Pixel Engineer is now Pixel Chemist. I am no longer studying computer engineering. I have undertaken a chemistry specialist and a mathematics minor.

This is the new logo. It is simple, but after devoting much time to revising it, I decided to leave it as it is. On another note, someone has claimed “pixelchemist.tumblr.com” - a now dead tumblr. Hence the choice of “thepixelchemist”.

It has been a long time since another post, as matters in real life become more pressing. Furthermore, the work in this particular post took up much time. I present Majora’s Mask, from the eponymous Legend of Zelda game.

There were two sources of inspiration for this project. First, I had a strong desire to create a pixel-art tribute to an excellent video game that was very pertinent to my childhood. Second, while several pixel-art reproductions of Majora’s Mask already exist, I felt that few of them pay enough respect to the artists of the mask. While they certainly preserve the integrity of the mask and make it quite recognizable, they lack many details of the mask that give it its true character.

One of the more prominent challenges in reproducing Majora’s Mask was the problem of interpreting it. An artist could choose to interpret the model in the game itself or concept art of the mask. Alternatively, a personal interpretation could be used to draw the mask.

Because I was attempting to reproduce the mask as faithfully as possible, a personal interpretation was not one of my options. I ultimately selected the concept art as my basis. While one can argue that the gaming model is the “final look” of the mask, one must not forget the limitations of the Nintendo 64 at the time. Only for contemporary video games is it easy to accurately reproduce concept art.

A second challenge was deciding on the dimensions of the image. I confined my selection to typical Pixel Engineer dimensions: powers of two. However, an issue arose when odd-number dimensions appeared to work better. They allowed for more accurate spacing of some elements and made the vertices of the heart-shaped mask sharper. While such a mask could easily be placed on a canvas with even-number dimensions, the mask would not be perfectly centered. Hence, I decided that I would select accuracy and alignment over protocol. The final size is 129x129.

This was an excellent opportunity for me to practice dithering and simulating three-dimensional imagery through the use of light. This is why this post marks the dawn of a new day for PixelEngineer.

This work isn’t perfect, and so I will return to tweak it in the future, when I have improved my pixel art skills.

While this work is under a Creative Commons License, please respect Nintendo Co., Ltd.’s ownership of Majora’s Mask and the Legend of Zelda franchise.

The works I post are all squares with dimensions defined by powers of two: 16x16, 32x32, 64x64, etc. My preference is inspired by computer data storage and memory.

This post includes my first 128x128 production. It is my most detailed work yet. I did indeed once work in a lab.

Features include: glassware (from left to right: three flasks, a beaker, a graduated cylinder, and a distillation column with a collection flask), an unidentified yellow liquid, clean beakers, ventilation grilles, electrical outlets, closed maintenance panels, an NFPA 704 information poster, a miscellaneous safety poster, piping with valves, and a fluorescent light with electrical wiring.