Setting up a Handheld for Children (or Adult Children)

Setting up a Handheld for Children (or Adult Children)

Last updated: 29APR2024 (see Changelog for details)

Let’s imagine you have a child you’d like to introduce to your favorite retro games — but maybe they can’t read yet, or navigating through a complex interface is overwhelming for them. Or maybe you have a friend (or parent!) who can barely change the input signal on their television, let alone understand the difference between EmulationStation and RetroArch. Going even further, maybe you want a SUPER simple interface for yourself that focuses on the games while curating the look and feel of the box art. In this guide I’m going to show you how to perfectly curate a retro handheld to transform it into a foolproof handheld console of their dreams.

Before we get started, let’s clear the air — this is not an effortless project. It requires some work to get everything dialed in perfectly, and YOU are the one who is going to do that work. I’ve tried to make it as painless as possible with this guide, an accompanying video, and a pre-configured software image, but it’s still going to take a little work to dial everything in. The joy in this project comes from a job well done, and from easing the recipient’s gaming experience. So, is this process easy? Not really. But is it worth it? Yes.

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TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge on Retro Handhelds

TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge on Retro Handhelds

Last updated: 11FEB2024 (see Changelog for details)

UPDATE: PortMaster has recently created a one-stop shop for all things related to running ports on retro handhelds. I recommend checking out their website and my most recent PortMaster guide instead of the guide below; I’m leaving this page up for posterity’s sake only. To get started, head over to their Games tab, find the game you want to run, and check out their instructions on that page. If you run into any issues, their discord server is also a great place to start.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge has become a massive hit, and for good reason. It’s a perfect mixture of old-school beat-em-up and modern control schemes, and it has plenty of fun stuff to unlock, too. In this guide we’ll get the game running on various handhelds so you can play this game anywhere.

This should work in any PortMaster-compatible retro handheld. For best results, make sure you are running the most recent version of ArkOS, AmberELEC, or JELOS, and that you have installed the latest version of PortMaster. Here is my PortMaster guide.

Note that the “Final” version of ArkOS for the RG351P and RG351M will not support the game due to an outdated SDL2 library. However, wuMMLe’s fork of ArkOS has been updated to support it, but there are some script changes needed (see the notes below). If you want the latest for those devices, I recommend using JELOS or AmberELEC, since they are in active development.

Setting up this game is similar to other ports such as Celeste, Shovel Knight, Undertale, Timespinner, and Iconoclasts. Big thanks to developer JohnnyOnFlame for getting this port up and running; please consider buying him a coffee for his hard work.

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My current (simple) 351ELEC setup

My current (simple) 351ELEC setup

Sometimes, less is more. In this video I’ll show you how I’ve pared down my retro game collection to just focus on the games that I actually want to play, and how it has given me the opportunity to just focus on games, and not endless browsing.

Devices that support this setup:
Anbernic RG351P
Anbernic RG351M
Anbernic RG351V
Anbernic RG351MP
PowKiddy RGB10 Pro
PowKiddy RGB10 Max
PowKiddy RGB10 Max 2

351ELEC: https://351elec.de/
ArkOS: https://github.com/christianhaitian/arkos/wiki

Note that while I didn’t explicitly mention it, this same setup can be done within RetroOZ for its supported devices as well. Check out the latest version here.

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Sega Saturn Update for ArkOS and RetroOZ

Sega Saturn Update for ArkOS and RetroOZ

Last updated: 30JAN2022

Thanks to new updates to their emulators, you can get greatly improved Sega Saturn performance on RG351V, RG351MP, RGB10, ODROID Go Advance, ODROID Go Super, and RGB10 Max devices running ArkOS and RetroOZ. In this guide I’ll show you how to install the new update, configure the emulator, and we’ll take a look at some gameplay, too.

Note that 351ELEC support is planned but not implemented yet.

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Stardew Valley on Retro Handhelds

Stardew Valley on Retro Handhelds

Last updated: 13JUL2022 (see Changelog for details)

UPDATE: PortMaster has recently created a one-stop shop for all things related to running ports on retro handhelds. I recommend checking out their website and my most recent PortMaster guide instead of the guide below; I’m leaving this page up for posterity’s sake only. To get started, head over to their Games tab, find the game you want to run, and check out their instructions on that page. If you run into any issues, their discord server is also a great place to start.

