Reviews
Check out our thoughts on the latest retro handhelds, and retrospectives on ones we still can’t put down.
The Latest
Arduboy FX – A Pint-Sized Portable
It’s small, it’s upgraded, and it’s not an emulator. Interested? Well good! Check out the details on this impressive and unique little treat: The Arduboy FX!
Retroid Pocket 4 (Pro): An Unhinged, Untethered, but Pleasant Smelling Review
Hey sweaty, I hope you like retro gaming because… well you being here would otherwise be weird. Who are you? The IRS? No, I'm not buying things from China again. It's a business expense, I swear. Okay, let's start over: Since the time that this group was birthed from...
Loki Max – Reaching the Summit?
One of the most capable handhelds of 2023: the Loki Max. If you are looking for power and comfort, in a smaller-than-average-for-an-x86 device, look no further.
Steam Deck OLED: An Unhinged, Freaky Fresh Review
A somewhat absurd but mostly realistic take on the new OLED Steam Deck. Does it really improve THAT much? Is it like, super cool? Hop in and find out.
Ayaneo Pocket Air: A Full Review
A full-coverage look at an Ayaneo device that runs Android. Does their departure from the Windows environment hold its own in the Android realm? Let’s find out.
RH Reviews – The Ayn Odin 2
We look at the successor to the venerable Ayn Odin and examine whether or not it manages to fill the boots left behind for it. Does it uphold the Odin legacy?
CRKD Nitro Deck: In-Depth Review
The Switch may be aging, but it still has new add-ons coming out for it. We take a look at the CRKD Nitro Deck, a full-coverage controller case for the NS.
Budget Gem Battle – X39 Pro or M17?
A few years ago, if you wanted to buy a handheld under 50 dollars, you were likely looking at e-waste, a famiclone (more e-waste), or a knock-off GBA that you were sure was the real deal. Spoilers: It was not. But as we come to a close on 2023 you can genuinely get a...
Retroid Pocket 3+: An Unhinged, Spooky, But Cozy Retrospective
"PUMPKIN SPICE LATTE!!!" Whats good gamers? Please put down your pirated copies of Super Mario Wonder on Steam Deck because we are coming in hot with an important news bulletin. Papa Stubbs let me out of the dungeon in his basement just long enough to talk about our...
Playdate Review – The Cheese Wedge with a Crank?
Do you enjoy the niche world of handhelds that don’t run off of emulation using Rockchip processors? Do you like pre-ordering a handheld in 2021 with the possibility of receiving it within a year, only to find out you’re going to receive it even later as in 2023? What...
The Ayn Loki 6600U Model: An In-Depth Review
Greetings friends and fellow enthusiasts! This is Mikhailov from Team Retrogue, where we like retro games and the devices that bring them to us. After a very long wait Ayn Loki units are finally starting to ship and land in people's eager hands. While many reviewers...
KTR1 – Game On or Game Over?
If you're deeply immersed in the world of retro gaming, there's a device you should know about – the KTR1. For those who haven't yet crossed paths with this gadget, prepare to dive into a new gaming dimension. The KTR1 started as a rumor, and now that it's in the...
RH Reviews – The Anbernic RG405V
This is it, ladies and gentlemen (and Gary), the moment we've all been waiting for. We've had traditional horizontals, and even clamshells, but your chipset library just isn't complete until you have a vertical handheld now is it? That's right, those madlads over at...
RGB30 – Does it Check the Right Boxes?
Instagram… Square. Minecraft… Cube. Pico 8… Square. Rubiks… Cube. RGB30… Square. Yeah… the RGB30 is definitely a square alright. At least square in the screen. That’s right, the RGB30 is the topic of today’s article if you couldn’t tell by the Thumbnail, or the title,...
RP2S: An Unhinged, Unprecedented, Unlawful, But Totally Warranted Review
While you guys are furiously gripping your fat, 4" screened Anbernic donkers, another very worthy contender is up to bat for the Thor's hammer of Best Affordable Low End to Mid-range Chinese Handheld Emulator™. This time around, let's roll out the red carpet for the...
