Thank you!

That is such a nice comment to read :) I don’t have one of Miniloong’s either, but this duo’s infectious enthusiasm really has me considering it.

Really glad you enjoyed reading along, you’re who these articles and interviews are for :)

That’s Geekstrada’s dog, Atticus! Who is a good boy :)

And totally understandable, this is niche-within-niche. Leaf is a custom firmware option for a cheaper retro handheld, which lets you emulate old games on the go from ROMs.

Leaf just gives a nicer customized interface and method for playing those games, with more features than the stock O.S.! I wasn’t expecting too many here to be screaming to read through this, but if any are into retro handhelds, or development at all, it sure has some gold in there. They’re also two lovely people!

Removed by mod

Here’s the latest in my super long running series of developer interviews, this time with the team behind Cocoon, the Android frontend for retro handheld gaming systems (or phones!)

I find their team especially interesting because the trio have such distinct roles: development, UI/UX design and sound. I was so fascinated to learn early that they’ve even commissioned musicians and instruments specifically for Cocoon’s menu music. I mean, everything else as well, but that was taking things to the next level for me.

Anyway, it’s a super long and super detailed interview, so if you’re interested in software development, UI/UX, sound design, dual-screen handhelds, their history and how Cocoon is made, or just getting a behind-the-scenes look at how projects like this are done, there’s a lot to dig into here. Hope some here enjoy it :)

I’m glad you enjoyed her story!

Well now I wish that was a thing!

(Sorry for any confusion!!!)

This is a small interview (by my usual standards!) with Jiayu, a girl in China who runs MagiGamer, a business she started making custom buttons and controls for various gaming handhelds. Tech, but with a custom twist :)

She makes buttons for things like the Nintendo Switch, 3DS & DS handhelds, the Steam Deck and her recent favorite: AYN’s Thor (as well as the Odin 3), and more.

I chatted to her a bit for some quotes to use in my AYN Thor article I shared here yesterday, but this is the full chat, only because I love the work she does and how she gives people an option to truly make a console unique for everyone. I thought it deserved to be shared :)

There’s plenty of behind the scenes pictures of the effort she goes to, and detailed pictures of the handhelds with her buttons installed. I thought this was a fun little one to share, hopefully you like it too!

___

If you followed the link above, that is for the Thor Pro, which runs them really quite well.

Plenty of YouTube demonstrations if youre curious. It has a strong chip, so it handles them well. Not quite Odin 3 levels (SD Elite), but, really well. PC emulation is a big thing for these handhelds.

Here is a link for you to EmuReady, a friend’s site where users upload their own experiences and settings for running games. I have already filtered it by AYN Thor Pro and only games which run Great and Above, on Windows, so have a look! You might get an idea of what is possible!

If you don’t have the Pro, then use the drop-down box to filter it to your Thor model :)

If it doesn’t, I highly recommend the OSTENT 1,400 mAh batteries. Higher capacity than the original and they work perfectly. 100% the one to choose!

Oh absolutely. This was exactly me for the longest time. I review retro handhelds, so I’ve had everything from the entry-level to the high power ones (like the Odin 3 Max). I thought you couldn’t get better than upscaled graphics and save states, but when I got a re-obsession semi-recently with the PSP:

https://gardinerbryant.com/tag/psp/

…I’ve realized that native hardware just has magic to it. The handheld is slim, the design is retro futuristic in the best way (in my eyes), the jailbreak and add-ons are invaluable and the experience is just fun. I’ve just reviewed the Retroid Pocket Nova, am reviewing the Anbernic RG SP, and have a couple more on the way, but that isn’t stopping me absolutely loving WipEout on my PSPs :)

So funny to see your name pop up here! I was just looking at a few reports for your comment in the mod-queue where you made the reference to Magda Goebbels when discussing the death of the co-founder of Ubisoft. Seems people weren’t thrilled with that! And here you slide, still just as nasty.

Why share this, then?

Because it is a subject I care about? Oh I’m so sorry, did I make an error then apologize for it? Gardiner, myself and occasionally a couple others write articles about things we love, or believe to be important, or care about. We’re not a organization, we’re not a major site. I don’t get paid. We don’t run ads. It literally costs money to have people read the things we write, but we write things like this because we love them. I am just explaining this because you seem to think there needs to be a reason to write an article on a topic I enjoy.

Have you got some articles you have written, so you can show me how it is done?