Simon is a Computer Science BSc graduate who has been writing about technology since 2014, and using Windows machines since 3.1. After working for an indie game studio and acting as the family's go-to technician for all computer issues, he found his passion for writing and decided to use his skill set to write about all things tech.
Since beginning his writing career, he has written for many different publications such as WorldStart, Listverse, and MakeTechEasier. However, after finding his home at MakeUseOf in February 2019, he would eventually move on to its sister site, XDA, to bring the latest and greatest in Windows, Linux, and DIY electronics.
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Summary
- A Nokia 3310 Jam showed off games on an 84×48 display, a two-color palette, a single audio channel, and a 12-button limit.
- The winner replaced a 3310's internals with a custom PCB and Raspberry Pi Pico to run their game on the original screen.
- Play Trick Shot II in your browser on Itch.io or find full mod details on the creator's site.
The golden era of the Nokia phone left a lasting impression, so much so that people still remember its games fondly. One game jam that started as a fun way to recreate the look and feel of Nokia 3310 games ended with someone building a custom PCB powered by a Raspberry Pi Pico, just to get the extra computational power needed to run newer games people made.
This Nokia 3310 has a Raspberry Pi Pico installed for the latest and greatest games
You won't run Cyberpunk 2077 on it, but the new games are still very cool
As spotted by Hackster.io, the story of this PCB-enhanced phone begins with a game jam; specifically, the Nokia 3310 Jam 8. The idea was to develop a game that has the same look and feel as a Nokia 3310 game, with an 84x48 display, a selection of three color palettes with two colors each, and sound effects from a resource folder that could only be played on one audio channel, one at a time. It could also sport a maximum of 12 controller buttons, replicating the Nokia 3310's keypad.
The key here is that the games didn't have to actually run on a Nokia 3310; it just had to feel like it would. However, Hoani Bryson wasn't going to settle. After claiming first place in the game jam with his title Trick Shot II, he got to work on playing it on an actual Nokia. Unfortunately, the game was too advanced for the hardware, so Bryson replaced the phone's guts with a PCB powered by a Raspberry Pi Pico. That gave the phone enough power to run the game while keeping the original keypad and screen to play the game on.
If you have a spare Nokia 3310 sitting around and want to try this yourself, head over to the Hoani Bryson website for all the details. Or, if you just want to play the game, there's a version of Trick Shot II on Itch.io you can play in your browser, no tinkering required.