diy game hardware
Well, let me tell you, these young folks and their games! Back in my day, we played outside. But now, it’s all these screens and buttons. My grandson, bless his heart, he’s always tinkerin’ with somethin’. He said he’s gonna make his own game thingy. DIY game hardware, he calls it. Sounds complicated, but he seems to know what he’s doin’.
He’s always talkin’ about this Raspberry Pi. Sounds like a food, but it ain’t. It’s some kinda tiny computer, he says. Says it can play old games. You know, the ones with the big boxes, like they had at the arcade. He showed me one of those arcade games once, noisy things. He wants to build one of those arcade game machines right here in the house!
He’s been buyin’ all sorts of things from that Micro Center place. Says they got all the stuff you need. Arcade gaming hardware, he calls it. What even is that? Buttons, and sticks, and wires, oh my! He showed me these joysticks, says they’re for movin’ the little men on the screen. They look mighty fragile to me. Hope he don’t break ’em.
He’s got this plan, all drawn out on paper. It’s got pictures of the box, and where all the buttons go. He’s even gonna paint it, he says. I told him to make it sturdy. Kids these days, they’re rough with their toys.
- First, he’s gotta get that Raspberry Pi thing workin’.
- Then he’s gotta put some kinda software on it. RetroPie, I think he called it.
- Connect the buttons and the stick-thingy.
- Put it all in a box, he makes it look so easy.
I don’t understand all this gaming stuff, but it keeps him busy. He’s a good boy, just a little obsessed with these games. He says this DIY game hardware project is gonna be the best thing ever. I just hope it don’t take over the whole house!
He tried to explain to me how this Raspberry Pi works, but it just went right over my head. All those numbers and letters, it’s like a different language! He said somethin’ about models, like those little cars he used to collect. Seems like you gotta have the right one or it won’t work. He keeps saying, “Install RetroPie on a Raspberry Pi“. Like it’s the most important thing in the world.
And don’t even get me started on the wirin’. Wires everywhere! Red ones, blue ones, black ones. He’s got ’em all twisted together. I told him to be careful, don’t want him gettin’ shocked. He just laughed and said it’s low voltage. Whatever that means. He said need to, “Connect“. What a silly word.
He’s been spendin’ hours in the garage, sawin’ and hammerin’. Buildin’ that box, he says. I told him to make sure it’s big enough for all those buttons. He wants to put so many on there, it’s gonna look like a spaceship control panel!
He also keeps on saying “Micro Center”. Sounds like a place that’s very small to me. But he always comes back with boxes of stuff from there. Guess they have all these gaming things he needs.
He’s been showin’ me his progress. It’s startin’ to look like somethin’ now. He’s got the screen in, and some of the buttons. It’s all lit up with these bright colors. Looks kinda fun, I guess. But I still think he should be outside playin’ more.
He says once it’s done, he’ll let me play. I don’t know about that. I might press the wrong button and break the whole thing! But I’ll give it a try, just to make him happy. He’s puttin’ so much work into this DIY game hardware project, I gotta at least pretend to be interested. This gaming thing is sure something.
I still don’t understand why he can’t just buy one of these game things from the store. Seems like a lot less work. But he says it’s more fun to build it yourself. He likes the challenge, I guess. And it keeps him out of trouble, so I can’t complain too much. Just hope this arcade game won’t be too loud.
Well, he’s callin’ me over. Says he’s got somethin’ to show me. Maybe he’s finally finished that contraption. I’ll go see what all the fuss is about. Wish me luck! Maybe this old lady can learn a thing or two about these newfangled arcade games after all. This must be what they call, DIY game hardware.
