FRS' MSX Page

MSX Art

This page contains Collections of art and other types of imagery released for the MSX in its many generations.

Ideally, I would prefer that a site like zxart.ee or c64pixels.com existed for the MSX, where images could have categories/tags, and the users could download the files in their original format and preview them on the Internet browser. And to promote contests, just like zxart.ee and c64pixels.com.  But, sadly, no such site exists for the MSX system. Because of this, the images are published here inside zip files, hoping that some day they can find a better accommodation.

Chiptune

Collection
Description
MSX Chiptune Collection Vol.1
This collection contains more than 6000 MSX chiptunes, in a variety of different native formats:
  • MSX-BASIC
    • PSG
    • MSX-Music
    • MSX-MIDI
  • Fac Soundtracker
  • Moonblaster
    • MBM (OPL1)
    • MFM (OPL4 FM)
    • MWM (OPL4 Wavetable)
  • Micro Cabin Music
  • T&E Soft MDT
  • MSX-Fan BGM
  • MGS
  • MIDI Saurus
  • MIDI uSIOS
  • Moondriver
  • MPK
  • MUE Music Editor (by HAL)
  • MuSiCA
  • OPX
  • PT3
  • SCMD
  • Yamaha SFG-05
  • SME3
  • Trilo Tracker
  • Yawara
  1. To play on a real MSX, be sure to check what players you can use for each format on this page.
  2. To play on Windows, the MSXplug plugin for Winamp 5 can play most of the Japanese formats
  3. To play on a web browser, use MSXplay.js. It also has an MML editor for MGS files.


Pixel Art

Collection
Description
MSX Pixel Art Collection Vol.1 - Preservation Collection
This collection of pixel art is intended to preserve the vast diversity of images that were published for the MSX system in all its generations.

It's composed by 3100 files with the best images from many sources, including games, demos, disk magazines, picture disks, BBSs, forgotten corners of the Internet, and so on. Many of the images where even hidden as easter eggs.

I have been collecting these files since more than 30 years, and some months ago it occurred that everyone should be able to enjoy these.

But the collection is still far from complete. There were many more images that were published and are still not here. I'm now counting with contributions from the community so the collection can grow even more.

With the only exception of animated GIFs, all files contained in this collection are stored in file formats that can be opened in the MSX. Each file type was chosen to better preserve all the characteristics of the image, while still being easy to be viewed on the MSX.

It's also important to note that it's beyond my resources to discover who are the original authors of all these images. Whenever I found out who the author was, I created a specific folder to credit him/her. But I didn't create specific folders when the image already contains a signature of the author, to reduce the amount of folders.

If you're the author of some of the images included in this package and would like to be credited, or you want your work to be removed from the collection, please contact me via the e-mail provided at the end of this README.TXT file.

To view the image files:
  • On a real MSX: use the viewers provided below
  • On a PC or Mac: You can either install RECOIL in your computer, or use its online HTML5 viewer
This Collection was also published at the Retro Gallery.
MSX Pixel Art Collection Vol.2 - Rearranged Art
This is a Pixel Art Collection composed by more than 300 images created by other artists that were "arranged" to the MSX video modes.

"Arranged" is used here as an analogy to the music arrangements that we see being released for the MSX all the time. They're usually tracks composed by other artists, and arranged by a 3rd party for a specific MSX soundchip. The person who does the arrangement also adds his personal touches to the composition in the process.

I liked this concept very much, and decided to try the same for Pixel Art.

Please keep in mind that these are not your typical "run off the mill" image conversions, like blindly throwing the images into some converter and saving the output. This rarely yields good results, so the conversions required a lot of careful pre and post edition.

The credits of the original authors can be checked in the included Credits_vol2.ods spreadsheet.

This Collection was also published at the Retro Gallery.
MSX Pixel Art Collection Vol.3 This collection of pixel art is also intended to preserve the vast diversity of images that were published for the MSX system in all its generations. It's a follow-up of the Vol.1, and contains nearly 1000 new files, both original MSX drawings and rearranged art, in specific folders.

