CharlieDeck32

A minimalist handheld console powered by an STM32 microcontroller and a Charlieplexed LED matrix, capable of running retro-style games like Flappy Bird, Snake, Pong and Tetris.

Table of Contents

1. Features
2. Hardware Overview
3. Software & Build Instructions
4. Games Included
5. Project Roadmap & TODOs
6. License

Features

• Ultra-compact and portable
• Powered by STM32 MCU
• Efficient LED control via Charlieplexing: drives many LEDs using few pins.
• Plays classic games like Flappy Bird, Snake, Pong and Tetris and possibly more
• Open-source under the GPL-3.0 license.

Hardware Overview

DIAGRAM HERE

Software & Build Instructions

Prerequisites

• Git

• MSYS2 for Windows

• ARM None EABI Toolchain

  • STM32CubeCLT contains arm-none-eabi-gcc and arm-none-eabi-gdb and is strongly recommended for further development.

  • For Windows MSYS2 (MinGW64):

    pacman -S --needed --noconfirm mingw-w64-x86_64-arm-none-eabi-gcc mingw-w64-x86_64-arm-none-eabi-gdb

  • For Linux:

    sudo apt install gcc-arm-none-eabi gdb-arm-none-eabi -y

• CMake and Ninja

  • For Windows MSYS2 (MinGW64):

    pacman -S --needed --noconfirm mingw-w64-x86_64-cmake mingw-w64-x86_64-ninja

  • For Linux:

    sudo apt install cmake ninja-build -y

• STLink Tools

  • For Windows MSYS2 (MinGW64):

    pacman -S --needed --noconfirm mingw-w64-x86_64-stlink

  • For Linux:

    sudo apt install stlink-tools -y

• Optional for further development: STM32CubeMX

Building

• Clone the repo and navigate into it

  git clone https://github.com/chieftain0/CharlieDeck32.git
  cd CharlieDeck32

• Build the Debug version of the project

  # Configure build files
  cmake -G "Ninja" -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Debug -B build/Debug
  
  # Build the project
  ninja -C build/Debug

• Build the Release version of the project

  # Configure the project
  cmake -G "Ninja" -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release -B build/Release
  
  # Build the project
  ninja -C build/Release

Executable

The build commands will produce a CharlieDeck32.elf file in the CharlieDeck32/bin/Debug and CharlieDeck32/bin/Release directories.

arm-none-eabi-objdump -f bin/Debug/CharlieDeck32.elf

arm-none-eabi-objdump -f bin/Release/CharlieDeck32.elf

Flashing

• Connect your SWD programmer (ST-Link, etc.)

• Flash the firmware using your preferred method:

  st-flash write CharlieDeck32.elf 0x8000000

  or use STM32CubeProgrammer for a GUI approach.

Games Included

• Flappy Bird — tap to flap, dodge obstacles.
• Snake — collect dots, do not bite yourself.
• PvP Pong — two players, two paddles, one ball.
• Tetris — classic tetris.

Project Roadmap & TODOs

• Program the Tetris game.

License

This project is licensed under the GPL-3.0 license.