We (Mostly) Built a Tiny Retro Gaming Console!

As an anniversary present to one another, Wesley and I bought a Raspberry Pi 2. We werent' sure what we wanted to do with it at first, not surprising given the ridiculous versatility of the little board. People have used the Pi 2 to control their stereos, made smart beer fridges out of it, even made functioning phones from them. While all of those projects sound awesome, they were also a touch daunting. What did we settle on instead? What else, but a retro gaming machine.

 

The First Time I Played

I was recently asked to help gather some data from ladies of the gaming persuasion that reminded me of my earliest experiences with video games by a rather unique manly "gift basket" company called Man Crates  (you open it with crow bar, how cool is that!).   The women I spoke to told me of their early days in the garage with Mario Bros, Duck Hunt, and Donkey Kong on barely functioning televisions. Many of their mothers didn't approve of their pastime, preferring them to spend their days in less "tomboy-ish" behavior. Nevertheless, those early game called to them, honing their skills to a razor-sharp competitive edge that put the rest of their family's high scores to shame.  While I personally have not ordered a crate as of yet, it's definitely something I would lean towards in the future if I'm at a loss for a gift.  If you are ever looking to re-create some of those nostalgic moments, Man Crates has some pretty cool gifts that include a super retro gamer crate!  While they do cater to men in these gifts, there are some women I know who'd get an absolute kick out of them!