Ember: Beginnings - Homebrew Retro Video Game Console Design
As I mentioned in my introductory post, the Ember video game console idea came about as I was watching many hours of YouTube videos on various tech-related topics. I quickly came to realize just how possible (if not exactly trivial) it would be to design a custom CPU, GPU, and various parts to put them together using software emulation. Then, develop an emulator and software toolchain to develop games for it. Later, I might even run the design on hardware using modern FPGAs (Field Programmable Gate Arrays) like the Terasic DE-10 Nano, or possibly this Spartan 7-based board from Seeed, the Spartan Edge Accelerator, which is selling for around $40 US.
One great source of inspiration came from Ben Eater on YouTube. Ben has many videos that walk you step-by-step through building various electronics and computer projects on breadboards, including a complete 6502-based computer, VGA video card, and various other circuits. He also provides all the technical background you need to understand what you are building. Amazing stuff!
Many other sites cover FPGAs and Arduino boards, like SparkFun, or how to write a complete Nintendo NES Emulator From Scratch. If retro programming is your thing, ChibiAkumas will teach you how to develop for nearly every video game console or computer ever released! And for every YouTube channel…
