[From Reddit] A Game Boy “Calculator”?

Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/Gameboy/comments/cdm0am/i_finally_finished_my_gameboy_calculator/

This one comes from Redditor u/Genetically_Generic. The linked video shows the GBA game Pokémon Ruby booting up! Really cool.

Andrew

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GB Studio 3.0 now in development, 2.0 still in beta

Source: https://discord.com/channels/554713715442712616/591302255102132226

Scant details are available at the moment, but there’s been activity on the GB Studio GitHub regarding development and bugs for an upcoming 3.0 release of GB Studio, a popular game creation tool for the Game Boy.

It should be noted that GB Studio 2.0 has endured a lengthy beta period and it seems that might continue. The last stable version of GB Studio was 1.2.1, released almost a year and half ago in January 2020.

A brief message posted to the #faqs channel of the GB Studio Discord announcing the development of 3.0 notes that it’s currently unstable and there’s no timeframe for release. However, it also gives instructions on compiling GB Studio 3.0 from source code yourself if you’re interested enough, as well as the proper way to report bugs you encounter while using it.

GB Studio 3.0 is under development. Right now, it’s unstable and not suitable to develop with. We’ll post in #announcements when you can start testing it.

When is 3.0 beta coming out?
3.0 is made by volunteers, there cannot be a reliable release date.

How do I get 3.0? Some people seem to be using it already.
Visit https://github.com/chrismaltby/gb-studio/issues/244#issuecomment-511568971 for a guide to compiling the source code.

How do I report 3.0 bugs?
Open an issue on GitHub here: https://github.com/chrismaltby/gb-studio/issues/new?assignees=&labels=bug&template=bug_report.md&title=(3.0) Please keep (3.0) in the title.

pautomas on the GB Studio Discord

How exactly 3.0 differs from 2.0, and why the decision was made to jump to another major version, have yet to be formally revealed. However, it points to some serious under-the-hood work likely designed to make GB Studio more flexible in game creation and/or easier to develop updates for. Furthermore, a video posted by the creator of GB Studio, Chris Maltby, this past January teased a bevy of features enabled by a “completely rewritten game engine.”

“This new version is still a little while off yet. It will be worth the wait!” -Chris Maltby

Did work on the new engine balloon to the point it made more sense to debut it in a major new release? The new features in Maltby’s video (above) are impressive, especially the new integrated music tracker.

GB Studio 2.0 has been highly anticipated, packing in frequently-requested features such as full color support, platforming and other genres available as gameplay options, and the ability to save, among other things. Anecdotally, it seems most developers have already moved on to 2.0 for development of their games despite it still being labeled as beta software.

Hopefully this means 2.0 can graduate to the stable channel soon, as development on 3.0 heats up. 🔥

Andrew

[Cool site] Boxy Pixel

Source: https://www.boxypixel.com

A machined aluminum GBA shell by Boxy Pixel

Boxy Pixel is an online shop which specializes in mods for GBC, GBA and Nintendo Switch. Their headlining items definitely have to be the eye-catching machined-aluminum shells!

They also sell other mod parts, such as aluminum buttons, new screens, rechargeable batteries, USB-C charging boards, and much more. Aluminum shells for either Color or Advance run for $69.00 USD, and come in a variety of colors (anodization) including gold, silver (clear anodization), red, blue, and teal. They also come in a “solid brass” variant, which seems to be a “shinier” gold.

Unfortunately, at the time of this post the GBC shells are sold out, with a note saying they’re being “redesigned.”

We are currently redesigning and prototyping new shells. ETA is June.

Boxy Pixel

I hope there’s as few (outward) changes from the official design as possible, personally! Their homegrown hingeless SP design is neat, but it’s hard to beat the people at Nintendo.

Game Boy Advance SP Unhinged

Andrew

YouTuber creates a GB link-cable-to-USB device, uses it to mine Bitcoin and play online

Source 1: Mining Bitcoin on the Game Boy – YouTube

Source 2: Online Multiplayer on the Game Boy – YouTube

In March, this video by stacksmashing on YouTube began blowing up in various Game Boy and cryptocurrency circles. And what an incredible feat! The software side of things is impressive, but even moreso the hardware. The first step was using a Raspberry Pi Pico to create the actual device, otherwise there wouldn’t be a way for the Game Boy (and game) and PC to talk to each other.

Continue reading “YouTuber creates a GB link-cable-to-USB device, uses it to mine Bitcoin and play online”