A couple has created custom-made gaming handhelds as wedding invitations that run a game based around their actual wedding day.
It’s been 35 years since the launch of the original Game Boy. After nearly four decades, custom builders and modders are still continuously inspired by the iconic device. Inspiration for the Game Boy is everywhere you look. Even brands like Anbernic and Ayaneo have their own versions of the classic gaming handheld.
The inspiration for the handheld is also on full display in one couple’s wedding invitations. Instead of putting together elaborate cards to remind family and friends to set a date, one couple chose to custom-make gaming handhelds and a game to play on them.
“Twenty years ago, my spouse-to-be and I met and became friends. During the pandemic, we got engaged and wanted to create a unique and memorable wedding invitation for our friends and family”, explains groom Mo Rahman on his personal website.
The invitations are just that. Each custom-made device was built upon an Adafruit EdgeBadge and PyBade LC board. These compact boards, around the size of an average credit card, are decked out with a 1.8-inch 160 x 128 TFT color display, eight gaming buttons, and even built-in mini speakers for sound, making them ideal for modding.
Similarly to Raspberry Pi microcomputers, these boards are intended to make the process of creating your games a more easier process. Which is exactly what the couple did. Using Microsoft MakeCode Arcade, the couple developed their very own video game based on their wedding venue.
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Originally reported by Hackster.io, using a combination of sprites from online sprite generators, and assets from MakeCode Arcade, the couple created ‘Camp Crossing’, a Game Boy Color-style game that would provide family and friends with details about their wedding day.
Box art was even commissioned by artist Jake Lawrence, to make the unique wedding invitations more authentic.
During the game, players can use the directional buttons of the Adafruit board to move around an adorable 8-bit environment. With the wedding venue set in a glamping-type venue, players can interact with multiple NPCs who will explain the ins and outs of the couple’s special day.
The wedding took place back in 2022. However, the finished game is still available to play, minus the hardware, on the MakeCode Arcade site.
Mo Rahman hopes that the device’s combination of “retro charm with cutting edge tech” will inspire others to create their own fun and unique wedding invitations.
