Old LCD games look like stone-age tech compared to even handhelds like the OG Game Boy, but they're still worth preserving. That's something BrickEmuPy hopes to achieve, as the project has already preserved over 60 portable classics, and it's seemingly the first to preserve Nintendo's Mini Classics keychains for emulation.
Created by developers Azya52 and Andrei Cherniaev, BrickEmuPy is a "Handheld LCD games emulator in Python with PyQt6." Highlighted by the folks at Time Extension, the project has already preserved everything from Tamagotchis and Digimon Digivices to those Legend of Zelda and Super Mario wrist watches I begged my parents for back in the '90s.
Notably, it also appears to be the first project to dump Nintendo's Mini Classic keychain gadgets that function like a tiny retro handheld. The developers specifically dumped the Soccer version from 1998, but if I'm being real, I'm more hyped for more cursed portables to join the current list of 60 classics.
Nintendo Mini Classics Soccer (1998/2004) has now been dumped and emulated. As far as I know, this is the first Mini Classics game to be dumped. I hope I come across more games from this series. https://t.co/mauYbpIdXv pic.twitter.com/i37VnV9BFkJuly 16, 2026
I've got a big soft spot for janky old LCD games, and I've got quite a few in my collection. I'm talking questionable rivals to Nintendo's Game and Watch series by the likes of Systema, Tiger, and a bunch of others that no brand will own up to.
Yes, I know a very small minority of players would be rushing to emulate the Monster Munch Bat LCD block game that was once given as a prize by Walkers (Lays to you US peeps), or a two-button portable that inexplicably features both "Vampire Attack" and "Melon Mover", but by preserving access, they'll live on when their physical form crumbles to dust.
I'm also a big advocate for preserving physical hardware experience, especially since we're sailing towards an all-digital future. You haven't "lived" until you've tried a cursed Game Child knock-off for yourself, even if the games were borderline unplayable out of the box. That said, providing a way to emulate the ROMs themselves is half the battle, and it'll be fun seeing which oddball portables are immortalised via the project.
Swing by the best retro consoles for remakes and emulation systems that pack a punch.
