My First Retro Handheld: Anbernic RG353V

It has taken a while for this to happen. I thought it would be appropriate to relate a bit about my journey, especially since so many fantastic "first retro handheld" experiences had been shared.

Where It Started

Since I only spend significant time playing Call of Duty and Madden, I've never been much of a "hardcore gamer." However, I enjoy playing some old-school Saturn, SNES, and Atari games. The Game Boy Color in Atomic Purple was my favorite "console" as a child. I spent endless hours playing Tetris DX and Pokemon, including concealing it behind my pillow when my parents were supposed to check on me while I was asleep.

After losing mine at a hotel while on a family vacation, I never got a replacement Game Boy Colour. I didn't even begin to care until my mother let me play with her PSP, but that trend didn't last long. Playing through Breath of the Wild repeatedly until I defeated Ganon for the fourth or fifth time, the Nintendo Switch, to be honest, reignited my passion for portable gaming.

Since then, I've become more interested in emulation, particularly with tablets and smartphones. As you can see, I'm a bit of a sucker for folding phones and have owned one since the Galaxy Z Fold 2. My arsenal comprises the OnePlus Open, Galaxy Z Fold 5, and other foldable phones. I'm still amazed at the ability to emulate games on a smartphone, particularly about Switch emulation (RIP).

Blame Stubbs and Rob

Even so, it wasn't until last summer that I became interested in the abundance of vintage handhelds. Although I have been following Russ from Retro Game Corps for some time, a stream featuring Stubbs and Rob discussing emulation on the Surface Duo truly stoked my interest. Yes, once again, thank you all for helping to propel the Surface Duo resale market to new heights. Anyway.

On the morning of the draft, a few of us went to a flea market while I was back in my hometown with some friends for our fantasy football league. I had to have the PS Vita PCH-1000 in the retro gaming exhibit. Yes, it reminded me of the PSP my mother had allowed me to use, but it also had an OLED screen. The Vita was jailbroken, and a few Funturbo Memory Card Adapters were ordered from Amazon within an hour of my return to my hotel room.

Even though I'm still hoping for an original Vita grip that isn't extremely expensive, the Vita has fulfilled its function. After that, I became obsessed with trying to play vintage games on specialized gear rather than attempting to get my phones and tablets to function. In light of this, I decided to browse Amazon to see what vintage handhelds I might find.

Making a Decision

I debated between the Retroid Pocket 3 and the Anbernic RG353V for a long time before choosing the latter. I get the best of both worlds because it runs on both Linux and Android and has the DMG colorway! If I were to install a custom firmware on it, I would. I played that for a few weeks instead, but I fell in love with the Miyoo Mini.

I won't go into too much detail regarding the Miyoo Mini because everyone has already done it. But really, the Mini is still a great handheld, and as soon as the Miyoo Mini Plus was shown, I bought it. I would have every colour if it weren't for other handhelds released weekly.

The Retro Handheld Collection Multiplies

Ever since that fateful night when I watched Stubbs and Rob, I have amassed an enormous collection of handhelds. The Vita, RG353V, and Miyoo Mini were the first. However, I've since included the Retroid Pocket 2S, RGB30, Retroid Pocket 4, Anbernic RG353P, TrimUI Smart Pro, RG353M, R33S, RG35XX Plus, and Miyoo Mini Plus. I'm also working on an RGB20SX. I have also begun to collect original handhelds, including the Game Boy Color, GBA SP, DSi XL, PSP 3000, and, most recently, an original DMG that I could purchase for a reasonable price.

In addition, I had access to various x86 handhelds, all of which began with the Steam Deck LCD. I even have the MSI Claw, but it's sitting in the dust till I get the stamina to play with the most recent revisions. Because of the chance AliExpress deal, I'm happy to utilize my Lenovo Legion Deck and Steam Deck OLED and whatever vintage portable device arrives in the mail.

There's Nothing Quite Like It

The RG353V will remain in my collection once I get the energy to reduce the number of handhelds I own. Even though I don't use it anymore, I occasionally power it up and play a game or two. Since its introduction, there hasn't been anything like it. Therefore, it remains the "grail" of vertical retro handhelds. Only the RG405V has come close, but it didn't catch my eye as quickly as the 353V.