An adapter and an app now allow Valve’s Steam Deck to play official cartridges for the Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance.
The Game Boy Cartridge PC Adapter and Emulation Tool was certified to be fully compatible with Valve. Steam deck Handheld platform. SteamDeck has been heavily developed as a powerful tool for emulation since its inception. Valve also accidentally released a promotional video showing an emulator for Nintendo Switch games. For a Steam deck to run official cartridges for platforms that haven’t been sold in decades is an impressive feat that many people may not be aware of.
The company making the adapter is called Epilog and describes its mission as “Preserving video game history. No compromises.” It is an independent company that has sold PC adapters for official Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance cartridges through its website for some time. To play them, users download Epilog’s software, which includes MGBA emulation to play classic Game Boy games directly from the cartridge.
In an announcement made on Epilogue’s official Twitter account, the company confirmed that both its GB Operator Adapter and the accompanying Operator App are now compatible with Steam Deck. This means Steam Deck users can plug the adapter directly into their Steam Deck via its USB-C port and play a collection of Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance games on the go. The adapter itself will hang via a USB-C cable, but it’s small and lightweight.
The adapter is absolutely not free. Epilogue is currently selling the GB Operator Adapter on its website for $49.99, plus shipping. It has been confirmed that the adapter is currently in stock and orders will ship quickly, for those who pick it up. It’s also clear that the GB Operator won’t work with the Steam Deck dock, as both require a single Steam Deck USB-C port. If Game Boy cartridges weren’t enough, Epilogue has also confirmed that it’s currently working on an adapter for Super Nintendo cartridges as well. Expect more information on this via Epilog’s social media channels.
Some may be concerned about the legality of the GB operator adapter. Since Epilog makes its own adapter and uses legitimate emulation software to allow games to run through Windows or Linux, there’s no reason to believe that a GB adapter is anything but legitimate. Anything is. The adapter has also been available for some time. Knowing that Nintendo is very protective and litigious, if the GB adapter crossed any threshold it’s likely that a lawsuit would have already been filed.
What makes the GB adapter’s compatibility with Steam Deck so exciting is that it opens up new archival opportunities to the handheld platform. There are a large number of Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance fans out there who have sold off their old devices or their devices have worn out with age. Now they have the opportunity to play games again in their collection, or get more Game Boy cartridges on their Steam deck. Hopefully, there are more adapters for other platforms designed specifically for it. Steam deck will follow.