An 8-bit computer simulator built in Unity that shows how components of a computer actually work.
Clone or download the repository
Open UnityHub, click add, and select Unity_8BitComputerSimulator-master
Download Unity_8BitComputerSimulator/8BitSimulator_Builds.zip
Open and unzip 8BitSimulator_Builds and double-click 8BitComputerSimulator.exe
Show Code Button -> Pops up code text box for writing
Delay Speed Slider -> The delay per operation in seconds
Show Log Button -> Pops up a log of all of the operations of the overall computer
Start Program Button -> Start/Reset the program
Hover over any component to see what it is via your mouse
Components colored Cyan are in use for the current operation
LDI 3
STA 14
ADD 14This does an immediate load (LDI) into the A register, stores the contents of the A register into memory address 14, and finally adds the contents of memory address 14 to the A register. The final result is 6 which is showed in the A register and O (output) register.
Note: the output register is not always utilized, typically only when the B register is needed for ALU operations.
LDA - 0001 XXXX - loads the contents from XXXX into the A register, where XXXX is the memory address location
ADD - 0010 XXXX - adds the contents of XXXX to the A register, where XXXX is the memory address location
SUB - 0011 XXXX - subtracts the contents of XXXX to the A register, where XXXX is the memory address location
STA - 0100 XXXX - stores the contents of the A register into the memory address XXXX
LDI - 0101 XXXX - does an immediate load of the value XXXX to the A register
JMP - 0110 XXXX - jumps the program counter to XXXX - NOTE: do not use this, conditionals have not been setup yetI suggest having an understanding of how the individual components of a computer work. This should be used to aid that process or experiment with low level operations. Trying out some basic programs, having a large delay time, and checking each operation via the log will seriously help your understanding. Also, I suggest hovering over the components to see what is what and to get familiar with the scene.
Ben Eater is awesome. If you have any questions or confusions I strongly suggest watching his series on building an 8-bit computer. This is how I was able to implement the computer in Unity along with previous experience from school.
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HyznrdDSSGM&list=PLowKtXNTBypGqImE405J2565dvjafglHU