Speccyfier

If you're a fan of the good-old-days when virtual images where somewhat artsy, unclear and simply colored, then Speccyfier might be your portal back in time. What this app does is to turn any normal image into an 8bit or 16bit (Amiga preset only) version of itself. It's fun, it's artistic and it could even be productive, especially in game or app design. This application is definitely not to be avoided by nostalgics of the 8bit era.

You can't really mess anything up when using Speccyfier. It works as you'd expect. It asks users to input an image, then to select the preset they would like to convert the image to, and voila! Your new image version will be displayed alongside the old one. Right from the start, you can tell that the image quality has been radically decreased. There are small chances you could use your new image for something that requires lots of detail. Your best bet is to turn your 8bit image into something artistic or integrate it with a retro product of sorts.

The presets, as they are referred to, are quite a few. Your image can be displayed in 8bit mode using the following presets: 2 Colour, ZX Spectrum, C64, Amstrad CPC, Gameboy, NES, Sega Master System and in 16bit variant using the Amiga option. Whatever you choose, it's simply fun to watch as subjects from a particular image are being adapted to the retro style of graphic representation. The Gameboy preset is particularly interesting with its various shades of green. It really brings back old memories.

Give Speccifyer a try if you'd like to play with an application, and try new ways of portraying various subjects. It's fun and it could be of use not just to artists, but to regular users trying to integrate these retro-looking images into a complete and well-developed project. If retro games are not really something important for you, then this particular application can't be of any use.