ESP32 GAMEBOY EMULATOR

ok so, for the past 3 days i’ve been making more assets for the V2 release.

This includes more customization options, such as:

Customizable Cartdriges and Gameboys (DIGITAL)

Multiple folder colors for the upcoming file system

A e-reader Icon

Wallpapers such as BALANCE, ZIMOLLIZ, & ABSTRACT, (ZIMOLLIZ is the one featured down below.)

A update to the WIKI.

I’m working on a new wiki with new features for the V2 release, I might keep the old WIKI as a file in the repo, or in a legacy/previous versions tab.

Thanks for reading all the way here :D, thats really it ;)

ok i didnt spend too long today, but i mostly just made more spritesheets and more assets.

this will be much shorter cuz i am really sleep since its 2:16 AM where i am.

ok so, this was a massive update, i built a entire wiki for my project, please check that out, i also organized the folders and other things a bit

the image might be a bit blurry since its desgigned for 32x32, but i made a bunch of pixel art, for things like bootscreens, setttings, games etc, im spending most of today on assets since the console is a bit bland.

ok so, i spent this 6ish hours doing things with my github, i added a optimization list, and added a terminal style logo, and colored it

DASH-OS ESP32 DMG Emulator: Optimization Sprint
Hardware: ESP32-32E (240MHz, No PSRAM), ST7796 TFT (HSPI 80MHz), MicroSD (VSPI 25MHz), 8BitDo (Bluepad32 BLE).
Constraints: ~11KB free heap. Bluepad32 fragments heap before setup(). GCC requires vars at top. TFT_eSPI byte-swap quirk active.

Current Memory Layout (~92KB total):

fbuf: 46KB (160x144x2 RGB565)

bank0Cache/bank1Cache: 16KB each (LRU)

cram: 8KB | gbp (peanut-gb): 5KB | lbuf: 1KB

Proven Wins (Implemented):

Early Malloc: Allocate all large buffers first line of setup() to beat BLE fragmentation.

SD Boot: 400kHz init -> SD.end() -> 25MHz restart. Prevents white-screen crashes.

Block Reads: 16KB bank reads vs byte-by-byte (12.8x speedup).

Burst SPI: Single 46KB pushColors vs scanline calls (8 FPS -> 60 FPS).

Hot Path: IRAM_ATTR on gb_rom_read and lcd_draw_line.

Failed Attempts (Why):

3rd Bank Cache: OOM/SD failure. Hard limit is ~90% heap.

50MHz Init: Card handshake failed.

Shared SPI: HSPI/VSPI isolation is required for stability.

GBC: Palette array unpopulated; peanut-gb standard is DMG only.

Optimization Goals (Need C++ Implementation):

DMA Overlap: Implement SPI DMA on HSPI to run gb_run_frame while fbuf transfers. Can I avoid double-buffering given 11KB heap? Provide setupDMA(), startDMA_pushFrame(), isDMAComplete().

ROM Pre-fetch: 8KB buffer for sequential bank reads on ROMs >256KB. Suggest async/interrupt strategy for prefetchBuf[8192].

Matrix Easter Egg: Lightweight falling chars for 480x320. <2KB heap, 15 FPS. Provide matrixModeUpdate().

GBC Hook: Efficient way to extract palettes in peanut-gb without massive RAM overhead.

Batching: Can I batch multiple pushColors into one CS assertion?

Rules: Vars at top of functions. No non-ASCII. Use existing buffer names. Memory safety checks mandatory.

I designed another case for the CYD

I also updated the website so byte would be more interactive and the text would be bigger due to some complaints

I also started a fresh rewrite of the code to bugfix and add new features.

lmk if yall want any new features cuz im running out of ideas

Ok, so i started a fresh rewrite of my code so I could add a couple new features, The one im working on right now, is animation packs, which will allow users to choose from animation packs allowing for more customization. Right now, im making a byte animation pack, which will add a assistant and add boot animations for loading roms, as byte blows the cartdrige before putting it into a random gam consle or smth, im figuring this out, this is devlog 2/2 on monday.

