#GameShell

[pico-8-update]

Best PICO-8 Handheld ?

There are many projects, hacks and devices that support PICO-8, either out-of-the-box or with some tinkering required.

The ClockworkPi Gameshell is one of those, and one of the best... Or not. That depends on your needs and your budget.

As with many other consoles meant for hackers and tinkerers, the Gameshell has its pros and cons.

Krystian Majewski from the Lazy Devs Academy already did a very thorough review of the Gameshell specifically for PICO-8 usage, so you better watch that video:

You should judge for yourself if the console suits your needs and if it is a good candidate for THE BEST PICO-8 HANDHELD. 

In our opinion, the cons outweigh the pros: It’s very expensive, and the lack of a keyboard (in contrast to the PocketCHIP) means you can only use it to play games in portable mode... And that’s a deal-breaker for us. But if you are looking for a handheld to only play your PICO-8 games while developing in another platform, then the control scheme is ideal.

Also, if you are an emulation or retro-gamer fan, the Gameshell seems to be much more capable than the aforementioned CHIP.

The assembly-kit / DIY / easily hackable nature of the Gameshell is also a fun aspect of it, but if that is useful or just a gimmick is another thing that you’ll have to judge for yourself.

[wedeemchannel]

Its time for the “BATTLE FOR THE BEST RETRO GAMING HANDHELD 2019″!

LET’S PUT THREE OF THE MAJOR PLAYERS IN THE RETRO HANDHELD MARKET UP AGAINST EACH OTHER AND THEN THROW A FOURTH FOR A LITTLE TWIST TO SEE WHICH ONE IS THE BEST OPTION FOR RETRO GAMING EMULATION.

WHICHEVER RISES IN VICTORY, I AM INTERESTED IN HEARING WHICH ONE YOU THINK IS THE BETTER RETRO HANDHELD FOR EMULATION?

[oldguydoesstuff]

My portable game design studio.

[dphys]

[tech2k]

[grgchnvan]

Step your game up. Gameshells running mame, nes, snes, genesis, master system, psx and gba (and more but cmon, you get it). It’s disgusting how many ladies will dm me because of this. Control yourselves

[katherinegreene10]

GameShell, Open Source Portable Game Console, Modular DIY Kit, Ideal for Indie Game Developers, Hackers and Retro Games Collectors White

[o-gadget-blog]

GameShell, Redefine Portable Game Console

GameShell is the world's first modular portable game console with GNU/LINUX on embedded system. Powered by a Quad-core Cortex-A7 CPU, 512 MB Memory, Mali GPU, Wi-Fi onboard mainboard module & Arduino compatible programmable game Keypad module.

Include Cave Story, DOOM and much more classic independent/portable games.

Support games from Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance, NES, SNES and other consoles.

Modify your favorite games, or create your own games with your favorite programming language.

The front cover has 4 different colors and the back shell also has 4. Together there are 16 different combinations of colors for you to select.

We will share the STL file of cover & shell so that anyone can 3D print own cover & shell.

GameShell is designed to refresh your memories, and so does its package:

What can GameShell do?

GameShell has a tailored GNU/Linux system embedded in its tiny body.

With it you can play the built-in retro games

- Cave story

- Doom 1st generation

- Other retro games

Modify classic games with lot of fun

You can emulate your favorite GB/GBA/NES games

You can even make your own game with any language, like Python and C.

Make games like Pong, Snake, Tetris, Space Invaders, or online games to play with your friends.

More Than a Portable Game Console

For developers, GameShell is also the world's 1st all-in-one dev kit.

Forget about the troubles of buying raspberry pi, Arduino, video & stereo modules, and spending hours to connect them and test to build the working environment.

With GameShell, you can plug-n-play its modules and get started immediately.

DIY with GameShell modules

- Support Python, C, LISP and other languages

- Compatible with Lego blocks.

- DIY 3d printer, Wifi speaker and etc.

Click here to know more about GameShell: http://bit.ly/2zwi0ZV

[g4zdtechtv]

Crowdfund Control - GameShell

CLICKY AND GET PSYCHED!

[gaminggadgets]

GameShell

Modular und extrem flexibel - #GameShell ist eine ungewöhnliche Handheld-Konsole.

