Pixels open-sources its game client, opening the frontend to modders

In Brief:

• Pixels (official site) released the source code for its game client, letting developers download it, build mods and connect their own versions to the studio’s sandbox.
• Modified clients can’t alter the economy or game state, and the more consequential server code is still to come.
• Community contributions run through asset-weighted voting tied to PIXEL holdings, land NFTs and staked PIXEL, with monthly merges capped and human-reviewed.

Pixels open-sourced its game client, founder Luke Barwikowski said, publishing the frontend code and inviting outside developers to modify it and run their own versions against the studio’s sandbox.

“We just open-sourced the Pixels client!” Barwikowski said in a post announcing the release.

The frontend is the part players see and touch. “The game view, menus, buttons, UI, and controls,” Barwikowski said. “Developers can now download it, change it, build mods, and connect their version to our sandbox.”

What’s in the repo

The release covers more than a bare interface. The repository includes a game directory with code for character behavior, items, achievements, avatar cosmetics, tile placement, camera controls, event handling, rate limiting and minigames.

That gives modders room to rework controls, interfaces, accessibility, performance, camera behavior and visual systems. Developers could redesign inventory displays, add alternative keyboard layouts, improve placement tools or test experimental client-side features. Resource-farming timers and accessibility options are among the early examples cited.

The economy stays off-limits

Opening the client doesn’t hand developers control over the world state. A modified client can change how an item is displayed or how an action is requested. It can’t grant resources, alter PIXEL balances or skip progression, because the server validates those actions.

The heavier release comes later. Barwikowski said the server code will follow, and it’s expected to carry far more weight. That code could touch player inventories, crafting and quests, raising the prospect of private instances or forks. Sensitive pieces such as player data and anti-cheat systems will stay protected.

Who gets a vote

Pixels isn’t opening the game to a free-for-all. The studio keeps the final say on what ships. Developers will evaluate community proposals, checking for security and compatibility before merging anything into the official codebase, and Pixels said it will likely cap merges to main each month.

Voting weight is tied to economic stake, not one player, one vote. Three forms of participation set it: PIXEL held in wallets, land NFTs, and PIXEL staked through the game’s contract. An account holding 25,000 PIXEL would carry 25 units of voting power, a rate of one vote for every 1,000 unstaked PIXEL.

The model tilts influence toward asset owners. Players holding tokens, land or staked positions shape the roadmap more than those who hold none.

Background

Pixels is a browser-based farming MMO built on Ronin, the EVM chain from Sky Mavis. Barwikowski founded the company in 2020, and it’s headquartered in San Francisco. Land NFTs and the PIXEL token function as stakeholder equity in the game’s economy, and Barwikowski holds majority voting power in Pixels Inc.

The client release is the first phase. Pixels is weighing whether to open-source both the client and server, a step that would let developers run the game, contribute features, test mechanics or fork their own versions.