Along the way, you develop critical thinking, practice problem-solving, and work in a self-taught manner.

One of the most popular tools in maker culture is the Raspberry Pi. And no, we’re not talking about fruit or the math formula. It’s a small device launched in 2012 by the Raspberry Pi Foundation. Its original goal: to make computer science education accessible to all in academic settings.

WHAT IS A RASPBERRY PI?

The Raspberry Pi is a compact, ultra-low-cost computer (around €50) that makes computing accessible to anyone eager to tinker. On a small board, it incorporates all the components of a traditional computer (CPU, RAM, USB ports, network connection…). One of its biggest strengths is its compatibility with open-source systems, which allows you to customize the device as you like.

WHAT CAN YOU DO WITH A RASPBERRY PI?

Multimedia Center – Kodi.

A typical use for these devices is setting them up as multimedia centers, where you can store content like movies and music. Using open-source software such as Kodi, OpenELEC, or LibreELEC, you can organize and play all kinds of media through a simple, intuitive interface.

Personal Server – Web, files (NAS)…

You can also create a personal server to host a website, keep a backup of your files, and access them from any device.

Home Automation (Domotics).

Thanks to its great connectivity, you can use a Raspberry Pi to control other devices, allowing you to build home automation systems.

Programming Education.

Its low cost and the massive developer community behind Raspberry Pi make it perfect for getting started with programming. In fact, it was born with educational purposes.

Emulation (Retrogaming).

Lastly, Raspberry Pi is powerful enough to run games from various old consoles. With the right emulators, you can play games from systems like NES, PlayStation, GameBoy, and more. You can even use PlayStation or Xbox controllers, or any USB/Bluetooth-compatible gamepad. If you don’t have one, you can control it with a keyboard and mouse.

WHAT IS BATOCERA AND WHAT DO YOU NEED TO INSTALL IT ON A RASPBERRY PI?

An emulator is software that allows a program or game to run on a platform different from the one it was originally designed for. Thanks to this, you can run games from different platforms on a single device like a Raspberry Pi.

Batocera is one of the best software options for running emulators. It is open-source software that will allow you to emulate different platforms such as NES (Nintendo Entertainment System), Gameboy Color/Advance, Play Station, Sega Mega-Drive… You will only need a Raspberry Pi, two memory units of more than 8GB (micro SD card and a USB drive), and a controller to operate the console.

It is possible to reuse controllers from other consoles such as PlayStation or Xbox, or any controller with USB or Bluetooth connection. If you don’t have a controller, it can be controlled from a keyboard and mouse.

WHAT CAN WE RUN THROUGH BATOCERA?

To be able to emulate games from different platforms, we must install the BIOS files for each platform. To do this, we must download the files and copy them to an external memory that we will connect to our Raspberry. Various developers freely (and legally) publish these files, (for example on GitHub).

Several developers such as Cinemaware, Team17, Factor5, Gremlinworld, Exidy and Video Klein have released ROMs for platforms such as Amiga and MAME, so they are publicly accessible.

Another option is “homebrew” games created by developer communities without commercial purposes. Among them, we suggest trying itch, pdroms and nesdev.

REFERENCES

• Tutorial.
• Legislation.
• Free games.

ANNEX – Detailed tutorial

How do we install Batocera?

First, we will download and install the Raspberry image generator from the official Raspberry website. Then, we search for and download the Batocera image for our Raspberry from the Batocera website.

We connect the memory unit to our computer and open the Raspberry image generator. In the operating system field we choose custom, a file browser window will open where we select the image we have downloaded. In the storage unit field we choose our memory unit, where all content will be deleted and an executable image of Batocera will be installed.

The program will ask us if we want to apply OS personalization settings, to which we must say no.

It will also ask if we want to delete all data from our USB memory; we must say yes to continue the process.

Once the process is completed, we can eject the memory and insert it into our Raspberry Pi. The first time we start it, it will take some time to complete the configuration.

**Downloading and running emulators is legal, as the written code is different from the original code. Downloading and running games goes against intellectual property rights.

How do we install the emulators?

To be able to run games from different platforms, we must install the BIOS files for each platform. To do this, we must download the files and copy them to an external memory that we will connect to our Raspberry. Various developers freely publish these files, (for example on Github).

Once the files are downloaded and unzipped, we copy the BIOS into the BIOS folder within the Batocera system. While running Batocera on our Raspberry with our external memory connected, we press F1 to open Batocera’s file manager and copy the BIOS from the memory into the BIOS folder.

Once copied, we restart Batocera and all emulators whose BIOS we have copied will now appear.

How do we install the games?

Several developers such as Cinemaware, Team17, Factor5, Gremlinworld, Exidy and Video Klein have released ROMs for platforms such as Amiga and MAME, so they are publicly accessible.

Another option is “homebrew” games created by developer communities without commercial purposes. Among them, we suggest trying itch, pdroms and nesdev.

Just like with the BIOS files in the previous step, we must download and unzip these ROM files. We will copy them into the roms folder, inside the folder of their corresponding platform.