Top 5 ‘Budget’ Retro Handhelds of 2023 (So Far)
In the world of gaming, nostalgia is a powerful force, and the retro gaming scene has been booming in recent years. For those looking to relive the glory days of handheld gaming or discover classic titles for the first time, we've compiled a list of our top 5 'budget'...
RH Reviews: The Anbernic RG Nano
It's a bit funny how some handhelds seem to evolve. On one hand you have developers trying to squeeze as much power as possible into larger and larger frames, like with the ROG Ally or the Steam Deck. Then on the other side, you have developers looking to squeeze any...
RH Reviews: The Retropixel Pocket
The Gameboy Pocket is one of my all-time favorite handhelds, and really one of my favorite pieces of gaming equipment period. So when last year I heard about a device rumored to be a GBP-style clone being made by Funnyplaying, a company known for their excellent...
RH Reviews: The Anbernic RG353PS
What do you get when you take an existing handheld and remove Android from it, add new color schemes, and release it again? Well yes, a lesser device is technically correct, but also you get the newest release from the Anbernic 353 line: the 353PS. It is incredibly...
FunKey S: Tiny but Mighty Clamshell
Quick: What’s small, foldable, and full of buttons? No, it’s not a Hawaiian shirt for a kid. It is in fact a retro handheld! Yes indeed, today we are talking about a device that changed the landscape of the retro-handheld sphere when it was released thanks to its...
RH Reviews: The Anbernic RG405M
Welcome to another edition of "It's been another month, which means another Anbernic device is out!" Our esteemed guest for this foray into the fresh pool of devices is the Anbernic 405m, the latest and greatest that the company has to offer. Encased in a classy...
RH Reviews: The Powkiddy Q36 Mini
(This review has been written and provided by Rocketman824) Have you ever said to yourself “Self, when are you going to find a device so small it can fit in that little pocket in your jeans? You know the one above the right pocket that is great for like, Chap Stick?”...
RH Retrospective: The Anbernic RG280M
(This review has been written and provided by Rocketman824) Picture it: Wherever you live, June 2020. A hot new item is fresh off the assembly lines and people are taking notice. It is small yet powerful, heavy yet comfortable, horizontal yet...not vertical. Anbernic...
RH Dual Review: The Anbernic 35XX
Hey there my party people, we're going to be doing something a little bit different with this review. This will be a dual review, a head-to-head of sorts, pitting both the likewise and the contrary opinions of two of our writers on this shiny new device against each...
RH Reviews: The TrimUI Smart
(This review has been written and provided by Rocketman824) So you're here because you need another handheld device to play your legally acquired game backups. You want a little one, a mini one if you will, but not "THE" Mini one. You want it to be a cute color like...
RH Reviews: The Anbernic RG505
Well well, look at Anbernic flexing a little bit of Android muscle. That's right, Anbernic have released an Android-focused handheld with none of the half-in-the-water dual-boot stuff they've been experimenting with in recent releases. It's a bold move jumping into...
RH Reviews: The Anbernic RG353M
Here we go again, another 353 device from Anbernic. Not exactly unexpected, when the RG350 and 351 devices went with metal, plastic, and vertical versions, with the 351 even throwing in a bonus design with the MP. The RG353M ditches the nostalgic form factor of the...
RH Reviews: The Retroid Pocket 3
A baby Switch Lite, a mini Odin, the PSP's older brother but not the Vita. Here comes the Retroid Pocket 3, an eagerly awaited follow-up to the oft-recommended Retroid Pocket 2+. It's definitely had a facelift, but under the hood we're not getting a big overhaul....
RH Reviews: The Anbernic RG353V
It's a Gameboy Color! Wait, no it's not, I don't remember my childhood GBC having quite this many buttons. Well, at least this time around it's not so weird when your grandmother calls it your "Nintendo" because it does look a lot like the famed 1998 handheld,...
RH Reviews: The Steam Deck
If, like myself, you were interested in x86 handhelds back in July of 2021, then you had already spent a couple of months in excited speculation over the rumored upcoming "SteamPal" from Valve. Releasing in the midst of a healthily growing x86 handheld market, how...