ᴡʜᴏᴀ...ᴊᴜsᴛ, ᴡʜᴏᴀ.
It’s official, my childhood, from a digital scene, is completely in my pocket. This is not an overstatement, this is a literal reality, and l’m kinda freaking out over it. Anbernic has created a product that has the initial appearance of a Game Boy-esque clone, with an emulation library of about 2000 games from the NES all the way to the PS1. LET THAT SINK IN. I was able to find numerous titles that I personally enjoyed as a kid, and my nostalgic trip down memory lane was insane. And I got all of this, for 70 bucks.
ᴡʜᴀᴛ ᴇxᴀᴄᴛʟʏ ɪs ᴛʜɪs ᴛʜɪɴɢ?
Th Anbernic RG35XX is a portable emulation hub in a small formfactor that resembles the original Nintendo “Game Boy“ of the late 80’s (1989 to be exact). It has a wider and more vivid screen, additional face input buttons, addtional back triggers, and a stock OS and an additional OS (Garlic OS) that you can choose from. It takes a type -c charging connection, has a standard headphone jack, and you can connect this device to your tv via HD cabling.
ᴡʜᴀᴛ ɪ’ᴠᴇ ᴇɴᴊᴏʏᴇᴅ ᴛʜᴜs ꜰᴀʀ!
Customization - This device gives you a decent amount of customizable options. From boot screen images to icon theme/color varation, it’s completely up to you. Now, will I say that the options are all super detailed and all of them have “wow-factor“? No. But still, you get to choose and that’s what’s most important.
Having an OS (Make That Two) - There are two OS’s on this device. A Stock OS and another OS called Garlic OS (This is the one I recommended). Garlic has a lot more...pizzazz to it. All of the customizable options sit on the Garlic OS side of house.
An Expansive Library of Games - 2000 pre-installed games...2000, PRE-INSTALLED, GAMES! That within itself is awesome. Numerous banger titles. Zelda, Street Fighter, Spyro, Sonic, Metroid, are just a few of the games that are included on this list. The great thing about this device is that they give you the ability to add more titles to your library via micro SD.
ᴍʏ sᴍᴀʟʟ ʟɪsᴛ ᴏꜰ ᴄʀɪᴛɪǫᴜᴇs....
Gaming Photos Missing - The games list will have the photo included on some games, but not all games. This slight inconsistency was noticeable and kind of a bumper in some cases. A simple google search could have taken care of that problem, but still, no biggie.
Title Abbreviations - Some gaming titles don’t even get their full name, some will simply be an addreviation. Just like the previous gripe, consistency is key. It makes the whole experience feel more special.
Back Triggers Aren’t the Most Optimal - Experiencing the back triggers on this device takes some getting use to. There not in the best place, but honesly I couldn’t think of a better design without ruining the intend “Game Boy“ design the company was going for. They tried to be innovative, I can at least respect the attempt.
ꜰɪɴᴀʟ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛs ᴀɴᴅ ᴘʀᴀɪsᴇs
Will anything beat the way I feel about the original powerhouse that was, the “Game Boy“? No, never. Can I admit that this device put a massive smile on my face? Hell yeah. This product fills me with tons of joy and happiness for the next wave of gamers coming up. I hope to see a young kid with one of these around christmas time, enjoying and appreciating the classics. This is a no-brainer purchase in my book. With everything you’re getting, for 70 bucks??......c’mon.
ꜰᴜʟʟ sᴘᴇᴄs ʟɪsᴛ
-ᴅʀ.BIOS