Interfacing with a Gameboy?

James Alexander Shield · 2009-03-14 10:43

Hey all,

Has anyone tried interfacing with the original Gameboy from so long ago?
I recently found the cartridge pin layout and when I get around to ordering a Proto Board (next pay check) I intend to hook it up and see what can be done, I am thinking to either write a LCD display driver for the prop or build a MIDI controller.

Anyway, Thoughts/Ideas?

CJ · 2009-03-14 13:05

if I remember correctly the original gameboy had a Z80 at its core, so who knows, may be doable

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Oldbitcollector (Jeff) · 2009-03-14 13:12

Some of this information may be interesting to you.

OBC

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New to the Propeller?

Check out: Protoboard Introduction , Propeller Cookbook 1.4 & Software Index
Updates to the Cookbook are now posted to: Propeller.warrantyvoid.us
Got an SD card connected? - PropDOS

James Alexander Shield · 2009-03-14 14:18

the gameboy has a modified z80 at its heart apparently it replaced a bunch of z80 opcodes with some custom ones while remaining i8080 compatible

EDIT:
here is the pin layout that I could find, I am sure there is a better version somewhere
the gameboy cartridge apparently has a 5V line but I am not sure if that is the same for the pocket version, it may be 3.3v
http://pinouts.ru/Game/CartridgeGameBoy_pinout.shtml

Post Edited (James Alexander Shield) : 3/14/2009 2:50:12 PM GMT

virtuPIC · 2009-03-14 15:11

There are some gameboy emulators running on Linux. They should tell about hardware - processor and interfaces.

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hippy · 2009-03-19 17:29

Should be doable but I recall there are some hoops to jump through, like getting your code into a cartridge which can boot and run on the GB - It's really just a CPU and LCD driver, the packs are the ROM/RAM. I've got a few with the intention of using them as displays but TBH, it looked like too much hassle, poor quality screen and a pretty poor case style which put me off.

A better choice IMO would be looking at doing something with the Dreamcast VMU, of which I also have a few for the same reasons and, again, have done nothing more with. They are equally programmable, and seem more readily available than GB's which I expect have largely gone to landfill ...

www.svas.com/computers/Dreamcast_VMU_TN.png

Gadgetman · 2009-03-19 20:40

The VMUs are probably a better tip as they can receive a program serially, but...

Have you considered getting hold of an older Palm Pilot with a serial interface, and install a Basic interpreter or something, to build your interface with?

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James Alexander Shield · 2009-03-20 14:52

I have a number of Gameboys and Gameboy Advances on the way from some individuals on Ebay, and a Propeller ProtoBoard on the way, should arrive by next week or so, I intend first to get the propeller uploading a basic GB program to the GB first, then have it be able to talk to the gameboy via it's Serial Port, then after that write a miniOS and go nuts. I suppose I can use the propeller to do bank switching and use HUB ram as some sort of extension.

I also suspect that CP/M maybe portable as well, I will have to experiment along the way.

James Alexander Shield · 2009-03-20 14:59

as for the VMUs is there a source of them around? and any datasheets on it's processor? and memory mapping?

trodoss · 2009-03-20 16:20

James Alexander Shield said...
I have a number of Gameboys and Gameboy Advances on the way from some individuals on Ebay, and a Propeller ProtoBoard on the way, should arrive by next week or so, I intend first to get the propeller uploading a basic GB program to the GB first, then have it be able to talk to the gameboy via it's Serial Port, then after that write a miniOS and go nuts. I suppose I can use the propeller to do bank switching and use HUB ram as some sort of extension.

I also suspect that CP/M maybe portable as well, I will have to experiment along the way.

If you haven't already, you might want to look at BriPro.com's GBlinkdl DevBoy.·
http://www.bripro.com/low/hardware/index.php?page=devboy

It uses the link cable to communicate/program a GB (also has PC-side software included).· If you have/find a "Bung" cartridge, build your own (see: http://www.devrs.com/gb/hardware.php), or do the mod that Brian did, you could most likely program the gameboy directly.· I mention it because it sounds like what you are interested in doing.

Game Boy Developer's Kit (GDBK) is·good for programming on th GB in general.· I have made a few things with it a few years ago.
http://gbdk.sourceforge.net/

Emulating the·original Game Boy's processor (LR35902) on the Propeller (using ZiCog as a reference) might be a fun project on its own.·

hippy · 2009-03-20 18:01

James Alexander Shield said...
as for the VMUs is there a source of them around? and any datasheets on it's processor? and memory mapping?

I seem to see quite a few of them around at garage sales, PC gaming stores and eBay.

It's quite well documented and being self-contained is what appealed to me over the GB ( the mere mention of EEPROM with no I2C/SPI prefix is enough to put me off these days ). Re-looking at the GB display driver circuit, it might be possible to bit-bang that from a Prop.

I did download some pre-written demos to a VMU but never wrote my own code. With the VMU in controller attached to Dreamcast running its browser via its dial-up modem plus a dial-in server configured to deliver the required file it's an easy(ish) download process. Had it working through a local PABX and and my Win98 PC. It is apparently possible to bit-bang code in directly but never tried that.

One starting point would be : www.maushammer.com/vmu.html

Interfacing with a Gameboy?

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