Raspberry Pi Gets Ben Heck'd Into Portable Gaming Unit

In case you haven't heard, Ben Heck makes cool stuff, and he has his own show. His creations span a range of devices, with his works including everything from an Xbox 360 laptop to a custom toilet illuminator. As such, it isn't surprising that he's taken to the Raspberry Pi, turning it into a nifty little portable gaming console. What's better, we get to watch the process from start to finish.

The Ben Heck Show is showcasing the creation of the Raspberry Pi gaming unit into a two-part series, with the first part having been posted for all to enjoy, and the second slated for public consumption on June 14. In the first episode, we see the project start at the concept stage, with Ben Heckendorn walking us briefly through his planning stage as he kicks things off.

One of the more fascinating aspects of watching Heckendorn work is seeing how the design comes together as the various components are disassembled. The entire project starts with the LCD, where he goes through a bit of testing to find the best one for the job. Soon the battery comes into play, then the controller. Speaking of the latter, he reminds viewers to test it before hacking it, less you end up with a frustrating issue.

As you can see in the image above, the finished product has buttons and a joystick, almost resembling an SNES controller (in my mind, anyway). The controls were mapped via MAME – Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator, which you can see him setting up near the end of the video. By the time the first video ends, we get a look at a rough assembly of the future device.

You can watch the video yourself above – it's about 20 minutes long, and will prep you for the next iteration, which will be posted next Friday. If you can't wait, there's a teaser of the video available on his website, with some glimpses of what is in store, such as what seems to be a 3D-printed shell for the device.

SOURCE: Digital Trends