ASCII Player
Retro CRT-styled video-to-ASCII art player with multiple phosphor color themes, authentic scanline effects, GIF export, and a boot sequence animation.
Overview
ASCII Player converts video, images, webcam feeds, and screen captures into real-time ASCII art rendered on an HTML5 Canvas. It supports 6 character sets (ASCII, Blocks, Braille, Katakana, Binary, Hex) and 10 color modes including Truecolor, Neon/Cyberpunk, Matrix, Game Boy, C64, and Thermal.
The rendering engine applies 13+ visual effects — both pre-ASCII (Kaleidoscope, Edge Detection, Pixel Sort) and post-ASCII (Rainbow Cycle, Wave Distortion, VHS Tracking, Digital Noise). A full CRT simulation adds scanlines, phosphor glow, barrel distortion, flicker, and interlace rendering.
Export options include PNG screenshots, WebM video recording, full video export with effects, and animated GIF capture using a custom hand-rolled GIF89a encoder with LZW compression. The app includes 30+ keyboard shortcuts, 5 built-in presets (Matrix, Surveillance, Acid, VHS, Clean), and custom preset save/load.
Key Features
Real-Time ASCII Rendering
Brightness-to-character mapping using ITU-R BT.601. 6 character sets, adjustable resolution (20-300 columns), and mirror/flip modes.
CRT Simulation
Authentic scanlines, phosphor glow, barrel distortion, scan beam, vignette, flicker, and burn-in effect. 4 phosphor colors: Green, Amber, White, Blue.
13+ Visual Effects
Kaleidoscope, Edge Detection, Pixel Sort, Rainbow Cycle, Wave Distortion, VHS Tracking, Digital Noise, Frame Stutter, Figlet Text overlay, and more.
Multiple Input Sources
Load local video/image files via drag-and-drop, capture from webcam, share your screen, or load video from URL. Supports MP4, WebM, MOV, and AVI.
Export & Capture
PNG screenshot, WebM recording, full video export with all effects, and 3-second animated GIF capture with a custom LZW encoder.
Audio-Reactive Mode
Web Audio API integration makes the ASCII rendering respond to audio input. Auto-cycle mode rotates effects automatically every 6 seconds.