Old school games, new school silicon.
An open-source FPGA retro platform for the Terasic DE25-Nano (Intel Agilex 5).
retroDE is an open-source FPGA retro gaming platform built for the Terasic DE25-Nano (Intel Agilex 5). Multiple classic systems run under a unified framework as dedicated FPGA hardware cores — not software emulation on a general-purpose CPU.
Real hardware logic, rebuilt in modern silicon.
| Board | FPGA | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Terasic DE25-Nano | Intel Agilex 5 | ✅ Supported |
| Core | System | Status |
|---|---|---|
| NES | Nintendo Entertainment System | ✅ Working |
| Atari 2600 | Atari 2600 | ✅ Working |
| CoCo2 | TRS-80 Color Computer 2 | ✅ Working |
| ao486 | x86 PC (486-era) | ✅ Working |
All cores are in active development. Working does not mean finished.
retroDE is running on real hardware today.
Cores are working. The framework, documentation, and release structure are being cleaned up and staged for first public release. The project is moving fast.
- SETUP.md — one-time environment setup: hardware, Quartus install, board prep, repo layout, SD card file structure.
- BUILDING.md — compile cores from source and deploy to the board.
retroDE_splash is the platform chassis — clone and build it first.
Every core depends on its shared RTL.
GPL v3 — see LICENSE for details.
The CoCo2 core ships with a clean-room BIOS — original work, not derived from any Tandy or Microsoft ROM. No external ROM sourcing required. It just works.