Greetings friends and fellow enthusiasts!

This is Mikhailov from Team Retrogue, where we like retro games and the devices that bring them to us.

I’m a fan of Anbernic’s “XX” family of devices. The devices receive some amazing support from community developers and there is a design option for pretty much anyone who wants to experience the nostalgia of playing these old games.

This guide will help you set up your favorite “XX” handheld to be an emulation beast.

Table of Contents

• Replacement SD Cards
• SD Card #1 Setup
  • Anbernic Stock OS
  • MinUI
  • Knulli
  • muOS
• SD Card #2 Setup
  • Anbernic Stock OS
  • MinUI
  • Knulli
  • muOS
• Recommended RetroArch Cores for Game Boy Games
• Advanced Things to Try

Replacement SD Cards

You should immediately replace the included SD cards with more reputable ones. The generic SD cards that come with these handhelds are prone to failure and do not last very long.

I recommend purchasing a 32GB Micro SD card for the operating system and a minimum of a 64GB Micro SD card for your ROM and BIOS files UNLESS you want to use the stock Anbernic firmware. The stock firmware requires a 64GB SD card.

Below are some recommended SD cards:

SD Card #1 Setup

The XX line of Anbernic devices contains several different types of firmware. The firmware you decide to load is based entirely on your preference.

Anbernic Stock OS

Anbernic Stock OS on an RG CubeXX (Photo Courtesy of Ban).

You can download the stock firmware for your XX device by clicking here. Use the Balena Etcher program to write the firmware to the 64GB MicroSD card you purchased.

The stock firmware contains a decent experience, allowing you to play games with a stock menu interface, or load RetroArch. Use this firmware if you are just getting started with retro handhelds or want an “out of the box” experience.

DISCLAIMER: If you are experiencing issues with games not performing like they should, check and remove any filters or shaders that are present in Retroarch. This issue seems to be most present when playing SNES games.

You can access filters and shaders by going to Settings –> Video in Retroarch. Be sure to go to Main Menu –> Configuration File –> Save Current Configuration to make sure the changes stick.

MinUI

MinUI Running on an RG40XX H

You can download the MinUI for your XX device by clicking here. You will also need the stock Anbernic OS. Copy the dmenu.bin file to the root of the stock Anbernic MicroSD card. You can use the guide above to create a new stock OS card. Be sure to use the appropriate dmenu.bin for your device. You will also need to format your second MicroSD card to Fat32 (I use GUIFormat) and add the MinUI.zip file to the root of that card.

NOTE: Do not name the second MicroSD card or unzip MinUI.zip. Simply place the zip file in the root of the card.

MinUI is an amazing firmware if you just want to get the frontend interface out of the way and have a simple way to play your games. MinUI also has a simplified menu for save states and will allow you to enter a sleep mode. This means you can turn the system off mid-game, and when you turn it back on, you can continue where you left off.

There really isn’t any further configuration you need to do with this firmware. I highly recommend MinUI if you plan on giving this handheld as a gift.

Knulli

Knulli running on an RG 40XXV

You can download Knulli for your XX device by clicking here. Use the Balena Etcher program to write the firmware to the 32GB MicroSD card you purchased.

Knulli is a fork of Batocera utilizing an Emulation Station frontend. This firmware is fully featured allowing you to scrape boxart for your games, customize themes, and utilize PortMaster for certain Linux PC games. However, this firmware is a little less “user-friendly” and requires a fair bit of tinkering for the best experience.

MuOS

MuOS Running on an RG35XX SP

You can download MuOS for your XX device by clicking here. Use the Balena Etcher program to write the firmware to the 32GB MicroSD card you purchased.

MuOS is my favorite of these different operating systems. You can download and pick from a full set of themes including one from Tech Dweeb. There is PortMaster support, as well as the ability to sync and save via Syncthing. Retroarch cores can be set by individual games or by folder directory.

SD Card #2 Setup

Depending on the custom firmware you are using, you will need to set up your second SD card in a certain way.

Anbernic Stock OS

Simply make a ROMs and BIOS folder on your second SD card. You can then make subfolders for your systems (NES, SNES, etc.). When navigating the OS, you can choose the second SD card and load up your roms from there.

MinUI

Copy the ROMS, BIOS, and SAVES folder from the MinUI zip to the second microSD card (the same card you put the MinUI.zip file in above). Put your ROM and BIOS files into their appropriate directory before loading it into your device.

Knulli

When booting Knulli for the first time, also put the second SD card in.

Then go to Main Menu –> System Settings –> Storage –> Storage Device. From there you can switch to the second card and get the folders populated.

Since the card is going to be in an EXT4 format, you will need a Linux operating system like the Steam Deck in order to copy your ROM and BIOS files. Otherwise, you can use network transfer in order to put the files in their proper directories. Russ from Retro Game Corps has a great walkthrough on how to do this on his website.

MuOS

Follow the guide on the MuOS Wiki in order to populate your device with your ROM and BIOS files.

Recommended RetroArch Cores for Game Boy Games

An Example of a Super Game Boy Enhanced Game

For consoles like NES and SNES, you can keep the default settings and still have an enjoyable experience. However, for Game Boy systems, you might want to try the following Retroarch Cores:

• Game Boy: Gambatte Core / GB Colorization set to “Internal” / Internal Pallete set to “Special 1” / Interframe Blending set to “Simple”
• Super Game Boy Enhanced Games: mGBA Core / Use Super Game Boy Borders set to “Off” / Interframe Blending set to “Simple”
  • NOTE: In Operating Systems that have preconfigured bezels like MuOS, you might have to change the bezel to the Game Boy or Game Boy Color one. In order to do that, follow the directions below:
  • Settings –> Video –> Scaling –> Aspect Ratio set to “Core Provided”
  • Settings –> User Interface –> On-Screen Overlay –> Overlay Preset set to “gbc_ant” –> (Landscape) Overlay Scale set to “1.020”
  • Settings –> Quick Menu –> Overrides –> Save Game Overrides (so the settings are saved per-game and not per-core)
• The settings above ensure that you can play Super Game Boy Enhanced games in full color as they were meant to be played.
• Game Boy Color: Gambatte Core / Color Correction set to “GBC Only” / Interframe Blending set to “Simple”
• Game Boy Advance: mGBA Core / Interframe Blending set to “Simple”

Advanced Things to Try

Now that you know the basics, here are some additional guides from Russ to try if you want to do some more advanced things with your XX device.

• Setting up Syncthing to sync your game saves across devices
• Shaders, Filters, and Overlays
• Portmaster Starter Guide

You can check out some of my other guides below:

• Emulating the N64 Transfer Pak
• Setting Up Retroarch on iOS Devices

What did you think of this article? Let us know in the comments below, and chat with us in our Discord!

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