The beloved farming simulator Stardew Valley has now been ported to RK3326 devices such as the Anbernic RG351 series, PowKiddy RGB10 series, ODROID Go Advance/Super, and the GameForce Chi. This game also works on other devices that work with PortMaster, such as the Anbernic RG552, RG353P, and RG503.

Setting up this game is similar to other ports such as Shovel Knight, Undertale, and Iconoclasts. Mad props to developer JohnnyOnFlame for getting this port running; please consider buying him a coffee for his hard work.

IMPORTANT NOTE: since making my installation video below, the game has been updated which affects that installation. From now on, it’s important to download the “Compatibility” version of the game in order for the process to work. The written instructions below will walk you through that process.

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Guide: Moonlight on Retro Handhelds

Guide: Moonlight on Retro Handhelds

Last updated: 04SEP2023

Moonlight is a game streaming tool designed to allow you to stream your screen (and games) from a PC to a connected device. This means you can stream games that wouldn’t normally run on your device, such as GameCube, PS2, PC games, and so on. This is an excellent option if you want to play a few games while in bed, or on the couch, or maybe at the dinner table.

For this guide, we will focus on Moonlight support for custom Linux-based firmwares on the following handheld devices:

Anbernic RG351P (ArkOS final, AmberELEC) — requires WiFi dongle
Anbernic RG351M (ArkOS final, AmberELEC)
Anbernic RG351V (ArkOS, AmberELEC)
Anbernic RG351MP (ArkOS, AmberELEC)
PowKiddy RGB10 (ArkOS) — requires WiFi dongle
PowKiddy RGB10 Max (RetroOZ) — requires WiFi dongle for 5GHz
GameForce Chi (ArkOS)
RK2020 (ArkOS) — requires WiFi dongle
ODROID Go Advance (ArkOS) — may require WiFi dongle
ODROID Go Super (RetroOZ) — requires WiFi dongle

Update: Moonlight is now available via the PortMaster app, so any of the many devices and OS options that run PortMaster will run Moonlight, and some custom firmwares (like JELOS) have Moonlight integrated directly into the OS. Elements of the written guide below may be a little out of date!

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Guide: PortMaster on Retro Handheld Devices

Guide: PortMaster on Retro Handheld Devices

Last updated: 10JUL2022

UPDATE: PortMaster has recently created a one-stop shop for all things related to running ports on retro handhelds. I recommend checking out their website and my most recent PortMaster guide instead of the guide below; I’m leaving this page up for posterity’s sake only. To get started, head over to their Games tab, find the game you want to run, and check out their instructions on that page. If you run into any issues, their discord server is also a great place to start.

PortMaster is a new tool developed by ChristianHaitian (ArkOS developer) and a few other community members, which allows you to easily install various ports on Ubuntu-based operating systems running on the RK3326 chipset, such as ArkOS, RetroOZ, and The Retro Arena (TheRA). It also works for AmberELEC (formerly known as 351ELEC) and JELOS too! PortMaster support currently includes the following devices:

Anbernic RG351P (ArkOS final, TheRA, AmberELEC, JELOS)
Anbernic RG351M (ArkOS final, TheRA, AmberELEC, JELOS)
Anbernic RG351V (ArkOS, TheRA, AmberELEC, JELOS)
Anbernic RG351MP (ArkOS, TheRA, AmberELEC, JELOS)
Anbernic RG552 (AmberELEC, JELOS)
Anbernic RG503 (JELOS, ArkOS)
Anbernic RG353P (JELOS, TheRA)
PowKiddy RGB10 (ArkOS) and by extension the RGB10S and RGB20S
GameForce Chi (ArkOS)
RK2020 (ArkOS)
ODROID Go Advance (ArkOS)
ODROID Go Super (The RetroArena, RetroOZ)
PowKiddy RGB10 Max and Max 2 (RetroOZ)

So in this guide I’ll walk you through how to use this simple tool to get some of your favorite ports up and running on your device. Note that your device will need to be connected to the Internet for this to work!

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Guide: Demons of Asteborg on Retro Handhelds

Guide: Demons of Asteborg on Retro Handhelds

Nearly 33 years after the Sega Genesis released, we have a new game to try out! Demons of Asteborg released last month and can easily work in your favorite retro handheld. If it can run Genesis games (and the Picodrive emulator), it’ll likely run this game, too.

Find it on Steam
Main page (for the demo)

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