Handheld

Kirby Air Riders won’t be an inexpensive Switch 2 game, or a small title in terms of file size. Buyers can pre-order the Nintendo eShop version for $69.99 before its November 20th release date. The new riders and courses add up to a 25 GB download, which is slightly larger than Mario Kart World.

GPD has now confirmed the global release date for its long-awaited Win 4 successor. Launching this autumn, the GPD Win 5 may be even cheaper than previous rumours suggested too.

AYN has started teasing the release of two new gaming handhelds. Not only has it confirmed that the Odin3 is in development to replace the popular Odin2, but it has also hinted that a mysterious new option called the AYN Thor is also being worked on.

The $90 Mangmi Air X handheld has been reported to offer strong retro gaming capabilities, with support for PSP, N64, Dreamcast, and even 3DS titles. Early reviews also highlight its solid battery life and feature set, making it stand out among budget handhelds priced under $100.

The highly anticipated title is getting its own Nintendo Direct showcase event with a run time of 45 minutes.

The Logitech G Cloud is getting a black color way, but the rival handheld, the Abxylute One Pro, is already available to buy in Transparent Black. The Abxylute One Pro also has a better display, a more recent version of Android, and costs less.

Lossless Scaling is proving to be a massive upgrade for SteamOS-powered handhelds. The already powerful Ryzen Z1 Extreme in the Lenovo Legion Go S can now reportedly deliver almost twice the frame rate at the same wattage thanks to the plugin.

The Pocket DS is Ayaneo's second and last clamshell gaming handheld release of the year. Available for $399 at launch, the Ayaneo Pocket DS combines 7-inch primary and 5-inch secondary displays in a clamshell form factor with a powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon chipset and a large 8,000 mAh battery.

A reliable leaker has weighed in on the state of the Logitech G Cloud. Rather than release a second-generation device, Logitech is now rumoured to be bringing the G Cloud Black Edition to market globally as part of a wider release for the popular gaming handheld.

Over half a decade after the original GPD MicroPC, the brand has recently announced the MicroPC 2. Powered by the Intel N250 CPU, the handheld laptop can now be pre-ordered with a more powerful CPU as well, which happens to be an octa-core part from the Intel Alder Lake-N family.

After an initial batch that shipped in late July, Ayaneo plans to resume shipping the Pocket S2 in the coming week. It is also still accepting new orders ahead of the crowdfunding's August 19 end date.

Steam is highlighting regional creativity this month with curated indie festivals from Indonesia, Ukraine, and South Korea, each offering players a gateway into distinctive local game scenes.

The V40 Max is a new and affordable gaming handheld designed to play a wide variety of games, not just very old titles. It features joysticks as well as shoulder buttons. The model's design is basically similar to a Game Boy, at least in terms of the display layout.

The lawsuit accuses Roblox of "willful disregard and deceptive practices" in its conduct as a platform for potential misuse by predators. The 42-page complaint has detailed (and rather severe) accusations for Roblox.

It seems that no Pokémon event is safe from the greed of scalpers. The Pokémon World Championships have become an opportunity for these sellers to buy and resell rare items. Arguments have plagued the Anaheim Convention Center following a failed McDonald's Japan promotion.

An updated Nintendo patent may justify rumors about a dual-screen Switch 2 . The illustrations depict a second display attached to what resembles the new console below it. The accessory could add realism to streaming 3DS games on Nintendo Switch Online.

Ayaneo has shared new details about two of its clamshell gaming handhelds. While the Pocket DS is slated to arrive this month during a dedicated launch event, the company has warned that the Flip 1S DS could be hard to come by after its crowdfunding campaign ends next month.

Buyers might think that classic Nintendo Switch Online games might lessen demand for physical versions. On the contrary, research confirms that many titles now sell for more on auction sites. Nintendo games hold their value longer than those from competitors, while its supporters prefer cartridges.

While there seem to be no plans as of yet, the director of Tekken 8 has stated that a Switch 2 port would be a good business decision. If Tekken 8 does arrive on the Switch 2, it will be the first Tekken game to run on a Switch family console.

GPD has shared various official benchmarks for its first AMD Strix Halo-backed gaming handheld. Launching before the end of the year, the GPD Win 5 is said to be smaller than the Valve Steam Deck but with enough performance under the hood to outperform Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060-powered gaming laptops.

Anbernic is currently rolling out a significant update for all T820 series handhelds, adding support for external screens, paving the way for an Anbernic branded dual screen extension.

Turtle Beach has introduced a new version of its Airlite Fit headset, now officially licensed for the Nintendo Switch 2. Featuring a design inspired by the latest Switch console, the headset is now available for pre-order through Amazon with shipping slated for September 3.

XU Retro has shared new details about multiple new gaming handhelds that it has in development. Following recent announcements regarding the Retro 45 and Touch One 35, XU Retro has now revealed that significant hardware changes are underway concerning the XU40 H55, XU35 H40 and XU35 H55.

The OneXPlayer Super X has been officially teased. Sticking with a similar design to the other X-series devices, it's a convertible gaming handheld but with the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395, which brings the powerful Radeon 8060S iGPU.

Buyers are facing more obstacles when attempting to purchase Steam games. In many parts of the world, Valve has removed PayPal as a payment option. Buyers are demanding an explanation after payment processors have already blocked access to games with adult content.

MagicX has another compact retro gaming handheld in the works. Following quickly after the first teaser for the Retro 45, the Touch One 35 is powerful enough to emulate PS Vita games and is designed with Tate Mode emulation in mind.

