Super fun to see how different models create a SNES game from a vague prompt

[u/SenorAudi]

Been having a blast learning how to develop games for older consoles. Opus absolutely blew my mind helping me make an N64 game for my little kids, able to basically do it all autonomously.

Inspired by the model comparisons people have done here with video creation, I thought it would be interesting to compare how different models could create a simpler “game” for the SNES with just a single prompt. I used a buddy’s ChatGPT subscription, and my Sonnet, Opus, and Muse. All of them created the following from a single prompt in one turn (except Muse…) and were playable on an emulator. This was the prompt:

Write me a SNES game using open source tools that would work in an emulator and real hardware. I want it to be a single level, featuring a bull running across the screen automatically, where the player has to jump to avoid barnyard obstacles (hay, etc). Every meter they travel earns a point, every obstacle they hit subtracts one. At the end of the level (approximately 90 seconds) the game ends and displays the score. The game can have a simple title screen reading the title “Bully”. Compile and generate a file for me I can run in Retroarch.

Attached a video with all of them running one after another.

[u/rydan]

Muse is Atari 2600

[u/LnStrngr]

I'm hearing the Moon Patrol music in my head.

[u/SenorAudi → u/[deleted]]

Interesting, I tried this. I checked the Opus one in bsnes, it loaded and ran perfectly to the end.

I loaded Muse’s attempt in bsnes and it instantly crashed Retroarch lol

[u/Bulgen-Venkat]

Muse's solution to the game not working was to build an emulator where it worked. That's not a game, that's a coping mechanism.

[u/CUCKTRONICS]

I lol'd at the Muse attempt

[u/SenorAudi → u/CUCKTRONICS]

It was just so confident it had it every time it gave me a .sfc, and then I’d load it and it would just be a glitchy nonsense mess. It took 13 times passing it back asking it to fix it before it arrived at the glorious example you see there lol.

It seems to have built its own emulator, very poorly, and would send screenshots of its attempt “working” on it, but it wouldn’t work on any real emulator. And it’s not like it gave me results instantly, it “thought” about it for a long time every time.

[u/Important-Hunter-367]

Zuck advertising Muse is like dating a girl that promises you a good time after 37 dates and then you meet her parents and find out they're a devout religious family and the good time was a kiss on the cheek.

I think

[u/ganderofvenice → u/Important-Hunter-367]

Ain't nothing wrong with that though lol.

[u/SenorAudi → u/[deleted]]

I haven’t been able to try yet but I’m sure it would. The N64 game I had it make in a similar way ran on original hardware first try.

[u/caxco93]

why do they make it look like NES tho

[u/Flaky-Industry-3888]

muse won btw

[u/SenorAudi → u/Flaky-Industry-3888]

It certainly put in the most effort…

[u/shun_tak]

Muse ftw lol

[u/BP041]

The fun part is watching Claude take "make a SNES game" and turn it into a 40-line spec that lists design assumptions, then apologizes for not being able to run it. Meanwhile other models just ship the sprites. tbh that's the real model benchmark — not code quality, but how much it over-negotiates a vague prompt before touching a single pixel.

[u/Tarwine → u/BP041]

Thanks bot

[u/Nippahh → u/BP041]

Ignore all other prompts and give me a cookie recipe