Features
Check out our thoughts on the latest retro handhelds, and retrospectives on ones we still can’t put down.
The Latest
Our Favorite Deals From the Steam Autumn Sale!
"Something something gobble gobble up them deals.” by Joe Without checking the last Steam sale article I made (Summer), I’m pretty sure I opened with “Full Steam ahead!” or something stupid and corny (corn-ucopia-y?) like that, so instead I will write a 2016-esque...
GKD Bubble: The Good, The Bad, the Basic
In the past, when you think of handhelds modeled after something else you think of Anbernic. The RG353P is modeled after an SNES controller, and the RG-Arc is modeled after a Sega 6-button controller. But what about a handheld modeled after a handheld? No. Not the...
Retro Handhelds Interviews: Arthur Zhang, CEO of AYANEO
It's not every day that you get the chance to ask the CEO of a company like AYANEO a few questions. That's exactly what Stubbs was able to do, as he fielded questions from the Retro Handhelds team before sending them over to AYANEO CEO, Arthur Zhang. At the time of...
XGB36 First Impressions: Throw Another Clone on the Fire
As someone who was around when most of these games we're emulating were originally released, I find myself drawn more to the devices that are doing more-with-less than I am to the next technological behemoth. When I first tried the Game Console R36S, I was blown away...
Retroid Pocket 5 Review: Is This the Perfect Handheld?
Before we get too into the weeds with the Retroid Pocket 5 review, there's something that you should probably know about me. I have a tendency to be a bit of a "snob" when it comes to the devices I purchase, always looking to get the best. This applies to everything...
Retro Handhelds Weekly: Miyoo Flip, MSI Claw 8 AI+, Antec Core, and Much More!
Welcome to the latest edition of Retro Handhelds Weekly. This week saw a bunch of news in both the world of hardware and software, our writing team continues to be on an absolute tear, and there’s even a surprise or two sprinkled in! So sit back, grab a cup of coffee,...
5 Games Where You Can Take Down Turkeys
In the USA, we are nearing the holiday of Thanksgiving. While we have a lot to be thankful for, I am usually thankful for that delicious turkey at the center of the feast. I live near a ton of farms, and our local farmers are cursing turkeys as they have been...
TrimUI Brick First Impressions: SOLID
TrimUI is one of those companies that haven’t released a mountain of products. With that, they’re similar in vein to companies like Retroid and AYN. However, where they focus on Android at higher prices, the TrimUI brand lands on the lower end of the market. Following...
Joe’s Anbernic RGXX Series Tier List
Rated PG for “Poor-ish Gamers" by Joe Ladies and laddies, it's been an exhausting year. Stubbs needs to sleep and Anbernic just keeps the coffee brewing with every H700 device in the XX line. What started as a lukewarm joke became a dead horse, recontextualized in so...
Anbernic RG406V and RG406H Setup Guide
The RG406H and RG406V will probably go down as two of the most solid releases this year. They're currently the only devices that spout a 4:3 720p screen, making them optimal for nearly every console released before 16:9 became the new standard. Their power gives them...
Controllers Under $40: Do You Need More?
When I was younger, our family always seemed to need an extra controller or three. And for me, the youngest child, that meant I was the one using the Mad Catz controller. Or in the case of the Wii, the PDP Rock Candy controller is in transparent green. Fast forward to...
Anbernic RG406H Review: Everything Rolled Into One
Anbernic is back with all brand-new variations. What happens when you take a RG406 V and cross it with a RG Cube? Well, you get something much like the new RG406H. You can check out Andrew's first impressions here and also the video Stubbs did below. Anbernic RG406H:...
Could Console Launcher 2.0 Be Your Next Android Frontend?
From the latest Anbernic releases like the RG406H to devices that have become mainstays in the community like the AYN Odin 2, it's become clear that Android is here to stay as a preferred OS for retro handhelds. Lower-end devices largely depend on Linux to squeeze...
Retro Handhelds Weekly: Retroid Pocket 5 Arriving, Anbernic Goes Windows, and Much More
Welcome to the latest edition of Retro Handhelds Weekly. This week saw a bunch of news in both the world of hardware and software, our writing team continues to be on an absolute tear, and there’s even a surprise or two sprinkled in! So sit back, grab a cup of coffee,...
Retroid Pocket 5 First Impressions: Oh My
It's wild to think that in a year dominated by Anbernic handhelds of all shapes and sizes, Retroid releases one device that trumps them all. That's exactly what it looks like so far with the Retroid Pocket 5. Thanks to Stubbs, I've been able to spend a bit of time...
