Describe your dream retro game. Retroable builds and compiles a playable ROM, then brings it to life as a real cartridge.
Plans include Retro AI credits each month for creating a game, changing it, and generated art. A new game uses 25, a round of concept pictures 1, and a change 1. You pay before the first game. There is no trial.
For a first Game Boy game
★ 200 Retro AI credits a month
For creating a game, changing it, and generated art. They reset each month.
19 €
per month
Platforms
For more games and more consoles
★ 800 Retro AI credits a month
For creating a game, changing it, and generated art. They reset each month.
49 €
per month
Platforms
For a larger monthly allowance
★ 2,000 Retro AI credits a month
For creating a game, changing it, and generated art. They reset each month.
99 €
per month
Platforms
For every platform and a hardware voucher
★ 5,000 Retro AI credits a month
For creating a game, changing it, and generated art. They reset each month.
199 €
per month
Platforms
One payment. The same monthly Retro AI credits continue. A hardware voucher pays for one physical release: one sample of your game, for one platform, when that feature is available. Shipping is extra.
499 €
once
★ 200 Retro AI credits a month
For life. Retro AI credits arrive each month.
Platforms
Limited to the first 250
Get Starter Lifetime999 €
once
★ 800 Retro AI credits a month
For life. Retro AI credits arrive each month.
Platforms
Limited to the first 150
Get Creator Lifetime1.999 €
once
★ 2,000 Retro AI credits a month
For life. Retro AI credits arrive each month.
Platforms
Limited to the first 75
Get Studio Lifetime5.000 €
once
★ 5,000 Retro AI credits a month
For life. Retro AI credits arrive each month.
Platforms
Limited to the first 25
Get Ultra LifetimeOptional. A pack does not expire, and it stays if you cancel a subscription.
225 Retro AI credits
425 Retro AI credits
625 Retro AI credits
825 Retro AI credits
2,000 Retro AI credits
5,000 Retro AI credits
Europe is shown in EUR. Everywhere else is shown in USD, and either symbol switches the page. The number is the same in both. Prices are final. As a small business under § 19 UStG, Retroable charges no VAT. Included Retro AI credits reset each calendar month and do not roll over. A yearly plan still adds them each month. Purchased packs stay until they are used. A hardware voucher does not include shipping.
Compare
Coding agents can generate code. A Game Boy game that fits the hardware is a different job. Retroable only makes retro games, and the hardware limits are checked in the build. The result is a ROM for a real Game Boy or Game Boy Color, and you can order it on a cartridge. More consoles are in development.
We benchmark against coding agents on a regular schedule, so a Retroable game stays cheaper and faster than handing the same idea to a general OpenAI, Anthropic, or xAI model. One Game Boy game in Claude Code is about $40, and it takes much longer than the usual 20 to 60 minutes here. GB Studio, C, and assembler are free to download. They ask for your time and what you already know.
| Tool | Cost | Time | Beginner friendly | Hardware | Limits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RetroableYouGame Boy and Game Boy Color ROMs. Order a cartridge when you want one. | In a plan from $19 | Minutes | Describe it5 of 5 | ROM | Built in |
| Claude CodeA general coding agent. About $40 and a long prompting loop for one Game Boy game. | About $40 | Hours | Steer the agent2 of 5 | Only if you build the toolchain | On you |
| LovableAn app builder. It can generate an app. It does not make a console ROM. | Paid plan, no ROM | No console ROM | Not this job1 of 5 | Web app | Not a console |
| GB StudioA visual Game Boy tool. Real ROMs. You still build the game. | Free | Hours | Learn the tool3 of 5 | ROM | Editor helps |
| C (GBDK)A free compiler. You write the game and keep it inside the limits. | Free | Days to weeks | Write the game1 of 5 | ROM | On you |
| AssemblerFree. Full control of the machine, and the most to learn. | Free | Weeks | Know the machine1 of 5 | ROM | On you |
Cost and time for coding agents are approximate, from our own checks, and they move when model prices move.
Describe your idea
Tell Retroable what kind of game you want, in plain English.
Play your ROM
Generate the game, write the code, and compile a real, playable ROM.
Make it physical
A custom cartridge in a retail box.
$149
Your game on a cartridge, in a custom retail box.
Limited runs: 250 / 500 / 1,000 copies, from $49, plus shipping. Prices are final, with no VAT.
Retroable turns an idea into a real game. Describe it in a few sentences, add a sketch if you like, and Retroable writes, builds and tests the game. You play it in the browser and download the ROM. The original Game Boy and Game Boy Color are ready to use. More consoles are in development.
Retroable makes games for the original Game Boy and for Game Boy Color. Game Boy Advance, NES, SNES, Game Gear, and Mega Drive are in development, and not all of them can be used yet. On the home page, a console that is still in development asks for your email instead of starting a build.
Yes. A Game Boy game is a real ROM for the original Game Boy. A Game Boy Color game is a real Color ROM. Both run in emulators. Original Game Boy games also run on flash cartridges and on the cartridges we make for you.
Usually 20 to 60 minutes. You can close the page: we email you when the game is ready.
A paid plan includes Retro AI credits each month. Starter includes 200, Creator 800, Studio 2,000, and Ultra 5,000. A new game uses 25. A build that stops before the game is playable gives its Retro AI credits back. There is no free trial.
Yes. Retroable first draws a splash screen, the main menu and one or two scenes from the game. Say what to change and they are drawn again, at one Retro AI credit a round. The build starts when you approve those pictures.
Open your game and say what to change. Each change uses one Retro AI credit. The monthly amount depends on the plan, and you can add a pack of 50 more at any time.
The game page lists what it covers. Ask for anything missing as a change, one idea at a time works best.
Yes. Every finished game gets a public page that anyone can play, and it shows in the public library with its prompt and sketch. Switch a game to private in the Share dialog to keep it out of the library. Publish it to get a page at your-game.retroable.dev.
Yes. Order a cartridge from your game page. It is made for you and shipped to the address you enter at checkout. Ultra includes one hardware voucher. Creator Lifetime includes one, Studio Lifetime two, and Ultra Lifetime four. A hardware voucher pays for one physical release, one sample for one platform, when that feature is available. Shipping is extra.
Yes. As a small business under § 19 UStG, Retroable charges no VAT. See the terms and the right of withdrawal.
No. Game Boy, Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance, NES, and SNES are trademarks of Nintendo. Game Gear and Mega Drive are trademarks of Sega. Retroable is an independent service for making games for those consoles.
All answers are also on the FAQ page.
Short notes from the bench, as we ship.
Write a few sentences. Retroable builds a real Game Boy or Game Boy Color ROM you can play in the browser, download, and order on a cartridge.
Read the noteYou describe the game. Retroable writes the C, compiles a .gb file, and puts that file on screen.
Read the noteThe .gb file is the game. The browser, a desktop emulator, and a real handheld are three places that file can run.
Read the noteA Retroable cartridge is one game, in the original shell, in a printed box. It is made for you. It is not a blank.
Read the noteOriginal Game Boy and Game Boy Color can be built now. Advance, NES, SNES, Game Gear, and Mega Drive are in development.
Read the note