The Raspberry Pi has grown far beyond a simple hobby board over the years. Today, it powers hundreds of different products and DIY projects, from custom wooden gaming PCs to physical CS2 kill counters. Now, one creator has taken things a step further by building a Raspberry Pi–powered handheld that (sort of) looks and plays like a Nintendo Switch, designed for retro gaming.

The idea is simple. The creator wanted a modern way to play classic games without spending a lot of money on expensive retro consoles or handhelds. By combining a Raspberry Pi with a custom 3D-printed chassis, they managed to create a portable system that supports Joy-Cons, a touchscreen, and RetroPie, all in a form factor inspired by the Nintendo Switch.

At the core of the build is a Raspberry Pi 3B+, though the design also supports the Raspberry Pi 4B and 5B. Even older boards like the Raspberry Pi 2B can work if paired with a Wi-Fi dongle. To handle power on the go, the system uses a WaveShare UPS HAT along with two 18650 lithium batteries. This setup allows the handheld to run without being plugged in, making it suitable for portable gaming sessions.

One of the standout features of this build is Joy-Con support. The third-party Easy SMX Joy-Cons connect to the Raspberry Pi over Bluetooth, letting players use familiar, modern controllers while playing retro games. Combined with RetroPie, this gives access to a wide range of classic systems through emulation.

The display is a 7-inch touchscreen mounted directly into the custom 3D-printed chassis. Assembly is fairly straightforward for anyone comfortable with basic hardware projects. The screen slots into the printed case, while the Raspberry Pi and UPS HAT are secured using screws, nuts, and standoffs. Once everything is aligned, the UPS HAT connects to the Pi through the GPIO pins, completing the setup.

The result is a handheld gaming system that blends old-school games with a modern design. It shows how flexible the Raspberry Pi ecosystem has become and how much potential there still is for creative, low-cost gaming projects.

About the Author

Abdul Haddi

Abdul is a tech writer and Editor for PC Guide, specializing in all things tech, gaming, and hardware.