An enthusiast has turned a Raspberry Pi Pico into a PiBoy Advance console

The PiBoy Advance project has breathed new life into Nintendo’s iconic Game Boy Advance handheld console. It’s based on the Raspberry Pi Pico microcontroller, which runs classic games and runs in the case of the original console.

The Raspberry Pi Pico is a microcontroller that runs classic games and runs in the original console’s case.

How the PiBoy Advance works

The author of the project — Arniv Sharma, known for a number of retro designs. To build it, he used an off-the-shelf Pico GB emulator that allows him to run original Game Boy games. Arnoff purchased the GBA case separately and customized it for his own purposes.

PiBoy Advance runs ROM files directly from the microSD card, displays pictures on the ILI9225 display at over 70fps, and plays sound through the MAX98357 audio module. For this purpose, a tiny 1W speaker borrowed from the DF ROBOT Unihiker K10 board is connected to the system.

Test Results

Arnova says the device delivers 2.5-3 hours of gaming from a single charge. At the same time, the Pico manages to run games «without the slightest problem». The author considers the main area for improvement to be increasing battery life.

Despite its limitations, the project impresses with its combination of the Raspberry Pi Pico’s compactness and authentic appearance. The console looks like an original Game Boy Advance while still running on modern hardware.