chip8-py

A modular, extensible CHIP-8 emulator ecosystem written in modern Python, with support for SUPER-CHIP (and soon XO-CHIP).

Note: This is a remake of an old project of mine, chip-8-python, which aimed to do the same thing but was honestly pretty poorly made. It was monolithic and clunky, and this one is built to be an actual Python package.

Other Note: This project is a major WIP. There are many bugs, partially implemented features, and examples of poor code formatting. If you have a bug report or a feature request, please make an issue for it. If you want to contribute, check out the guidelines.

Installation

Requires Python 3.11+.

pip install chip8-py

# or in a local directory
git clone https://github.com/las-r/pychip8
cd chip8-py
pip install -e .

Usage

chip8py path/to/rom.ch8

Config

File

On first run, a default config is created at:

• Windows: C:/Users/YOUR_USER_PROFILE/AppData/Local/pychip8/
• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/pychip8/
• Linux: ~/.config/pychip8/

Edit this file to set your preferred defaults.

Flags

Flags override the config file.

Keypad

The CHIP-8 hex keypad maps to the left side of a QWERTY keyboard:

CHIP-8    Keyboard
1 2 3 C   1 2 3 4
4 5 6 D   Q W E R
7 8 9 E   A S D F
A 0 B F   Z X C V

Credits

• raylib (Python)
• Guide to making a CHIP-8 emulator
• Timendus' CHIP-8 Test Suite
• SUPER-CHIP v1.1 Documentation
• Mastering SuperChip