Never before have we seen so much innovation in the portable console market. Although Nintendo continues to dominate this sector, if we look a little further it is easy to find a multitude of brands with all kinds of interesting concepts. From Android consoles inspired by classic consoles to console-shaped gaming computers, we have seen everything.
Now another interesting concept is added to the list: the gaming watch. And with this, we do not mean that it is a watch with RGB lighting and extreme design; no, what does the name “Retro gaming clock” mean is that we can play retro games directly on the watch. We even have buttons and an integrated D-pad to control them without having to use the touch screen, and there is even a small speaker to listen to the melodies of classic games.
Best of all, it is still a watch, thanks to the use of two screens. The exterior fulfills the basic functions of a watch, such as showing the time, although it is also capable of displaying additional information such as the weather forecast or the battery level; even can show notifications from WhatsApp and other apps thanks to the direct connection with our smartphone. Therefore, it more than fulfills the functions of a smart watch.
Of course, grace comes when we open the watch as if it were a Game Boy Advance SP and we reveal the 1.54-inch screen with 320 x 320 pixel resolution and the integrated controls. We can play directly on the wrist, or disconnect the console from the strap and control the console with both hands.
And they are not simple games; The creators of the Retro Gaming Watch claim that this console is capable of running games from the 8 and 16-bit console era. What seems like an impossible idea has been possible thanks to the use of an FPGA, a programmable board that allows the ‘hardware’ to be adapted to different types of ‘software’. The use of FPGA has gained a lot of popularity in recent years as it is a solution that allows high-precision and lag-free emulation compared to software emulation. These components are what help the 160 MHz Cortex M33 processor run games that would normally be out of reach. However, this means that this project is probably more aimed at enthusiasts who want to tinker and install new cores for different games.
The Retro Gaming Watch is now available for pre-order via Kickstarter with a starting price of $179 (163 euros), with a launch scheduled for November 2024.
