NeoChrome vs DEGAS Elite: Atari ST Vintage Graphics Formats
A technical comparison between Dave Staugas's NeoChrome (.neo) and Tom Hudson's DEGAS Elite (.pi1 / .pc1). Explore Atari ST 4-bitplane planar architectures, 12-bit hardware palettes, and color animation.
NeoChrome (.neo), developed by Dave Staugas at Atari Corp in 1985, and DEGAS Elite (.pi1/.pc1), designed by Tom Hudson for Batteries Included, were the two defining graphics programs of the Atari ST computer. Both utilized the Motorola 68000's planar bitplane architecture to produce 16-color 320x200 graphics from a 512-color hardware palette.
| FEATURE | NEO | DEGAS |
|---|---|---|
| Developer | Dave Staugas (Atari Corp, 1985) | Tom Hudson (Batteries Included, 1986) |
| Compression | Uncompressed (fixed 32,128 bytes) | Uncompressed (.pi*) or PackBits RLE (.pc*) |
| Header Size | 128 bytes (palette, cycling, resolution) | 34 bytes (resolution + 16-color palette) |
| Color Palette | 16 colors from 512 (ST) or 4096 (STE) | 16 colors from 512 (ST) or 4096 (STE) |
| Planar Structure | 4 interleaved 16-pixel word bitplanes | 4 interleaved 16-pixel word bitplanes |
- Uncompressed 32,128-byte layout allowing direct DMA memory blitting into ST screen RAM
- Embedded 16-color hardware palette with hardware color cycling limits and animation speed
- The original bundled graphics package that established 16-bit microcomputer pixel art
- Standard format for Atari ST demoscene titles, crackers, and pixel art showcases
- Offers both uncompressed (.pi1, .pi2, .pi3) and PackBits RLE compressed (.pc1, .pc2, .pc3) files
- Supports all three Atari ST resolutions: Low (320x200 16-col), Medium (640x200 4-col), High (640x400 mono)
- Advanced color animation registers and brush libraries in DEGAS Elite
- Widely adopted across commercial Atari ST game development and productivity titles
Both NeoChrome and DEGAS Elite represent the pinnacle of 16-bit Atari ST pixel art. Convert .neo and .pi1/.pc1 files into standard 32-bit RGBA PNG with aspect ratio correction to preserve retro computing art, demoscene screens, and game sprites on modern high-DPI displays.
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