7 Clever Reuses for Retro Video Game Consoles

Video game technology gets updated pretty often, but that doesn’t mean when you get sick of your old games and consoles and update to new ones that you have to get rid of them. Instead, here’s a few pretty awesome ways to repurpose video game equipment so that you can use it in your home. You can make your old gaming stuff useful, and incorporate some cool electronics and video game-themed decor into your home!

Air Guitar Hero

When the challenge of guitar hero wears off, it just might be time to tear that sucker open and change the game. This project lets you use muscle sensors to play Guitar Hero in a new and interesting way.

Atari Remote Control

If you’re lucky enough to have your old Atari system lying around, you can turn it into something you can actually use! This DIY Project from Hacked Gadgets shows you can how you can take apart the Atari Joystick, hack a remote control, and put the two together to control your television. You may not be able to use the joystick for Atari anymore, but that doesn’t mean it can bring you geeky joy on the daily!

NES looper

Music loopers typically look pretty boring. They’re just a few switches on what is normally a small black box. Spice things up a little bit with the recognizeable body of the classic NES console!

Nintendo Controller Wallet

One nifty gaming upcycle you can do on your own is turning a Nintendo NES controller into a wallet, via this tutorial on Instructibles. You don’t even have to know how to sew to complete the project, and it will allow you to carry a piece of gaming history with you wherever you go. All you’ll need are some simple tools to take apart the controller, a zipper to install to keep the wallet closed, and some strong glue. Simple as Tetris!

Nintendo Controller iPod Dock

Another way to repurpose your old controllers is by turning a Nintendo 64 controller into an iPod dock. This guide shows you how to simply take apart the controller so you can USB charger through it. This is a great way to incorporate some gaming-themed accessories to your office or home desk.

Nintendo NES Lunchbox

You may have always dreamed about carrying your Nintendo NES with you, even when you went to school (particularly before the days of Gameboy and other small, toteable games!) Well, now you can do just that with this tutorial on how to repurpose your Nintendo NES as a lunchbox . The tutorial will show you how to take apart the NES to remove all of its guts, then reassemble so it can easily open and close. In terms of lunchboxes, there’s definitely none better- game over!

Super Nintendo (SNES) Alarm Clock

If you’re the kind of person that wants to see your gaming console first thing in the morning, then consider repurposing your old Super Nintendo into an alarm clock via this tutorial from Mavrinac. To make the clock, you have to remove the guts of the console and rewire them so that they power a clock instead of a game. This takes a little electronics know-how, but the guide will help .When it’s done, you’ll have a super way to start the day!