Building a kit to turn the LEGO Game Boy into a working console. What features would you like to see?

[BrickBoy_kit]

Hi everyone,
I am new to this community and wanted to share an idea with fellow Lego fans to see what you think 👀

Lego is releasing the Game Boy 72046 this October. Pre-orders sold out quickly and I think it is already one of the most exciting sets coming this year!

My thought was: what if it could be more than just a display piece? I am working on a set that would let the Lego Game Boy light up and even play simple retro games.
I call it BrickBoy 💪

I am still very early in the process, so before I spend more time and resources, I would love to know what you think about my idea.

What features or fun touches would you want to see?

I will address all your comments and share updates on my journey here. For those who prefer email, I have also set up a simple landing page at https://brickboy.xyz/ to follow along. Have a look!

Thanks a lot for having me, looking forward to your thoughts!

Image: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1TV1vnfKwy1bc71G7Ekcu8X1bKf7enj28/view?usp=drive_link

Edited August 26 by BrickBoy_kit
change the image link, improved the english

[Lyichir]

Sounds like a tricky project! I imagine the screen might end up being the easier part, as there's plenty of space to potentially fit a small LCD screen like the original system had. But if you wanted it to be playable on its own (instead of simply using it as a monitor of sorts with separate detached controls), you would probably need to modify several of the buttons—the A and B buttons depress like the original system so could likely be hooked up to switches, but the control pad and start and select buttons seem less functional.

As eager as you are to solicit ideas and start brainstorming, I'm not sure whether you'll be able to adequately gauge how feasible the project is until you have the Lego model in-hand. At that point it will be easier to figure out what modifications you would need to make to bring your idea to life.

[MAB]

Looking at the visible parts, I imagine the build is going to be fairly solid without any space for components.  You are probably getter off designing a case from scratch around your preferred components.  I've done it for raspberry pi and a number of arduino boards in the past but have always started knowing what I want to put in and building around that rather than the other way around.

[Mylenium]

Agree with the others. You'd most likely need some sort of custom encapsulated modules replacing whatever buttons are there. The rest sounds a lot simpler. I'm pretty sure on those Asian electronics market web sites you could already find a complete kit from which to build a 3D printed Game Boy emulator that just would need to be fitted into the LEGO stuff. I still have the old GB cartridges, but I haven't bothered to dig them out just for the chance I could build one using such a kit. Running an emulator on another device is just more convenient. Fun as your project sounds you probably will have a tough time convincing people to buy it, at least if my own laziness is any indication. ;-)

Mylenium

[BrickBoy_kit]

20 hours ago, Lyichir said:

Sounds like a tricky project! I imagine the screen might end up being the easier part, as there's plenty of space to potentially fit a small LCD screen like the original system had. But if you wanted it to be playable on its own (instead of simply using it as a monitor of sorts with separate detached controls), you would probably need to modify several of the buttons—the A and B buttons depress like the original system so could likely be hooked up to switches, but the control pad and start and select buttons seem less functional.

As eager as you are to solicit ideas and start brainstorming, I'm not sure whether you'll be able to adequately gauge how feasible the project is until you have the Lego model in-hand. At that point it will be easier to figure out what modifications you would need to make to bring your idea to life.

Thanks a lot for the feedback! You’re right, I’ll only be able to fully understand the feasibility once I actually get the Lego model in hand. But I'm already making steps ahead based on the images and dimensions published on the official Lego website, plus some early coverage from journalists/influencers.

My idea is to keep the A/B buttons on switches and see how far I can push the d-pad and other components without changing the Lego look, but for sure there will be custom pieces included in the kit. I’ll share updates as soon as I can test it with real bricks.

On a side note, my website was broken, I fixed it now if you want to have a look

19 hours ago, MAB said:

Looking at the visible parts, I imagine the build is going to be fairly solid without any space for components.  You are probably getter off designing a case from scratch around your preferred components.  I've done it for raspberry pi and a number of arduino boards in the past but have always started knowing what I want to put in and building around that rather than the other way around.

That’s a good point. My goal is to keep the Lego Game Boy (almost) intact and use a plug-and-play module rather than designing a custom case from scratch. For sure there will be some custom pieces though.
We’re working on making the components as small as possible so they can fit inside the original set, but I know space will be tight

[BrickBoy_kit]

18 hours ago, Mylenium said:

Agree with the others. You'd most likely need some sort of custom encapsulated modules replacing whatever buttons are there. The rest sounds a lot simpler. I'm pretty sure on those Asian electronics market web sites you could already find a complete kit from which to build a 3D printed Game Boy emulator that just would need to be fitted into the LEGO stuff. I still have the old GB cartridges, but I haven't bothered to dig them out just for the chance I could build one using such a kit. Running an emulator on another device is just more convenient. Fun as your project sounds you probably will have a tough time convincing people to buy it, at least if my own laziness is any indication. ;-)

Mylenium

Thanks for sharing your thoughts! I answered the others about our plan for the construction.
And I know convenience is a big factor, therefore we are building BrickBoy to be all-in-one kit, with no soldering or modding, just slotting a small module inside the Lego Game Boy to wake it up, similarly to the light kit that already exists for other lego sets.
Even if people already have easier ways to emulate on pc/smartphone, I think the mix of Lego + retro gaming nostalgia could make it a fun collector’s piece! wdyt?

[Stereo]

I think for me, running on USB-C power/data without ever having to open it up to deal with batteries or loading files is the only 'odd' requirement; original GB used a barrel jack and if you could put it there it'd be tidy.  If it could also function as a Link Cable that'd be neat but I'm not sure what emulators provide for that.

 

If it used up the cartridge slot to make room for electronics, that wouldn't be a problem for me, with it actually working as a handheld toy, I care less what lego cartridge is in it.

Edited August 26 by Stereo

[BrickBoy_kit]

On 8/26/2025 at 9:24 PM, Stereo said:

I think for me, running on USB-C power/data without ever having to open it up to deal with batteries or loading files is the only 'odd' requirement; original GB used a barrel jack and if you could put it there it'd be tidy.  If it could also function as a Link Cable that'd be neat but I'm not sure what emulators provide for that.

 

If it used up the cartridge slot to make room for electronics, that wouldn't be a problem for me, with it actually working as a handheld toy, I care less what lego cartridge is in it.

Thanks for sharing this! USB-C for both power and data is exactly what I’m planning, and placing the port where the original barrel jack was is a great idea to keep it tidy. Link Cable support would be awesome, but that’s something I’d consider for a future or premium version. let's see!