A matter of time — that’s how we closed the article about Doom running on the new Nintendo Game & Watch. Once it became clear the device behaves like a mini NES console, several enthusiasts started working to enable homebrew support and, by extension, loading different games. That brings us back to the “stacksmashing” channel, where the process (and general requirements) for backing up the original Game & Watch firmware and unlocking its processor is explained.
The NES Classic Mini came out, and it ended up hacked The SNES Classic Mini came out, and it also got hacked. Rumors of a Nintendo 64 Classic Mini and Game Boy Classic Mini are getting stronger, and we’re sure they’d be hacked in record time too. But Nintendo placed something different on the table in recent weeks: an updated edition of its classic Game & Watch, with a color screen and Super Mario Bros. inside. Guess what happened…
Homebrew on the new Nintendo Game & Watch
The videos already show titles like The Legend of Zelda, Super Mario Bros. 3, and Contra. The progress by “stacksmashing” and Konrad Beckmann has been extraordinary, and although they are the first to admit the full process is not ready for “daily use”, we have no doubt that they will find a way to refine and simplify the steps even further.
What You’ll Need
- A tri-wing screwdriver (yes, you have to open the console)
- An STM32-compatible SWD programmer (something like the STM32 Nucleo should work well)
- A Linux or macOS installation to run the necessary scripts
- A way to connect the programmer to the Game & Watch, either by soldering wires or using clips
The exact instructions are available on GitHub, but there’s an obvious question to ask: Why not use the USB port? The answer is that the data pins on the port were not connected to the processor; however, USB mods are already on the way. The first step is to get a copy of the original firmware as a backup and unlock the processor. To achieve that, you need to power the Game & Watch via USB (in addition to disconnecting its battery) and run a series of scripts in the correct order. The process also requires turning the mini console off at the exact moment and pressing a combination of buttons.
Once the processor is unlocked, the Game & Watch is open to homebrew, and that’s where Konrad steps in with his NES emulator, based on a port of Retro-Go for the ODROID-GO platform. Sound works perfectly, and there’s no frame rate loss, hitting a steady 60 FPS. Two issues to solve are the lack of savegames and standby not working, but we must be patient. The hacking of the Game & Watch will continue, and we definitely recommend following the “stacksmashing” channel on YouTube.
