Enamoured with the low-poly aesthetic of Minecraft’s blocky worlds? Wish your life was more like a pixelated 8-bit video game? Voxart is a new building toy that can also be used to create retro-style art pieces for those ready to shun modern conveniences like anti-aliasing and finally ban curved surfaces from their lives.
Unlike building toys such as Lego, where the individual components arrive as three-dimensional pieces you stack to build larger creations, the Voxart system starts out with flat plastic tiles in 16 different colours.
The corners of each tile feature bevels and creased hinges that can be folded up and connected to other tiles using a simple snap mechanism that keeps them all securely attached, but not permanently. Like Lego, you can disassemble a creation later and re-use the tiles for other builds.
Six of the plastic tiles can be used to create a single self-contained cube a little larger than an inch on each side, but those cubes can also be connected to other cubes to create larger, more elaborate structures and models. The method works the same as the toy’s namesake, voxels, which are like pixels but for 3D. While most 3D games opt for polygons due to them being cheaper to rend, Minecraft uses voxels.
So while the Voxart system is a fun way to turn yourself into Minecraft’s Steve for Halloween, you can also use it as a way to decorate your home with pixelated pets, pixelated flowers, and even pixelated recreations of iconic retro video game characters like Pac-Man or Mario — although Voxart’s creators aren’t going to outright suggest that, presumably to keep Nintendo’s lawyers at bay.
The Voxart building system will also come with an accompanying mobile app, allowing users to share designs and find inspiration for new builds, with 3D models that detail how all the cubes need to be assembled.
Voxart’s creators are making the building system available through a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign that has already surpassed its $US10,000 ($13,882) funding goal. Two different types of sets are available for those backing this campaign. “Collections” include the exact number and colours of tiles needed to build a specific model, with the cheapest option being a $US9 ($12) flower assembled from 49 tiles. They get larger and more expensive from there, including kits like $US49 ($68) buildable heads that can include up to 400 tiles.
For those wanting more creativity, Voxart will also be sold in “Freestyle” kits that include an assortment of coloured tiles in multiples of 100, with the cheapest option being a 500-tile package for $US69 ($96). Shipping on all the kits currently offered as part of the Voxart Kickstarter campaign is expected to start as early as June, later this year. As with any Kickstarter-ed product, there are still risks involved for those who back this one, even though it doesn’t involve complicated electronics or manufacturing. Delays are inevitable as the fallout from Covid-19 continues to be felt around the world, so as always, backer beware.
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