> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://averagetechnerds.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # The SuperStation One Maker Is Building FPGA Game Boy Advance and GBA SP Handhelds, With Bigger Screens in Testing - URL: https://averagetechnerds.com/superstation-one-maker-fpga-gba-sp/ - Published: 2026-10-16T18:35:10.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-20T00:20:34.000Z - Description: Taki Udon says his FPGA GBA SP plays real cartridges and targets around $100, and a regular GBA shape is in the works. Here’s what he showed, and what’s still a prototype. - Author: Victor - Tags: News, Retro Gaming, Handheld Gaming, Retro handhelds [Taki Udon](https://x.com/TakiUdon%5F?ref=averagetechnerds.com), co-founder of retro console maker Retro Remake, posted photos of two FPGA Game Boy Advance prototypes on October 16: his FPGA GBA SP clamshell, which he calls the FPGBA SP, and a new model in the original, non-folding GBA shape. An FPGA (field-programmable gate array) is a chip that can be configured to recreate an old console’s circuits in hardware. He says the team has started testing bigger, brighter screens for both prototypes. Neither is a product yet, and there’s no release date. His price target for the SP is “around $100.” Bottom line up front ## So what does this mean for the *Average TechNerd*? If Taki hits his target, his SP, which he says plays real GBA cartridges, would cost around $100, less than half the Analogue Pocket’s price. Of the handhelds compared here, only the $239.99 Analogue Pocket plays GBA cartridges with an FPGA. Neither the SP nor his regular GBA-shaped version has a release date or pre-orders yet. ModRetro’s Chromatic, the other FPGA handheld on sale in this comparison, plays only Game Boy and Game Boy Color cartridges. Android handhelds like the KONKR Pocket Advance run GBA games through software emulation instead. At a glance What it is FPGA Game Boy Advance handhelds from Retro Remake: an SP clamshell that Taki says plays GBA cartridges, and an original, non-folding GBA shape in the works. Status Prototypes teased on X; nothing announced for sale. Price FPGBA SP: Taki’s target is “around $100.” Regular GBA version: no price given. Release No date. Claimed so far - SP: plays real GBA cartridges, Taki says - Bigger screens with better brightness, colour and scaling, in testing and still to be shown - SP: starts up from fully off in 2 seconds, Taki says Still unknown - Screen size and resolution - Battery, ports and final specs - A release date ## UPDATE What’s new since publishing October 17: A first look at the SP’s menu Taki hasn’t shown the bigger screens yet. What he did post on October 17 was a short [video](https://x.com/TakiUdon%5F/status/2111501111068946563?ref=averagetechnerds.com) of “new progress on FPGBA SP UI, cartridge loading performance, and scaling options.” [Time Extension](https://www.timeextension.com/news/2026/10/taki-udon-shares-footage-of-fpga-sp-handheld-console-that-plays-original-game-boy-advance-carts?ref=averagetechnerds.com), which went through the footage, says the menu includes save states, screen scaling, screen filters and screenshots. That’s the software side I said it’ll all come down to. There’s still no price beyond his “around $100” target, and no release window. ## What did Taki Udon tease? He teased new screens and a second shape. In his [October 16 post](https://x.com/TakiUdon%5F/status/2111005898219180187?ref=averagetechnerds.com), Taki says the team began prototyping “bigger screen options” this week, on a new hardware revision that has been in the works for a few months. They’ve also started work on the original, non-folding Game Boy Advance shape with one of the new screens. He adds that the FPGBA SP now cold boots, meaning it starts up from fully off, in 2 seconds with a boot logo. The post’s two photos show both prototypes. One puts a dark blue prototype, with a wide screen lens like the original GBA’s, beside a silver FPGBA SP, both showing the same Super Mario map. The other shows the dark blue unit displaying the R² logo, Retro Remake’s mark, at start-up. ![A dark blue transparent handheld prototype with a wide screen lens showing a red R² logo](https://storage.ghost.io/c/b3/23/b323103c-90c0-46a8-9230-7d317a5ebaf3/content/images/2026/10/fpgba-gba-prototype-boot-logo.jpg) The dark blue prototype from Taki’s October 16 post, showing Retro Remake’s R² logo at start-up. Image: Taki Udon ## What is the FPGA GBA SP Taki Udon showed? It’s Taki’s “passion project”: a clamshell handheld in the shape of the Game Boy Advance SP. In an [October 12 post](https://x.com/TakiUdon%5F/status/2109623941182718133?ref=averagetechnerds.com), Taki