gaming

Owen Feldman boots Zork on Steam Controller by emulating Intel 8080, warns of bricking

Developer Owen Feldman modified a Steam Controller to run the text adventure Zork by flashing custom firmware and emulating an Intel 8080 CPU. Feldman wrote a Rust-based emulator (1,514 lines) to boot CP/M-80 on the controller's internal processor, used the built-in USB for I/O streaming, and loaded Zork from a floppy via an external drive. The controller was temporarily bricked during the flashing process, underscoring the risk to the $99 device. The project proves the Steam Controller can run standalone software but involves a real risk of hardware failure for casual users.

• Feldman used an internal tool found in a Steam hardware updater folder to flash firmware and temporarily bricked the controller during the process.
• A custom Rust program (1,514 lines) emulates an Intel 8080 CPU and boots the CP/M-80 operating system on the controller's internal processor.
• Because the Steam Controller has no built-in keyboard or screen, Feldman streamed I/O over the controller's USB connection and loaded Zork from a floppy disk via an external drive.
• The flashing method carries a genuine risk of permanently bricking the $99 controller, making the procedure suitable only for experienced hardware hackers.