Unzählige Möglichkeiten verspricht GameShell. Die Handheld-Konsole sieht wie ein Gameboy aus, bietet aber viel mehr: Zockt tausende Spiele und rüstet das Gerät bei Bedarf auf und um. Ein interessantes Konzept hat der Anbieter OGadget in der Pipeline: GameShell ist eine Handheld-Maschine, mit der ihr weit über 1000 bereits erhältliche Spiele zocken dürft. Denn technisch basiert die Hardware auf…

[yamacyan]

以前に買ったGameShellの組み立てが終わり色々いじってみています♪ ちょっと設定をミスって動作が変になった時は焦りましたが、既に直して問題なしw #new #gameshell #組み立て完了 #色々 #いじる #ハードウェア #モジュラー型 #携帯ゲーム機 #clockworkpi #linux #cpi #modular #portable #gameconsole (Yokosuka, Kanagawa) https://www.instagram.com/p/B14Jk2GgyM7/?igshid=gta69gtitdep

[wedeemchannel]

WHAT IS A MODULAR GAME CONSOLE?

The GameShell started as a Kickstarter which I backed and it first caught my eye because it was a modular game console. You might be asking yourself “what is a modular game console?”, and the answer to that is simple. The Gameshell is a handheld game console kit and you build the console yourself. Does that sound like something you would enjoy?

Build Quality and Design

When the GameShell arrives on your doorstep, it comes in several pieces pretty similar to a DIY model car set and a set of directions to bring it all together. There are five modules, LCD Screen, Main Board (motherboard), keypad, battery (power board) and the speaker module. All the plastic seem to be 3d printed but very sturdy and well designed. As you can see from the above picture is resembles a Gameboy but has four action buttons and a D-pad. The console also has a menu, shift, start and select ( which also doubles as the volume controls). The Gameshell came in several different colors and an option for a lego back that held the four trigger button module.

Function & Specs

The GameShell is powered by Quad-core Cortex-A7 CPU, MaliGPU has Wi-Fi & Bluetooth. The handheld has 1GB DDR3 Memory, 16GB MicroSD, HDMI output, and GPIOs. The Clockwork GameShell has a 2.7-inch RGB 60fps LCD Screen,  2 Channel Stereo Speaker and a 3.7v 1200mAh battery. Now, these specs were on the retail GameShell and not the Kickstarter version. The handheld is operated by the ClockworkPi OS which is a modified version on Linux  4.1x and uses RetroArch for emulation. 

Emulation?

In my personal experience, the GameShell does really good at Emulating retro consoles with some little quirks here and there. Unlike other retro handheld or consoles, the GameShell can install different emulators from RetroArch that might perform better emulated different consoles. The GameShell is also open source and there is a large community working on different features or modifications to make the console perform better. The GameShell emulates all consoles from Gameboy all the way up to original PlayStation, and even your older consoles such as Atari. One of the major reasons I got hooked was the capability to play Dos Games such as Doom and Quake. There is also a large indie game community porting their games to the GameShell and that is really cool.

Sound

For the most part, the sound quality on the GameShell seems pretty good depending on what your playing and how loud you have the volume up. The speakers seem to be good quality despite there size but at times the sound does get crackly. However, I think the audio quality depends on the emulator you are using at the time more so then the GameShell’s speakers!

Final Thoughts

Well, this is kind of more than a mini-review but overall I have always been happy with the GameShell and I have had plenty of fun with it. The console is well built, a blast to put together and even though it has a learning curve it was a rewarding learning experience. The GameShell emulates retro consoles really well and has a large community backing to keep new indie games being ported to the handheld. Personally, I think there might be some people turned off of the GameShell because it isn’t just a drag and drop system. Overall if your looking for a good handheld to play your favorite retro games the GameShell is a really good option if you can find it!

“To see the GameShell in action check it out on the We Deem Channel”

Check out the GameShell: http://bit.ly/2QsIxlx

KickStart GameShell for Sale: http://bit.ly/340FIfO

Pickup the GameShell on Amazon: https://amzn.to/2rCn7bC

[oldguydoesstuff]

Debug progress on our sequel to Planet Busters GameShell game. This one will also play pretty nice on a PC or Mac.

[dphys]

[tech2k]

[wedeemchannel]

Nice to see someone else showing the Game Shell some love!

Gameshell’s psx emulation is 🍙🍘🍙💥🔥🔥💥