The LEGO 72046 Game Boy released a couple of months ago, is one of the smallest video game sets released by the group to rejoice this fall. That said, the display set lacked just one little thing: the ability to play real Nintendo games. Natalie the Nerd, who’s a renowned Game Boy modder in the community, has got the dead set to play actual Game Paks, or any other modern homebrew titles. The Aussie modder even promised avid fans that she’ll release a $50 kit, so that you can play arcade titles on your LEGO Game Boy.
Even before the set became officially available for purchase a few days ago, Natalie took measurements from the announced press documentation of the set to create the custom kit. According to the tech-savvy modder who knows the Game Boy inside and out, rerouting the CPU, PCBs, power regulation, and capacitors is not much of a challenge for her. The main challenge was fitting everything inside the housing to make playing games possible.
Designer: Natalie the Nerd
What might seem like a cake walk for Natalie isn’t at all easy, as it involves taking the millimeter-perfect measurements and then 3D printing the custom components. She had to build a special circuit board to make the thing work without going for the easy way out – without going down the emulation rabbit hole. The space-conscious build within the LEGO model uses the LEGO model’s cartridge slot to fit the real cartridges to play games. Since she didn’t have the real thing until only a couple of days now, she was in the unknown about the tactile behavior of the LEGO buttons on the thing. Thankfully, LEGO Group takes things seriously, and the buttons work fine to implement real-world functionality. For now, to make the A and B buttons function perfectly, she has held them in place with an elastic band. As a permanent fix, Natalie will 3D print a LEGO piece to hold a custom PCB for the intended functionality.
According to Natalie, the power circuit is one used for her Safety Charger boards, tweaked to have a soft latching power button. The board also has extra pinouts for the 3D printed button matrix and audio. The power input is via the USB-C port connected to the 3D printed adapters that look like LEGO studs for a snug fit. The build has the speaker’s function missing as she’s figuring out how to connect them to the audio pins. The rear panel that holds the fake cartridge in place now has a slot that initiates the game for real.
The aftermarket she’s going to create for interested modders will require some basic level of soldering skills and circuitry know-how. Since it is going to be a raw affair, only wannabe modders are advised to go ahead with buying it. Natalie hasn’t detailed the availability of the DIY kit for the LEGO Game Boy, but it should be available in the coming weeks.
The post Aussie modder turns the dead LEGO Game Boy into a functional handheld first appeared on Yanko Design.
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