Pixel Painters Corp.

Founded:

1993

Location:

Merrifield, VA, U.S.

Status:

Closed

In the dog-eat-dog world of shareware games where game developers need luck, timing, and marketing muscle in addition to their designing savvy to survive, Pixel Painters' charming games stand out to this day as among the most fun and devilish arcade / puzzle games to ever grace a PC screen. Despite a short-lived career that spanned less than 3 years and saw only 5 games, every game that Pixel Painters developed is immensely fun, addictive, and of excellent production quality that rival the best commercial games. Pixel Painters is a far cry from many questionable shareware companies that typically throw together a bunch of free clip-arts and cheesy programming and boast of charging "only" $20 registration fee. The hallmarks of Pixel Painters games are their inimitable character and charm, wonderful animations, and addictive quality that keeps gamers coming back for more.

Pixel Painters seems to have suffered a fate shared by many of their colleagues-- the company quietly disintegrated and its founders moved to California. Here, then, are some of the most overlooked action / puzzle games of all time.