OK SO, I’m working on a couple more hours, i’m aiming for 30ish hours by next saturday
I’ll release 2 2 Hour and 15 minute devlogs so 4 hours and 30 minutes everyday

| |
| WHAT I DID |
|_______________|

SO, I just worked on my readme a bit, mainly the tables and perfecting the grammer so its more professional. That’s really it, my next scheduled thing is to work on my website, I might improve the text size of byte since one of my voters said to improve that.

-PD

more optomization

more optomization

more optomization, over a 50% increase for the first relase

MORE OPTOMIZATION
-Can run SOME gbc games at 40 FPS now

i did some crazy optomizations

MORE OPTOMIZATION

More optomization, what can I say? There was a 24% increase in FPS, using the built in FPS counter from the previous average FPS

again, mainly optomizations, so this devlog will be pretty short

ok so, im doing a power-thru for the next 2 weeks, i’ll be coding 8+ Hours every single day so I can hit my persoanl goal of 100 hours, and my 2nd goal of 246 hours. these devlogs will be pretty small and no changes will be added to the repo until the end the power-thru. A entire feature list will be published inn 30 hour intervals, for example, 30, then 60, then 90, then 120, then 150, then 180, etc until 246, and after that ig i’ll just code for prizes.

-PD

ok, so i mainly spent most of the time modeling something, my laptop is kinda buggy so the image might seem random, but it supposed to be a CYD & esp32 with psram

i made a case in tinkercad, thats really it

FINAL UPDATE FOR SHIP #2
i added some more optomization and updated the website a bit, I also fixed the bug with GB_INIT and some SD card and rom errors, the next ship will be for 60 hours.

MORE OPTOMIZATION (hard word to spell btw, dont judge) you can get up to 100 fps on simpler games without performance mode!

OK, i added a bunch of opptomization this time, and i didnt use AI too much this time!
I can now hit like 60 fps on mario with the best performance settings.

I worked on the boot menu a bit, a added the ability to unlock a secret boot screen by using the konami code

I added a interactive feature showing off my CYD

ok i added some more features to settings, like mainly palletes

ok, so i took a break from programming a bit, and i went to redo and solder the wiring,

bro i hate programming so much, I got 15 errors in like the first 10 minutes, i managed to power through tho, I haven’t finished the website but im close, anyways, i opened up the case to show yall my makeshift heatsink

ok so i added some optomization, still no new photos cuz i keep forgetting, next one will have a new photo trust

I’m pulling a all nighter to overhaul frame rates etc, rn the main chip is over heating, so i used 3 pennies and some thermal paste to make a heat sink so it’ll play faster for longer, i forgot to take a photo sadly and i reglued the case so i dont have a photo. Enjoy this shot of my great tetris skills

OK so i added a crazy amount of optomization, so i can get around 45~ fps on super mario land on performance setting, this is nowhere near the 60 fps i need but its better than the 0.1fps i had when starting the project

I added a couple new features to the devlog website, like a live stats page for my github repo, it might be a bit broken though, i also added a poll and a cyd diagram.

Basic Bug Fixes such as:
-SD Card Error (Final Patch)
-Fixed pin configuration in v30
-Smaller bug fixes and quality of life updates

i stayed up to fix a error with the sreen not reciving commands

basic bug fixes and quality of life changes

OK, this was a major bug fix, there were a bunch of errors with the micro sd after I released a faster script 😢. Thankfully I manged to fix it with the help of claude, I’ll release a commit on github tommorow cuz it’s getting late

I worked on my showcase website a decent bit, i did have a couple templates and i had a bit ready before I made a account so thankfully it didn’t take too long to fix some of the bugs like byte teleporting across the screen :D

-PD

link if you wanna check it out: https://twinsailsstudios.github.io/DASHOSGBEMULATOR/#roadmap

I did some basic troubleshooting with ROMS and I managed to improve the framerate a bit. I might add up to 60 fps skipped just as a joke.