With today’s technology, emulating video game consoles from the 90s or before is trivial. A Raspberry Pi and a controller of some sort is perhaps the easiest and simplest way to go to get this job done, but to really impress the masses some extra effort is required. This handheld from [Eli] called the Game Bub not only nails the appearance and feel of the first three generations of Nintendo handhelds but, thanks to its FPGA, can play not only ROMs but the original game cartridges as well.
As [Eli] notes, the FPGA is not strictly necessary for emulation, but does seem to be better at interfacing with physical hardware like controllers and game cartridges. For this task an Xilinx XC7A100T with integrated memory was chosen, with a custom PCB supporting the built-in controller, speaker, a rechargeable lithium battery, and a 480×320 display (that had to be rotated out of portrait mode). An SD Card reader is included for any ROM files, and there’s also a ESP32-S3 included to give the handheld WiFi and Bluetooth capabilities, with future plans to support the communications protocol used by the Game Boy Advance Wireless Adapter.
There are a few other features with the Game Bub as well, including the ability to use an authentic link cable to communicate with the original Game Boy and Game Boy Color, and a Switch-like dock that allows the Game Bub to be connected to an external monitor. It’s also open source, which makes it an even more impressive build. Presumably it doesn’t include the native ability to dump cartridges to ROM files but you don’t need much more than a link cable to do that if you need to build your ROM library.
Thanks to [Charles] for the tip!
Amazing build, well done!
Also love the section “A brief rant about FPGA retrogaming”, there has been so much parroting of the analogue pocket marketing lies in the emulation community. Super annoying, and this hits the nail on the head.
+1
I think same. The part was refreshingly honest, thumbs up! 😃👍
Personally, I have no problem with FPGAs, as long as people don’t pretend it’s something that it isn’t.
In essence, FPGAs are highly adcanced programmable function blocks that often come with an additional RISC processor that’s quite powerful.
– A far cry from CPLDs and PLAs or PALs/GALs, which are more hardware-like (EEPROM/ROM matrices, no software/boot up phase).
Using them as an in-place substitute for unavailable hardware is just fine, as long as it’s being mentioned that it is a modern technology.
When it comes to playing NES games “on real hardware”, though, I generally want to have the real experience.
Either through the original console or a faithful hardware clone using same technology (Famiclone, NOACs).
Otherwise I just concouisly decide to play it on a fine software emulator, such as Nestopia.
Or on Nesticle, on my DOS retro rig. That’s also fun, of course.
But then it’s not about reliving the good-old-days™ so much,
but simply about enjoying a good game as such.
Which is a different thing, I think.
To some, playing on real hardware is more about meditation,
about the associateed memories of childhood or teenage days, I think.
Like a ceremonia, if you will.
You hold the old controller, do the same steps as you did in the past:
take the cartridge, put it in, close the lid, press the power button..
To some, it makes things so much more real as an overall experience.
Especially if a CRT TV or video monitor is being used.
To some, the white static snow of RF is part of the experience.
–
It’s like watching an old movie on VHS from the 1980s vs streaming, maybe.
The movie is same on either medium, but the VHS doesn’t interrupt the film with ads from 2025.
If you’re watching an VHS from the 80s, then everything is period-correct. It’s a time capsule, so to say. It’s the real thing.
And if you hold the VHS in your hand, then you know both consciously
and subconsciously that this is same film you watched with friends and family aeons ago.
You even hear the humming of the VCR. It’s an almost spiritual experience.
There’s nothing that drags you out of your mood so suddenly, in short.
And that’s why you have a need for the real thing, after all.
That doesn’t mean, however, that you can’t enjoy watching the film casually on TV if its being aired.
It’s fun in its own way, but a different experience, not so much of an celebration.
Long story short: It’s not just about functional similarity, but I want to experience seeing real old hardware at work.
Technology of the 1980s or early 90s, with all its subtle flaw, in short.
I want to be able to hear the radio interference of the 6502 NES processor on a kitchen radio if I want to.
A programmed FPGA might be logically similar/same to a real console, but it’s a different technology working underneath.
It’s like building a tube radio using FETs and use LEDs to light up the chassis.
It’s functionality same, but the technology is different.
It’s emulation on hardware basis, sort of. Or mimikry. ;)
$130 FPGA to emulate $5 ARM chip from 2001 🤮
Yeah, imagine someone does something because they find it interesting or because they want to learn something, rather than it being cost-effective 🙄
(Also, you can find those FPGAs for around $20-30)
It’s decidedly more than that. The demo shows GBC, GBA and SNES. That’s weirdo GBC Z80 which is unobtainium, ARM7TDMI (also unobtainiu/), and 65816 with extensions (also unobtainium, and no the WDC 816 is not the same).
The SFC chipset has been, err, replicated. Modern implementations have twice the RAM, even.
The FCTwin/RetroDuo come mind, for example. Similar to NOACs, they’re real hardware.
Compatibility is good, but someone must keep the 50Hz/60Hz difference in mind.
(Most modern consoles are wired for 60Hz by default; can be easily modded for 50Hz.)
Now when using a 50Hz game on 60Hz console, an SFX chip in the PAL cartridge may produce garbled graphics output.
Same happens with old legit hardware, too.
I hope we see more replications of old chips brought forward. It’d be nice if buying new chips for old consoles was always possible without harvesting.
Yeah, this build is totally awesome…
and with the time he put in, these 130$ represent nothing… the only people that should be upsaid are the cheap cloner that won’t be able to sell cheap clone of this awesome job…