Team A1: IBM FPGA

Our project will bring classic PC gaming back to life by recreating the IBM PC/XT, an early personal computer, using modern programmable hardware. We will build a complete working computer that users can turn on, control with a keyboard, and use to play original games such as Digger and Prince of Persia, complete with graphics and sound. At the heart of the project is an FPGA—a chip whose digital circuitry can be configured to act as a custom computer. Our three-person team will design the processor that executes instructions, the supporting hardware that connects it to the outside world, and the basic operating software that loads and runs programs. What makes our approach distinctive is this hands-on reconstruction of both hardware and software: our goal is to run the original games without modifying them, demonstrating that the pieces we build work together like the original machine. The result will offer a playable connection to computing history and show how a computer works from the inside out.