Categories
Awesomeness Featured Inspirational Designs

“Ukiyo-e Heroes” Turns Video Game Characters Into Japanese Woodblock Art

Illustrator Jed Henry loves the old Japanese art of ukiyo-e, a type of woodblock printing (The Great Wave off Kanagawa is a wonderful example of this technique.) Henry also has a fondness for video games, and as artists like to do, he decided to mash both passions together.

In Ukiyo-e Heroes, Henry has researched and drawn a selection of Nintendo video game characters in the Japanese ukiyo-e style. There are currently 12 designs that feature Mario, Link, Samus, Mega Man, Donkey Kong, Simon Belmont, and a wonderful panel of Street Fighter characters. Have a look at some of Henry’s artwork after the jump.

Categories
Arty Awesomeness Movies

Spritely 8-Bit Movie Posters by Eric Palmer

Nostalgia never goes out of style and the love for all things 8-bit seems unbounded. For April Fool’s this year, Google showed off Google Maps for NES, an 8-bit layer that turned the world into a Nintendo-themed landscape. That love for 8-bit, NES, and the movies is certainly evident in the works of spritely graphic designer Eric Palmer.

Palmer illustrates the characters and themes from popular modern flicks using a minimal colour palette and classic Mega Man game sprites. Have a look at his retro 8-bit posters for Star Wars, 300, V for Vendetta, Kill Bill, and more after the jump.

Categories
Awesomeness Cautionary Tales

Game On: Cute 8-Bit Safe Sex Ad

In an effort to promote safe sex amongst horny teenagers, the “Leicestershire Teenage Pregnancy Partnership” in the United Kingdom has commissioned a cute 8-bit public service advertisement.

In the style of Super Mario Bros and Mega Man, our hero wants to get his “game on” but his princess will not let him into her castle without the prerequisite special item. This video follows his attempts to procure said item. See how it turns out below.

So there you have it. Have fun, play safe, and stay away from the mushrooms.

[via IdeaBounty on Twitter]