C64 Graphics Explorer

What's new in 2.0

C64 Graphics Explorer is now both a file converter and an authentic viewing experience.

Viewer

The whole display subsystem is new. It is rebuilt from the ground up using Pepto's Colodore model. The colors are built the way the VIC-II builds them, starting from the color index rather than guessing backwards from RGB.
Measured against Colodore captures, all sixteen colors match exactly. Across a whole picture, the worst single difference anywhere is four steps out of 255, under 1.6%. Out of the box, the defaults sit where VICE puts things.
2× and 3×, switched on the fly. All artwork renders at either scale, changed live with the 2 and 3 keys, sharp at rest and animated in between. True Aspect is on by default, both VIC-II generations are available, and calibration follows a Commodore 1084S front panel.
Two modes. Pixels shows the raw source pixels the image is made of. Display shows how a C64 actually puts it on screen. Space crosses between them, and the loupe works in both.
Interlaced artwork, first-party. Drop Phase A and Phase B together to reconstruct the artist's intended picture. In Display, the pair always vibrates at the PAL rate. That is not the app giving up: the real machine was never able to hold those pictures still.
C64GFX support. Paste a c64gfx.com artwork address with Shift+Cmd+O and the picture opens in the app, interlaced artwork included as a real pair. Or press Cmd+R and get a random popular one.

Importer

Canonical images load straight in. Opening starts by checking whether the image already carries the canonical C64 palette. If it does, there is nothing to review.
Everything else gets the import review. It opens showing the Remapped colors. Press Space to flip to Original and compare, then drag a swatch to another index if the automatic choice was mistaken.

Converter

Save what the artwork is made of or how it looks. An indexed image is a true 16-color PNG in canonical C64 order. A rendered image is the view exactly as it sits on screen: current mode, scale, calibration, True Aspect, and chip revision.
Interlaced artwork exports too. Choose a blended PNG for the picture your eye actually mixes the two phases into, or an animated GIF for the flickering performance itself.
Set up the view you want and hit Save. True Aspect, either VIC-II revision, nearest-neighbor pixels, CRT rendering, and Layer Notes™ all export at 2× or 3×. Interlaced Layer Notes™ can become an animated GIF.

Layered images, fully open

The layered image format is published as an open specification, with three worked examples beside it. Make your own Layer Notes™ and view them in the app.

There is an inherent beauty in the pixel graphics of the Commodore 64.

The original, somewhat washed-out color set emerged from a small team working on the VIC chip: with direct control over hue, saturation, and luminance, the colors were chosen largely by instinct.

These colors, combined with the strict limitations on how they could be used gave rise to an entire era of artists who hadn't stopped in the early '90's when the Commodore 64 begun to fade.

These limits became a new norm, a canonical part of life for those who grew up with this 8-bit platform producing not only pixel art, but code and music.

C64 Graphics Explorer Features

Gallery, Files & C64GFX

Start with the built-in collection, open your own files, or paste an artwork link from c64gfx.com. Layered, interlaced, and multiscreen samples reveal how ambitious C64 pictures are put together.

Authentic C64 Display

A rebuilt display pipeline based on Pepto's Colodore model renders from the original color indices. Switch live between 2× and 3×, use True Aspect, choose either VIC-II revision, and tune the display like a Commodore 1084S.

Loupe & Character Grid

Inspect the source pixels and exact color indices inside every 8×8 character cell. The loupe works in both viewing modes, even while interlaced artwork is moving, and the grid can be aligned to bordered images.

Pixels & Display

Pixels shows the clean picture the artist intended; Display shows what C64 hardware could actually put on screen. Cross between them with Space and see interlaced artwork alternate at the original PAL rate.

Smart Import & Remapping

Canonical C64 images open directly. Other artwork gets a visual review with automatic mapping to the 16-color palette, draggable corrections, and Hires, Multicolor, or Hires Multicolor analysis.

Export What You See

Save a canonical indexed PNG or the rendered view with its current scale, aspect, calibration, chip revision, and visible layers. Interlaced artwork can become a blended PNG or a looping GIF.

What does it do?