Beau Blyth (aka Teknopants) released Samurai Gunn in 2014 in the wake of a renaissance of pixel-art based fighting games like Towerfall and Nidhogg. Samurai Gunn cleanly distinguishes itself within the genre, mixing Extended Graphics Array-era aesthetics and the pace and dynamics of martial arts film conventions. The combination creates speed and momentary freezes in action that wouldn’t be possible in the XGA-era, yet revels in the character and scenery articulation invoked by the pixel art of the early 1990’s. This silkscreen design for the game by Jesse Tise associates the title with even more histories and styles. The playable warrior Hayao is depicted in a manner that sits somewhere between comix, street art and the Chicago Imagist style.

Jesse Tise is an illustrator and designer based in South Pasadena, CA. He is the author of the comic book Electric Candyland, as well as a number of other comic books and two-dimensional work.

Beau Blyth is a visual artist and game maker who has produced such titles as Samurai Gunn, 0Space, Shoot First, Action Fist, Fish Face, Das Uberleben and the forthcoming Hyper Light Drifter. He is based in Los Angeles, California.