It’s really crazy to see how far video games have come; Even just looking at home consoles, there’s such a more advanced level of hardware that can fit into a Nintendo Entertainment System-sized shell than could back when the 8-bit console was the greatest thing on the market. But video games weren’t always in the home: Our younger readers may have heard of these places called arcades, where you actually had to leave the house and pay in quarters in order to enjoy Donkey KongOpens in a new tab on a machine that was the size of a refrigerator, a machine that could play just that one game.
Now, there’s an arcade machine that’s known for its size, but only because it’s remarkably tiny (via EngadgetOpens in a new tab).
Using a Raspberry Pi ZeroOpens in a new tab computer, Phillip Burgess created a tiny Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator cabinet that’s a mere 67.2 mm (or barely over 2.5 inches) tall. Aside from the Raspberry Pi Zero, the project required a 0.96″ RGB OLEDOpens in a new tab display, an I2S class D audio amplifierOpens in a new tab, buttons, and other bits and pieces. Burgess stressed that while his creation is totally playable, it was more of a spontaneous project that he doesn’t recommend anybody else recreate, simply because it’s not that practical or worth it: “I suspect a lot of the ‘playing’ is just muscle memory from past experience. Honestly the whole thing’s a bit gimmicky for the sake of smallness. Sharing it for a laugh.”
For those interested in trying to create something like this, though, Burgess wrote about his process over at AdafruitOpens in a new tab, and also recommended some more useful alternative projects for tinkerers looking to try their hand at a Raspberry Pi-based retro game emulator.
Featured image: Adafruit IndustriesOpens in a new tab