It also includes images from the very rare CG-Guide Vol.1 Magazine, that had images from many famous MSX Pixel Artists of that time.

It's also important to note that it's beyond my resources to discover who are the original authors of all these images. Whenever I found out who the author was, I created a specific folder to credit him/her. But I didn't create specific folders when the image already contains a signature of the author, to reduce the amount of folders.

If you're the author of some of the images included in this package and would like to be credited, or you want your work to be removed from the collection, please contact me via the e-mail provided at the end of this README.TXT file.

This Collection was also published at the Retro Gallery here and here.

MSX Pixel Art Collection Vol.4 Like vol.3, this collection contains mostly native MSX pixel art for preservation, and some arrangements of images ported from other systems. Most of the native images were rescued from the depths of the Internet archive.

It also includes the very rare ほほ梅麿のCGコレクション1, a collection of the best images sent to the Umemaro art contest promoted by the MSX-Fan Magazine.

This Collection was also published at the Retro Gallery here and here.

MSX Pixel Art Collection Vol.5 Like vol.3 and vol.4, this collection contains both native MSX pixel art for preservation, and some arrangements of images ported from other systems. Most of the native images were rescued from the depths of the Internet.

It also includes the images from the Saurus Lunch Vol.5, a collection Pixel Art, music, FM instruments etc for the Saurus Apps from Bitē.

This collection will soon be published at the Retro Gallery.

Gradius-2 unfinished demo by FRS
This is an unfinished demo I made back in 1992~1994. It was intended to show how this game could have looked if it had been released for the MSX2 instead of the MSX1.

I rearranged all the art myself to the MSX2 using my Sharp Hotbit (upgraded to MSX2) and Graph Saurus 2.0, on a 14" CRT TV back then.

It has the following folders:

- IMAGES: contain the art of the presentation cutscene remade for the MSX2. You
  can view them with your favorite image viewer.
- METALION: contain the metalion animation that is shown when the game starts,
  remade for the MSX2. To run this animation, type the following commands:
  BLOAD"MSXTURBO.BIN",R
  RUN"METALION.BAS"

Wakachan's CG Collection for the MSX2/2+
Wakachan is a very prolific Japanese CG artist that publishes his works since the 80s. He's well known for his lovable characters, that seem to be alive.

Most of his art was published for the NEC PC-98 and PC-88, but he was also an MSX user back in the 80s, owning a respectable Toshiba HX-34.

Some time ago, I contacted him to ask if I could make MSX2/2+ versions of his beautiful artwork. He agreed, gave some tips and feedback during the whole process. And he even got Graph Saurus working on his own setup!

I used here the same kind of tricks I learned while working on the MSX Pixel Art Collection Vol.2.

Working on these images helped me a lot to o keep my mood while I was on the worst stages of my rehab, after a surgery to remove an acoustic neuroma.

This collection has then a very special meaning to me. It's both a celebration of my recovery, and a homage to Wakachan artist skills and friendliness.


Don't forget read the included README.TXT file that is included inside of each package.

All collections listed here can be viewed on the real MSX computers with the MSX Image Viewers, or with RECOIL on modern computers.

Digitized Image

Collection
Description
Digitized Image Collection Vol.1
There was a time were digitized images were all the rage. The ability to show photos made a computer stand against others. While the image quality will now make some turn their noses, these images are also a record of their time: cars, celebrities, landscapes,  Pr0n,  old CGI, games, TV shows/ads etc, so it's like a trip down the 80s/90s memory lane that also deserves to be preserved.

Tools/Utilities for MSX Pixel Art creation

Tool
Description
MSX Palettes
These are the MSX palettes for the GIMP and Photoshop. They can be used with any image editors that are compatible with these formats

Related MSX pages



Keywords: MSX, Pixel Art, ドット絵, 16色CG, chiptune, チップチューン, BGM