isometric.nyc
AI
generative image map
SHOW HN2026
1,325points
241comments
#5of 4,366 in 2026
Top 1%of 2026 by points
How HN took it
MixedNo clear lean
65 positive, 54 neutral or asking, 5 mixed, 23 critical, out of 147 comments about the project. Thread score +0.34.
Idea: 20 for, 9 againstDesign: 13 for, 5 againstExecution: 4 for, 3 againstPerformance: 1 for, 6 againstDocs: 4 for, 0 against
The thread, comment by comment
Each row is a top-level comment and its replies, in HN's order. Select a cell to open that comment on HN.
positive neutral or mixed critical about another commenter or something else the maker
What HN said
What people liked
Clearer and more useful than satellite maps
From 1 comment
I just want to say this isn't just amazing -- it's my new favorite map of NYC. It's genuinely astonishing how much clearer this is than a traditional satellite map -- how it has…
crazygringo on HN
Fast and up to date on mobile
From 1 comment
This is awesome, thanks for sharing this! I am especially impressed with the “i didn’t write a single line of code” part, because I was expecting it to be janky or slow on…
filoleg on HN
Good write-up of the process
From 2 comments
Want to thank you for taking the time to write up the process. I know you'll get flak for the agentic coding, but I think it's really awesome you were able to realize an idea…
ivangelion on HN> Slop vs. Art > If you can push a button and get content, then that content is a commodity. Its value is next to zero. > Counterintuitively, that’s my biggest reason to be…
jesse__ on HN
Objections
Looks obviously AI-generated and inconsistent across tiles
From 2 comments
I was extremely excited until I looked closer and realized how many of these look like ... well AI. The article is such a good read and would recommend people check it out. Feels…
ProjectBarks on HNYeah it leaves a lot to be desired. Once you see the AI it's hard to unsee. I actually had a few other generation styles, more 8-bit like, that probably would have lended…
cannoneyed on HN
Pixel art label is wrong for this style
From 2 comments
I just want to say this isn't just amazing -- it's my new favorite map of NYC. It's genuinely astonishing how much clearer this is than a traditional satellite map -- how it has…
crazygringo on HNAuthor here, and to reiterate another reply - all of the critique of "pixel art" is completely fair. Aesthetically and philosophically, what AI does for "pixel art" is very off.…
cannoneyed on HN
Water and concrete confused; some errors
From 2 comments
This is awesome, thanks for sharing this! I am especially impressed with the “i didn’t write a single line of code” part, because I was expecting it to be janky or slow on…
filoleg on HNthe classic "water/concrete" issue! There's probably a lot of those around the map - turns out, it's pretty hard to tell the difference between water and concrete/terrain in a…
cannoneyed on HN
Hand-built NYC models show AI isn't needed
From 2 comments
> This project is far from perfect, but without generative models, it couldn’t exist. There’s simply no way to do this much work on your own, Maybe, though a guy did physically…
xnx on HN> This project is far from perfect, but without generative models, it couldn’t exist. There’s simply no way to do this much work on your own 100 people built this in 1964:…
rafram on HN
Requests
Add Staten Island
From 2 comments
"map of NYC" does not include Staten Island. That's how we like it
sandpaper26 on HNNice work! But not all of NYC. Where's the rest of Staten Island?
_0xdd on HN
Make other cities such as SF
From 2 comments
Very impressive result! are you taking requests for the next ones? SF :D Tokyo :D Paris :D Milan :D Rome :D Sydney :D Oh man...
bigwheels on HNReally want to do SF next. Maybe the next gen of models will be reliable enough to automate it but this took WAY too much manual labor for a working man. I’ll get the code up…
cannoneyed on HN
Add roads and simulated cars
From 1 comment
To take it a step further it would be super cool to so rhiw figure out the roadway system from the map data and use the buildings as masks over the roads and have little…
polishdude20 on HN
Questions
How the masking process made seamless tiles
From 1 comment
So, wait: this is just based on taking the 40 best/most consistent Nano Banana outputs for a prompt to do pixel-art versions of isometric map tiles? That's all it takes to…
tptacek on HN
How long the project took
From 1 comment
Just curious, about how long did this project take you? I don't see that mentioned in the article.
dsmmcken on HN
Why NJ is included
From 1 comment
Why is so much NJ on the map?
fortran77 on HN
Alternatives named
SimCity-style maps
From 1 comment
Author here, and to reiterate another reply - all of the critique of "pixel art" is completely fair. Aesthetically and philosophically, what AI does for "pixel art" is very off.…
cannoneyed on HN
Hand-built NYC scale model by Brooklyn trucker
From 1 comment
> This project is far from perfect, but without generative models, it couldn’t exist. There’s simply no way to do this much work on your own 100 people built this in 1964:…
rafram on HN