• Doug TenNapel: "I just got word from Terry Taylor that all new [Neverhood] MUSIC is coming! … and I'm providing all new art." #

• Doug TenNapel: "I just got word from Terry Taylor that all new [Neverhood] MUSIC is coming! … and I'm providing all new art." #

So goes the slogan for the really cool new 8-Bit NYC site, which maps out all five boroughs of New York City in simple, NES-style graphics.

Check out Robot Vaudeville world headquarters:

After only one day of seeking investors, the project creator, Brett Camper, has reached his goal and received the surprisingly reasonable $3,000 startup costs needed to map even more of the world’s major cities in a similar fashion. Sounds like lots of fun ahead!

Check out the whole city on 8-Bit NYC.

Via @Retroist on Twitter.

The teaser trailer was awesome, but this is really exciting:

Artist Mike Dietz, who worked as an animator on both Earthworm Jim and Earthworm Jim 2, has graciously responded to a number of fan requests by posting sketches and other development art from the two games to his blog.

There are some really groovy drawings showing a lot of ideas that made it into the games, and even more interestingly, a lot of ideas that didn’t. Take for example these cruel tricks designed for Earthworm Jim 2 that never made it into the game (thankfully—as if it wasn’t already hard enough!):

Or this amazing background detail for what presumably turned into the New Junk City level from the first game:

Be sure to check out all the fantastic Earthworm Jim images on Mike Dietz’s blog, Slappy Pictures.

• Having trouble with the Disqus WP plugin. Any other bloggers who use it? Facebook won't connect, and nothing will even load at all in IE8! #
• Ah hah! Think the IE8 problem was a conflict with the lightbox scripts. Still perplexed by the Facebook issues, however… #
• I'd probably never have clean clothes if there wasn't a Ms. Pac-Man machine at the laundromat. #
• I subscribed to NewAgeRetroGamer's channel on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/user/NewAgeRetroGamer?feature=autoshare_twitter #
• It's like the #Thingswewantback TT was made for me… #

Keiji Inafune seems to think so.

In a recent interview with the Mega Man-producer, Inafune alludes to the possibility of an upcoming return to the X series’s 16-bit roots. Fielding a question from a Capcom-Unity member, he responds:

One of the biggest reasons for going with the 8bit style was the success with Mega Man 9. MM 9 succeeded beyond our wildest expectation. We had initially thought of bringing back to the series the feel of the NES to create a sense of nostalgia with MM9. Receiving the great reaction from the fans over it, we decided to establish the style as the game genre for Mega Man. In line with this concept, reviving the 16 bit game style in the series seems like a great idea. We certainly would like to consider trying it out in future when there’s a chance.

And later, in response to adopting a more unique stylistic approach to future X games:

I think Odinsphere and Muramasa are really good games, but we probably would not mix Mega Man X series with those styles. We would love to work with brand new 2D game ideas rather than borrowing one from elsewhere.

Wishful thinking or something more?

Via The Mega Man Network; Mega Man X: Corrupted fan game screen shot from JKBGames.