Lazarus-64, Not Actually 64 Bit But Still Blows Our Minds

September 29, 2010 by Jakob Griffith 16 Comments

Lazarus-64, breadboard game system; certainly sounds like something from the 1980s. We were surprised to find out not only the name, but also all the ICs used are only those available from the retro age of 30 years back (Save for the AVR controlling everything, of course). Even more amazing is how it has 256 flicker free color support, while not using NTSC chips. Which Goes to show that even if there are common solutions out there for cheap, building or compiling your own is not necessarily a bad thing or a waste of time.

There is a whole lot more to Lazarus, including double buffering and VMS, but sadly it appears progress has stopped on the Lazarus-64 breadboard game system, with the last update being last year. But we can still bask in the amazing glow that currently is.

So You Want To Make A Command Line Interface

August 26, 2010 by Jakob Griffith 42 Comments

[Keba] not only asked Answeres.HackaDay.com, but also sent us an email as follows.

“Can you make a basic guide to designing a good Command Line User Interface?”

Wouldn’t you know the luck, I’m currently working on a Command Line type interface for a project of mine. While after the jump I’ll be walking through my explanation, it should be noted that the other replies to Answers.HackaDay.com are also great suggestions.

Continue reading “So You Want To Make A Command Line Interface” →

8-bit Game Console With Wireless Motion Controller

March 26, 2010 by Mike Szczys 24 Comments

[Luis Cruz] built a gaming console with motion control. The circuit above connects via composite video to a television and communicates with a wireless controller. The controller is on a smaller breadboard which includes an accelerometer for the input and the infrared circuitry necessary for wireless data transmission back to the home system. Take a look at the first game he developed for it in the video after the break. There’s some details available (ie: he’s using ATmega168 and ATmega328 chips) but we’ve asked him to post code and schematics which he is currently cleaning up for mass consumption.

Ah, the 8-bit sound in that game takes us back to the glory days of Atari and Intellivision.

Continue reading “8-bit Game Console With Wireless Motion Controller” →

Katamari Controller

May 25, 2009 by Caleb Kraft 21 Comments

[blip.tv ?posts_id=2164793&dest=-1]

Remember those days, back in the arcade, where games with a unique control scheme also had a controller best suited for them? There were rolling balls, joysticks, dials, all sorts of inputs. Consoles have maily relied on their standard controllers, relegating alternative inputs to be strange collectors items. Some games just need a specialized controller though. For example, Katamari Damacy. [Kellbot] has made one that we think suits the game very well.

Mini Arcade Cabinets

April 15, 2009 by Caleb Kraft 23 Comments

mini-arcade

[Pocket_Lucho] has really done a fantastic job on this one. He’s making miniature arcade cabinets(translated) from old consoles. This post is mainly talking about a Sega genisis version, but he’s also done one for the PC engine(aka turbografix 16). He takes us through pulling RGB video strait from the chip as well as harvesting buttons from a cheapo all in one arcade controller. For the screen he’s using a PSone portable LCD, pretty much un modified. What really stands out is the final layout. He has built tiny arcade cabinets, about a foot tall, to house them. These are amazingly awesome and we want one. No, we want an entire mini arcade of them. You can see a video after the break.

Continue reading “Mini Arcade Cabinets” →

Atari 7800 Portable

June 18, 2008 by Eliot 1 Comment

Ben Heck has just wrapped up his latest project, a portable Atari 7800. He had meant to do this a long time ago, but lacking experience, the complex looking circuit board scared him off. It features a seven inch display, rechargeable batteries, combination driving and paddle controllers, plus AV out. The console was built by request and just like his other pojects: he’s not shy about showing you how it’s put together. Look for a making-of coming soon.

UPCB Makes Your Arcade Stick Universal

June 13, 2008 by Juan Aguilar No comments

The Universal PCB project lets you make any controller (specifically arcade sticks) console agnostic. A PIC microcontroller is used to translate between the button presses and the signals for the specific console you’re connected to. It uses a DB15 for the external plug. The PIC knows which console you’re plugged into based on which pins are high or low in your console specific adapter cable. The board includes a piggyback plug so you can plug in an Xbox360 controller board (like the one above) since the console requires authentication. The PIC’s firmware is conveniently upgradeable over the USB cable.