XU Retro has now released its alternative to the TrimUI Brick. Available in a choice of four translucent colour options, the XU Retro XU20 V32 is a budget gaming handheld that runs Android instead of Linux. The XU20 V32 should be comparatively powerful for its launch price, thanks to its Allwinner A133P chipset and 2 GB of RAM.

Intel has recently released a new graphics driver, which, per ETA Prime, brings notable performance uplift on the MSI Claw 8 AI+. The YouTuber has also highlighted the battery life boosts the gaming handheld has received through BIOS and Center M updates.

The Lenovo Legion Go S handheld gaming PC with the AMD Z2 Go APU has now hit its record-low price again. The portable console brings official SteamOS support, making it ideal for folks who want to squeeze every bit of extra perfomance and efficiency out of their handheld PCs.

Not only is an RTX 4090 mobile chip-powered handheld possible, it’s here. This DIY creation shows that playing demanding AAA games at max settings while on the go might be more achievable than you think. The full build and its performance are a sight to behold.

As the Windows gaming handheld intensifies, and with the launch of the Asus ROG Xbox Ally just around the corner, the original Asus ROG Ally has been discounted by 23% at Best Buy, bringing it down to its Black Friday price. The ROG Ally is powered by AMD's Ryzen Z1 Extreme, 16 GB of RAM, and 512 GB of RAM.

GPD has showcased the Win 5 again in a series of videos. While the company has also boasted of the gaming handheld's excellent performance and cooling capabilities, it has teased that the GPD Win 5 will be 'much cheaper' than the comparably powerful Asus ROG Flow Z13, too.

A Nintendo partner has shared details on how the company approves the use of dev kits. New Switch 2 games must showcase smooth, high-resolution graphics or features like GameShare. Previously unconfirmed, LynxByte Games also identifies DLSS 3.1 as the Nvidia upscaling used by the handheld.

A few 8BitDo controllers have gained official Steam Compatibility, allowing owners to use them with a Steam Deck or SteamOS device without the need for any workaround. Here's a guide explaining how to connect a compatible controller to a Steam Deck or SteamOS device.

Nintendo is utilising the mouse sensor to potentially add new accessories to the Joy-Con 2, but it's hard not to draw similarities to the Playdate.

Boosted Switch 2 specs enable publishers like EA to offer feature parity with other consoles. Despite the added power, some EA Sports FC 26 beta testers are reporting disappointing performance. The two most frequent complaints are with its 30 fps graphics and missing crossplay.

Stardew Valley is on sale on Steam for 30% off, bringing it to $10.49 — just shy of its best-ever sale price of $7.49. The cozy RPG offers you an open-ended adventure in a quaint town quietly facing off against an outside enemy threatening the lifestyle and livelihood of the town.

The Steam Deck OLED comes with 16 GB of RAM, the same as the regular Steam Deck, but it’s faster memory. A modder has managed to upgrade the RAM to 32 GB but the process comes with a few caveats.

Caves of Qud is one of those rare indie titles that has seen near-weekly updates for most of the last two decades, even as it received a 1.0 launch after a mammoth 17 years of development.

Despite impressive PS5 sales, Sony may place less emphasis on consoles going forward. Comments from a Sony Senior Vice President have some gamers proclaiming the death of PlayStation exclusive games. The brand will instead focus on creating entertainment properties on multiple platforms.

MagicX has revealed initial details about a new gaming handheld. Following on from this year's Zero 40 and Mini Zero 28, the Retro 45 adopts a six-button layout for those who like to emulate Dreamcast, Genesis, Nintendo 64 and Sega Saturn games.

A new leak reveals when the ROG Xbox Ally and ROG Xbox Ally X will be available for purchase in the open market. It won't hit shelves until about two months after its rumoured Gamescom 2025 reveal.

If you're waiting for the Xbox ROG Ally X, then you might be surprised to know that other handhelds already available on the market can perform just as well, if not better. A well-known YouTuber recently demonstrated this by pitting the AMD Ryzen Z1 and Z2 Extreme against the Intel Core Ultra 7 258V, essentially comparing three of the most popular handheld chips currently available at the time of writing.

The launch of the OneXPlayer X1 Air is almost upon us. Despite only debuting a month ago, the company behind the device has confirmed that the OneXPlayer X1 Air will be orderable later this month with four advantages over the existing OneXPlayer X1 and OneXPlayer X1 Pro.

Nintendo’s latest console provides access to 150+ retro gaming classics. The iMP Mini Arcade Pro is a compact arcade cabinet designed to make gameplay more authentic. Fighting game fans hunting for a Switch controller will appreciate the ball-top joystick and micro-switch buttons.

If you have always wanted the Retroid Pocket Classic in a timeless but classy black color, your dream has come true. The six-button version of the vertical handheld is now available to buy in black.

A week after the Partner Showcase, Nintendo will present an Indie World broadcast on August 7th. A YouTuber who leaked the show expects a general Nintendo Direct to follow shortly. Metroid Prime 4: Beyond and Kirby Air Riders are upcoming first-party Switch 2 games without firm release dates.

A new DIY mod by YouTuber Yu from Better Gaming explores whether the Nintendo Switch 2’s microSD Express slot can support a full-sized 1 TB NVMe SSD using an open-source adapter by NV&T Labs. The results offer valuable insights, and a few unexpected challenges, for those eyeing affordable storage upgrades.

Nintendo has tacitly reconfirmed that Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is expected to release on its handheld platforms some time in 2025 by featuring the title as one of the playable demos at Fan Expo Canada.