> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.8bitedge.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# 8bitedge API: Retro Game Demand Intelligence

> The 8bitedge API gives retro game sellers real-time demand signals, pricing data, and catalog metadata to stock smarter and sell faster.

The 8bitedge API is a metered REST API built for retro game sellers and integrators. It surfaces buyer demand intelligence — trending titles, watched games, search analytics, and condition-level signals — alongside a full catalog of game and console metadata with market pricing. Every endpoint is versioned, rate-limited, and returns consistent JSON.

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Quick Start" icon="rocket" href="/quickstart">
    Make your first API call in under five minutes
  </Card>

  <Card title="Authentication" icon="key" href="/authentication">
    Get your API key and authenticate every request
  </Card>

  <Card title="Demand & Intent" icon="chart-line" href="/guides/demand-signals">
    Understand what buyers are searching for right now
  </Card>

  <Card title="API Reference" icon="code" href="/api/me">
    Full endpoint reference with request and response examples
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Get up and running

<Steps>
  <Step title="Obtain your API key">
    Contact the 8bitedge team to get your organization provisioned and receive an API key. Your key looks like `bit_ab12cd34ef56.<secret>` and is shown only once — store it securely.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Make your first request">
    Call `GET /api/v1/me` to verify your key, check your plan, and see current quota usage.

    ```bash theme={null}
    curl https://api.8bitedge.com/api/v1/me \
      -H "Authorization: Bearer $BITEDGE_API_KEY"
    ```
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add the right scopes">
    Each resource group requires its own scope on your API key — `games.read`, `consoles.read`, or `demand-intent.read`. Check that your key has the scopes you need before calling resource endpoints.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Explore demand data">
    Hit `/api/v1/demand-intent/games` to see the current demand leaderboard — which retro games buyers are clicking, watching, and searching for right now.

    ```bash theme={null}
    curl "https://api.8bitedge.com/api/v1/demand-intent/games?period=7d" \
      -H "Authorization: Bearer $BITEDGE_API_KEY"
    ```
  </Step>
</Steps>

## What's in the API

<CardGroup cols={3}>
  <Card title="Games" icon="gamepad" href="/api/games">
    Catalog metadata, slugs, and pricing for every enabled retro game title
  </Card>

  <Card title="Consoles" icon="tv" href="/api/consoles">
    Platform reference data for all supported retro consoles
  </Card>

  <Card title="Demand Leaderboards" icon="trophy" href="/api/demand-games">
    Ranked game and console demand with intent, watch, and momentum signals
  </Card>

  <Card title="Search Analytics" icon="magnifying-glass" href="/api/demand-searches">
    What buyers are searching for, including trending and unmet-demand queries
  </Card>

  <Card title="Condition Signals" icon="tags" href="/api/demand-conditions">
    Condition-level breakdown — loose, CIB, new, or any
  </Card>

  <Card title="Batch Requests" icon="layer-group" href="/guides/batch-requests">
    Submit multiple items in a single idempotent request
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Core concepts

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Plans & Rate Limits" icon="gauge" href="/concepts/plans-and-limits">
    Understand your plan's request limits, daily caps, and monthly quota
  </Card>

  <Card title="Pagination" icon="list" href="/concepts/pagination">
    Navigate large result sets with page-based or cursor-based pagination
  </Card>

  <Card title="Idempotency" icon="rotate" href="/concepts/idempotency">
    Safely retry POST requests without duplicate side-effects
  </Card>

  <Card title="Errors" icon="circle-exclamation" href="/concepts/errors">
    Understand error codes and build resilient error handling
  </Card>
</CardGroup>