Simon Says with an RP2040

The team of Michael and Chimdi from Cornell’s Designing with Microcontrollers (ECE 4760) Fall 2023 session created Pico Says, a version of Simon Says using the RP2040 microcontroller. Their design incorporates UDP packets over WiFi for communication between players and features VGA graphics for visual output. Each player’s hardware setup consists of a Pico W module and a control panel with LEDs and buttons representing the four colors (red, green, yellow, and blue), along with additional buttons for sending signals and resetting the game.

While the project faced challenges with frequent datagram dropouts due to the noisy environment in the microcontroller lab, the team successfully implemented a working game. Despite facing time constraints and having to drop the planned sound effects feature, Michael and Chimdi overcame these obstacles and delivered a functional Pico Says game. The write-up emphasizes the valuable resources provided by ECE 4760 course references, specifically the UDP and VGA examples for the Pico, which proved essential for the project’s success. These resources are highlighted as useful additions to any RP2020 enthusiast’s toolbox for future projects.

Read more: Simon Says with an RP2040