenge becomes fitting AS MUCH as I can into a small cartridge.
• I get bogged down in details that distract me from the prototype. A prototype should just be a minimal product that lets you experience the gameplay. The tiny specs and design constraints mean I can't go too far and get distracted.
• It has a powerful scripting language. Its Lua interpreter is minimal, but super powerful. Combine that with a set of copied-in standard utilities (or roll your own) and you learn a LOT about how game mechanics can be implemented simply without going crazy with all the bells and whistles of big, complex engines.
• I let my lack of art experience intimidate me into not starting. PICO-8's 8x8 spritesheets make it quick to slap something together and iterate. Working with larger sprites means it can take a lot more time to fix something that doesn't look quite right, and when you lack in the art department, that iteration time is crucial for maintaining focus and making progress.

I have so many game ideas. I've started a few, in various game engines, but they've gone nowhere because of all of the above issues.

I've gotten further with my Kaiju-inspired game idea in *one day* with PICO-8 than I did in weeks with other engines. And so I present to you, the technical prototype of this idea.