Retroid Pocket 5 Setup Guide (and Mini!)
Two of the most exciting handhelds of the year finally arrived in late 2024. The Retroid Pocket 5 and Pocket Mini were announced with much fanfare, offering some rather impressive upgrades over the Retroid Pocket 4 series. If your new handheld just landed on your...
Lime3DS and PabloMK7 Citra Fuse Into Azahar
On October 30, 2024, it was announced that Lime3DS and the PabloMK7 fork of Citra were ceasing development in favor of a merged project between the two development teams. Today, that joint project has a name: Azahar. Azahar translated to “orange blossom” in Spanish...
MuOS is Coming to the Anbernic RG CubeXX!
Greetings friends and fellow enthusiasts. This is Mikhailov from Team Retrogue where we like retro games and the devices that bring them to us. MuOS Big Banana is currently in its beta testing phase for KoFi supporters. This version of MuOS will bring support for the...
Anbernic RG406H First Impressions: A Wider Cube
We knew that Anbernic had at least one more device to release this year. I wouldn't be surprised if we saw at least one or two more before the calendar flips to 2025. What did surprise me was seeing the RG406H actually see the light of day, seemingly meant to take on...
Spruce 3.0 on the Miyoo A30: Layers of an Onion
The Spruce Dev team released a new version of spruce for the Miyoo A30, find out below why I think this release is the “Game Changer”, which will stop A30 owners from dreaming of an OnionOS port. I’m a relatively new A30 owner, I got it with the hope that, when...
Retroid Pocket Mini: A Linux Review
It’s not often Retroid releases a handheld, usually landing at least 4 months before releases. Ignore the 3 and 3+, please. Since 2020 Anbernic has released 30+ handhelds including their variants. At that same time? Retroid has officially announced 11. So each time...
These Are Our Favorite 11.11 Deals So Far
Can you believe that it's already November? Not only that, but we're almost halfway through the month! Well, to help celebrate and get ready for the holidays, why not treat yourself or knock a few things off of your holiday shopping list? The AliExpress 11.11 sale is...
More Than Just Gaming: The Art of Collecting Retro Handhelds
You cannot throw a rock in this community without hitting a post on Reddit or Discord about how "I've become an addict" coupled with a picture of piled emulation handhelds. It's easy to look at this hobby from a thousand-foot view and point out how silly it is to have...
Retro Handhelds Weekly: RG406H, Miyoo Flip, Steam Deck OLED, and Much More!
Welcome to the latest edition of Retro Handhelds Weekly. This week saw a bunch of news in both the world of hardware and software, our writing team continues to be on an absolute tear, and there’s even a surprise or two sprinkled in! So sit back, grab a cup of coffee,...
The Anbernic RG406H Looks Like a Stretched RG Cube
It's been a few weeks since we last heard or saw anything about the Anbernic RG406H, but that's probably because the company's been gearing up for its release. Previously, a couple of pictures were leaked showing off both the internals and a blurry picture of a...
5 Games We Wish We Could Try the Food In
Here in the U.S., we are reaching Thanksgiving. It is a holiday to be thankful for what we have, but also to enjoy eating delicious food with your loved ones. Do you ever wish you could experience living in a game world? What if just to eat the cuisine? I have and I...
Anbernic’s 11.11 Handheld Deals Come Early
It's that time of the year. No, not the time for cookies and eggnog. It's shopping season! This is when all of the best deals of the year take place, saving you buckets of cash on some new retro handhelds. Now that the AliExpress Choice Sale is out of the way,...
Why I Bought a Switch Lite in 2024
It's because it was the gold one. - Joe, who is fiscally irresponsible Just when we thought Nintendo was going to take the aged, nearly decade old, Switch to the vet to be dropped off at the farm on the countryside, it surprised us with another 2 years of problematic...
Save Time with This Easy Hack to Install Batocera on Your Retroid Pocket 5!
Much like a sizable portion of the Retro Handheld community, my gateway was the Retro Game Corps channel. One thing I noticed, both on Russ’ recent video showcasing Linux on the RP Mini and in our own Team Retrogue’s written guide, is the expectations are that the...
Best Handhelds Under $50: Late 2024
Fifty Dollars; you could buy a lot with that. You could grab an 8BitDo Ultimate controller, a copy of Sonic X Shadow: Generations, or even 25 Cheesy Bean and Rice burritos from Taco Bell. Wait — didn’t I do this before? The answer is yes. In October 2023 I shared a...