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Mudbox vs Pico-8

Mudbox logo

Mudbox

Software

Digital painting and sculpting software

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Pico-8 logo

Pico-8

Software

A fantasy console for making, sharing and playing tiny games

From
$14.99/one-time
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Mudbox a Mudbox subscription license may be installed on up to 3 computers (Internet Archive capture, 12 November 2023); Pico-8 extremely limited display resolution of 128x128 pixels with 16-colour palette
  • They diverge on capability: Mudbox covers Digital sculpting, Pico-8 covers Pixel art editor.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Mudbox and Pico-8 actually diverge.

Attributes where Mudbox and Pico-8 differ
AttributeMudboxPico-8
Starting price$29/month$14.99/one-time
Pricing modelsubscriptionone-time
PlatformsWindows, MacOS, LinuxWindows, macOS, Linux, Raspberry Pi
Founded19822005

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Mudbox

  • Digital sculpting
  • Texture painting
  • Retopology
  • PTEX support
  • Layer system
  • Stencils
  • Stamps
  • GPU tessellation

Only in Pico-8

  • Pixel art editor
  • Music composer
  • Lua scripting
  • Built-in palette
  • Sprite system
  • Map editor
  • Code editor
  • Game cartridges

Both cover

  • Windows support
  • Linux support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Mudbox

  • Character sculptingnot Pico-8
  • Texture creationnot Pico-8
  • Asset detailingnot Pico-8

Pico-8

  • Retro-style indie game developmentnot Mudbox
  • Educational game programmingnot Mudbox
  • Game jam participationnot Mudbox
  • Pixel art game creation with strict creative constraintsnot Mudbox

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Mudbox

  • A Mudbox subscription license may be installed on up to 3 computers (Internet Archive capture, 12 November 2023)
  • Sold as monthly, annual or 3-year subscription terms with no perpetual license option offered on the pricing page (Internet Archive capture, 12 November 2023)

Pico-8

  • Extremely limited display resolution of 128x128 pixels with 16-colour palette
  • Cart size capped at 32 kilobytes
  • Only 256 sprites of 8x8 pixels available
  • Map limited to 128x32 tiles
  • Monophonic sound synthesis with 4-channel chip synthesis only
  • Lua programming language exclusively; no other language support

Pricing, plan by plan

Mudbox

$29/month
  • Mudbox$85/month
    • Full sculpting
    • Texture painting
  • M&E Collection$2390/month
    • Mudbox + Maya + 3ds Max + more

Pico-8

$14.99/one-time

No published plan breakdown. See the Pico-8 review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Mudbox if

  • You need digital sculpting.
  • You work on Windows, MacOS, Linux.
  • You also want texture painting.
Mudbox review

Choose Pico-8 if

  • You need pixel art editor.
  • You work on Windows, macOS, Linux, Raspberry Pi.
  • You also want music composer.
Pico-8 review

Questions people ask

Is Mudbox or Pico-8 better?
Neither clearly leads. Mudbox starts at $29/month and Pico-8 at $14.99/one-time, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Mudbox or Pico-8?
Mudbox starts at $29/month and Pico-8 at $14.99/one-time.
Does Mudbox or Pico-8 run on more platforms?
Mudbox runs on Windows, MacOS, Linux. Pico-8 runs on Windows, macOS, Linux, Raspberry Pi.
What is Mudbox best used for?
Mudbox is most often used for character sculpting, texture creation, asset detailing. Of those, character sculpting and texture creation are not what Pico-8 is typically brought in for.
What can Mudbox do that Pico-8 cannot?
Mudbox covers Digital sculpting, Texture painting, Retopology, PTEX support. Pico-8 covers Pixel art editor, Music composer, Lua scripting, Built-in palette. Both handle Windows support, Linux support.
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