says it plays real GBA cartridges. Because it runs on an FPGA, a cartridge would play on hardware built to behave like the original console, whereas an emulator runs a copy of the game in software. That post’s 15-second clip shows a different SP shell from the silver one in the October 16 photos: light blue transparent plastic, with the clamshell hinge visible below the screen. It’s playing Pokémon FireRed or LeafGreen. The clip doesn’t show the cartridge, so the cartridge claim rests on Taki’s word. A readout in the corner shows the game running at 59.74 frames per second and the screen refreshing at 59.70 Hz. The readout marks the two as locked, meaning the screen’s refreshes are synced to the game’s frames, even though the numbers differ slightly. It also counts zero duplicated or skipped frames. Duplicated or skipped frames are what make motion stutter. ![A light blue transparent clamshell handheld prototype showing a Pokémon town with a frame-rate readout in the corner](https://storage.ghost.io/c/b3/23/b323103c-90c0-46a8-9230-7d317a5ebaf3/content/images/2026/10/fpgba-sp-pokemon-prototype.jpg) The FPGBA SP prototype running Pokémon, with its sync readout in the corner. Image: Taki Udon Before that, on September 30, Taki’s [first look](https://x.com/TakiUdon%5F/status/2105356876976369747?ref=averagetechnerds.com) showed the prototype on the title screen of Diddy Kong Racing, a Nintendo 64 game. The retro gaming site [Time Extension reports](https://www.timeextension.com/news/2026/10/taki-udon-shares-footage-of-fpga-sp-handheld-console-that-plays-original-game-boy-advance-carts?ref=averagetechnerds.com) that Taki described that clip in replies as a demonstration of the hardware’s power, with no plan to focus on N64. ## What’s new about the screens? Taki says the new screen is “a big upgrade in brightness, color, and scaling.” Scaling is how a screen enlarges the GBA’s 240x160 picture. When the screen’s resolution is an exact multiple of 240x160, every original pixel becomes an even block of screen pixels and stays sharp. He hasn’t given a size or resolution for any of the new screens. He says he’ll show the larger screens the weekend of October 17-18 if the results are positive. ## How far along is the non-folding GBA model? Early. Taki said on October 12 that he was “considering a regular FPGBA version,” and by October 16 his team had started building it: it’s the dark blue prototype in his photos. He hasn’t said whether it will go on sale. ## How much will it cost, and when is it out? There’s no release date, and Taki is “still trying to make this work for around $100” for the FPGBA SP. He hasn’t given a price for the regular GBA version. None of his posts gives a date, and there’s no pre-order or store listing. Some coverage reads like an announcement: ixbt.games headlined the prototypes as FPGA versions of the GBA and GBA SP “with new screens.” Neither is an announced product; both are prototypes. ## Who is Retro Remake? [Retro Remake](https://retroremake.co/?ref=averagetechnerds.com) (R²) is the company behind the SuperStation One, a home FPGA console inspired by Sony’s PSone. Retro Remake also sells OLED screen upgrades for the Switch Lite. It makes the MiSTer Pi, too, a board for MiSTer, an open-source project that recreates dozens of consoles and computers on FPGA hardware. Taki Udon reviews handhelds on YouTube and lists himself as R²’s co-founder on X. Retro Remake’s [store page](https://retroremake.co/products/superstation-one?ref=averagetechnerds.com) says the SuperStation One plays PS1 games, works with original memory cards and controllers, is region-free and is fully compatible with MiSTer FPGA cores. A core is MiSTer’s recreation of one console or computer. Taki’s [launch post](https://x.com/TakiUdon%5F/status/1883318664470134951?ref=averagetechnerds.com) said the SuperStation One loads games from a disc or a backup. The SuperStation One’s fifth batch, at $249 for the Standard model, is sold out. A [Transparent Collection](https://retroremake.co/products/superstation%E1%B5%92%E2%81%BF%E1%B5%89-transparent-collection-preorder?ref=averagetechnerds.com) is on pre-order at the same price, shipping in December. On October 16, Taki also said Retro Remake is working on [SNES and Mega Drive FPGA consoles](https://x.com/TakiUdon%5F/status/2111135660480635130?ref=averagetechnerds.com) that will output 4K and cost “well under $200.” ## Which FPGA handhelds play GBA cartridges today? Of the handhelds compared here, only the $239.99 Analogue Pocket plays GBA cartridges with an FPGA. ModRetro’s Chromatic stops at Game Boy and Game Boy Color. Emulation handhelds like the KONKR Pocket Advance run games as