I had an urge to write some tips for people struggling with lots of handhelds and watching them gather dust. As the title suggests, these are quick tips and I haven’t included advice on how to choose a handheld or what the best one is or whatever.
Be realistic with the number of games you add to your device(s).
There have been tens of thousands of games released since the 70s and 80s. Even the PS2 alone has a library of over 4,000 titles. The painful truth is that you’ll never play all of them—so don’t add them all to your handhelds. Be very selective with the games you add for each system. Add your favourites and any you’ve always wanted to play. If you’re just curious but not that bothered about an obscure title, don’t add it until you’ve played through whatever’s on your backlog (because there’s always a few unfinished games on there!)
If you have multiple devices, dedicate certain systems to them.
I have a lot of handhelds and while I tried using Syncthing so I could play the same game on different handhelds, it became a bit clunky with all the different folders and save states. So now each handheld has one or a few select systems on them. My Trimui Smart Pro is now basically a PSP, my new Anbernic RG 476H is mainly for Dreamcast, PS2, and GameCube, and my RG 40XXV is mainly for GB, GBC, and GBA. And yes, I use th
If you have one all-purpose device, get bigger storage.
My Legion Go was the 500GB version but eventually, I got a 2TB hard drive and a 512GB microSD card because I knew I wanted to play lots of modern titles on Steam and from PS2 upwards. I have 128GB cards in my other handhelds which might sound like overkill given the previous two tips but I’d rather have too much space than not enough (I use save states a lot).
There is no universal “best” OS so try them out and stick with what works
I love muOS but I’ve had trouble with later versions due to architecture changes so it stays on my RG 40XXV since, for me, it’s the best one and I’m comfortable with it and it’s been stable for a while. I have Bazzite on my Legion Go because Windows sucked on it. I use CrossMix on my TSP because it’s way more stable than muOS and I want to be able to customise my RetroArch config which Knulli won’t allow (easily).
The point being that there are different OS’s for different needs and you won’t find a definitive system that works for each handheld so try them all out and see how it goes. If you want, you could buy multiple microSD cards with different OS’s on them so you can quickly switch between them (it also helps if your handheld has two SD cards, one for the OS and one for your ROMs)
Make a backlog list
Simple as that. Make a list of all the games you are playing or want to play and refer to them as you go. Try hard not to deviate if you’re the kind of person who chases new shiny things (👋🏾👋🏾). My backlog list has How Long To Beat times so I can see what games aren’t super long and and are more likely for me to play and beat. That might sound like I’m prioritising speed over the gameplay experience but I’ve balanced it out with Tip #1 by keeping my list relatively lean (narrator voice: the list actually has over 200 titles on it)
But in my defence, I finished 16 titles last year which is way more than I usually complete.
If a handheld sounds and looks like it does what your existing handhelds already do, don’t get it
I’ve seen a lot of YouTubers say you don’t have to get That New Handheld while continuously reviewing and recommending That New Handheld and it feels a bit hypocritical but the advice is sound. Have I followed this advice myself? Not really—I bought 4 last year—but I also didn’t buy any of the Retroid, AYANEO, or AYN handhelds that have been getting a lot of buzz recently. I have enough 2DS’s/3DS’s to never need a dual screen emulation handheld (although the AYN Thor does look good…) so if you’re considering buying all the handhelds, weigh up the pros and cons. You might find that what you have serves the purposes of what you don’t.
Customise your handhelds
A way to keep yourself from buying a new handheld is to customise your existing handheld(s) so you can trick your brain into feeling like it’s “newer”. Adding stickers, changing the OS or the theme, or following any of the previous tips if you’ve stacked them with games you’ll never play. With more purposeful actions, you’ll get the most out of them and spend less. It’s okay, Anbernic will cope.
Further resources
Videos
- Maybe You Don’t Need the Shiny New Thing?
- Android Handheld Starter Guide
- Retro Handhelds are Steam Decks Now
- My Favorite Handheld Combinations
- The PERFECT Device Combo
- Organizing your Rom Library: Make it PERFECT!