Picture Processing Unit (PPU) Part 1: VRAM and Background Rendering

Tue, 05 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Introduction

So far, our Game Boy emulator can execute CPU instructions and manage memory, but it’s a silent, black box. This chapter changes that. We’re about to bring the Game Boy to life by tackling the Picture Processing Unit (PPU) – the hardware responsible for all the visuals. This is a significant milestone, as seeing actual graphics from a ROM is incredibly rewarding and validates much of our prior work.

Picture Processing Unit (PPU) Part 2: Sprites, Scrolling, and LCD Control

Tue, 05 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This chapter builds upon our foundational Picture Processing Unit (PPU) work, where we established background tile rendering. Now, we’ll introduce the dynamic elements that bring games to life: sprites (movable objects), background scrolling, and the crucial LCD Control Register, which dictates how the display operates. By the end of this milestone, your emulator will be able to render basic sprites, scroll the background, and respond to fundamental display settings, making it capable of running more visually complex Game Boy ROMs.

PPU on AI VOID

Picture Processing Unit (PPU) Part 1: VRAM and Background Rendering

Introduction

Picture Processing Unit (PPU) Part 2: Sprites, Scrolling, and LCD Control