files through software instead. ## How does it compare with the Analogue Pocket? The [Analogue Pocket](https://www.analogue.co/pocket?ref=averagetechnerds.com) is on sale now at $239.99, more than double Taki’s “around $100” target for the FPGBA SP. Analogue says the Pocket plays Game Boy, Game Boy Color and Game Boy Advance cartridges on two FPGAs. Its 3.5-inch 1600x1440 screen is nearly square, in an upright body like the original Game Boy, so the wide GBA picture leaves empty space above and below. The FPGBA SP and the regular GBA version follow GBA designs with landscape screens instead. Beyond the SP’s cartridge claim and price target, Taki hasn’t shared the specs needed to compare either model further. ## How does it compare with the ModRetro Chromatic? The [Chromatic](https://modretro.com/products/chromatic-transparent?ref=averagetechnerds.com) doesn’t play GBA games at all. It’s ModRetro’s FPGA handheld for Game Boy and Game Boy Color cartridges, with a 160x144 screen. It costs $149.99 in transparent plastic or $199.99 in magnesium. I own an original Game Boy Color and a [transparent red Chromatic](https://averagetechnerds.com/modretro-chromatic-transparent/). ModRetro has said a GBA device would need its own wide, landscape design. Founder Palmer Luckey said in 2024 that the company is “[certainly going to end up doing Game Boy Advance someday](https://www.timeextension.com/news/2024/09/modretro-is-certainly-going-to-create-an-fpga-game-boy-advance?ref=averagetechnerds.com),” but it hasn’t announced one. ## How does it compare with the KONKR Pocket Advance? The [KONKR Pocket Advance](https://averagetechnerds.com/konkr-pocket-advance-first-impressions/) is on sale now, at $109 (3GB/32GB) or $129 (4GB/64GB), close to Taki’s target, but it has no cartridge slot. It’s an Android handheld that plays games as files through software emulation. Its 3.5-inch 960x640 screen is exactly four times the GBA’s 240x160 in each direction, so every GBA pixel scales evenly. I own one, and GBA games run smoothly on it. Taki says his FPGBA SP would play your actual cartridges on FPGA hardware instead. | | FPGBA SP (prototype) | Analogue Pocket | ModRetro Chromatic | KONKR Pocket Advance | | -------------------- | ------------------------------------------ | ----------------------------------- | -------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------- | | Price | Target “around $100” | $239.99 | $149.99 transparent, $199.99 magnesium | $109 (3GB/32GB) or $129 (4GB/64GB) | | Plays GBA cartridges | Yes, per Taki Udon | Yes | No (Game Boy and Game Boy Color only) | No cartridge slot | | How it plays games | FPGA | FPGA | FPGA | Software emulation on Android | | Screen | Bigger screens in testing; size not given | 3.5-inch, 1600x1440 | 2.56-inch, 160x144 | 3.5-inch, 960x640 | | Shape | GBA SP clamshell, regular GBA in the works | Upright, like the original Game Boy | Upright, like the original Game Boy | Wide, like the GBA | | Status | Prototype, no date | On sale | On sale | On sale | ## Why are FPGA consoles having a moment? To me, with hardware prices climbing, there’s a movement of people who want to own their media again, go back to their roots and revisit older things. FPGAs aren’t entirely new, but they’ve seen a resurgence. It’s mainly two companies right now, ModRetro and Analogue, and they’re coming out hard with [all these devices](https://averagetechnerds.com/analogue-super-nt-plus-mega-sg-plus/). Taki’s Retro Remake is part of the same wave with the SuperStation One, and the FPGBA SP would add a handheld. I own [two Analogue 3Ds](https://averagetechnerds.com/analogue-3d-vs-modretro-m64/) and a [ModRetro M64](https://averagetechnerds.com/modretro-m64-unboxing/) myself, all FPGA Nintendo 64 consoles. I also own a ModRetro Chromatic, an FPGA Game Boy. These devices are getting sold out because there’s a want out there. ## Would I buy one? Yeah, absolutely. The most cost-effective competitor right now is $150, right? So, anything at $100 that has decent build quality is bound to get attention. It’s all gonna come down to the overall build quality and software proposition. That $150 is ModRetro’s Chromatic, the cheapest FPGA handheld on sale in this comparison, and it stops at Game Boy Color. For GBA cartridges, the FPGA handheld to beat is the $239.99 Analogue Pocket, so $100 would undercut it by even more. Folding SP or original, non-folding GBA: which one would you want? Based on Taki Udon’s posts on X, Retro Remake’s store, Analogue’s and ModRetro’s product pages, Time Extension’s reporting and my own time with the KONKR Pocket Advance, as of October 16, 2026\. These are prototypes, and everything about them may change.