Retro

In the Shacknews documentary 24 ’Til Launch: The Making of Borderlands 4, Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford recounts how EA’s cancellation of his Rebel Boat Rocker project Prax War and the subsequent founding of Gearbox led to an unexpected call from Valve’s Gabe Newell, who invited Pitchford to pitch an expanded Half‑Life storyline.

Version 1.0 of ARMSX2, an ARM-focused branch of the popular PCSX2 emulator, has landed on Android. The new version of the PlayStation 2 emulator uses a translation layer to run code from PCSX2 (with some additions) on ARM devices, including Android smartphones. This gives retro gamers another option to play PS2 titles on their smartphones.

Team Asobi's creative director Nicholas Doucet argued in an interview that the PlayStation 5 is a significant upgrade, stressing that innovations like the DualSense haptics and ultra-fast SSD yield hands‑on gameplay benefits that aren’t always visible in side‑by‑side graphical comparisons with late-cycle PS4 titles.

Shigeru Miyamoto told Nintendo Dream Web that because games can become obsolete as new versions replace them, Nintendo has expanded into film production to preserve and "immortalize" its IPs after the $1.36 billion success of The Super Mario Bros. Movie showed it that it was both financially and culturally viable.

A nine-member volunteer collective called Slurm Team has released a playable demo of Futurama: Hit and Run, a total-conversion mod that transplants The Simpsons: Hit and Run into a meticulously recreated New New York with four story missions, a bonus mission, ten side gags, and a full custom soundtrack.

Nintendo’s frequent trademark and patent filings sometimes give glimpses into the future. The latest submission has excited supporters of the defunct Virtual Console. Unlike the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack, gamers purchased titles and stored them in a permanent library.

MagicX has shared new details about its Dreamcast, Genesis, Saturn and Nintendo 64 focused gaming handheld. Not only has the company now revealed what the device looks like, but it has also outlined pricing and hardware specifications before its global release.

The Miyoo Mini Flip is the latest clamshell retro gaming handheld to hit the market after releases from Anbernic, Powkiddy and Miyoo earlier this year. Sporting a more pocketable form factor, the Miyoo Mini Flip is said to feature a superior hinge than the existing Miyoo Flip, too.

GameMT has started teasing the E3 Vigor, a new horizontal gaming handheld with a square display. Showcased in three colours, the GameMT E3 Vigor should rival recent handhelds like the Anbernic RG CubeXX, Powkiddy RGB30 and the ZPG A1 Unicorn.

In a Reddit AMA promoting his Kickstarter, ToeJam & Earl co-creator Greg Johnson confirmed a fifth installment is in the planning stage and signaled a deliberate return to the randomized, cooperative spirit of the original duology.

A new game development engine aims to make creating games for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis much easier. MD Engine is a "visual engine" that greatly simplifies game development for Sega's 16-bit console with minimal coding knowledge needed.

Nintendo has not been reluctant to develop accessories targeting retro gaming fanatics. To cater to DS and 3DS loyalists, an add-on could multiply the number of Switch 2 screens. A new Nintendo patent demonstrates how the accessory would enhance Nintendo Switch Online titles.

The Mangmi Air X is a new horizontal retro gaming handheld that runs Android 14 and can emulate up to Nintendo Gamecube and PlayStation 2 games. Available for $75 at launch, the handheld also features a 450-nit and 5.5-inch IPS display complemented by a 5,000 mAh battery.

Ubisoft has quietly re-released Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow on Steam, Ubisoft Connect, and the Epic Games Store. The title addresses long-standing PC shadow-rendering bugs and offers a steep discount, while somewhat controversially retaining its original 4:3 aspect ratio.

Chained Echoes, the critically acclaimed indie JRPG from Matthias Linda and Deck13, is on sale on Steam for 60% off its original $25 price tag.

Sega and the International Olympic Committee have signed a multi-year licensing agreement effective October 7, 2025. This agreement allows Sega to produce Sonic the Hedgehog–branded Olympic merchandise featuring the official rings, in conjunction with the Olympic Games video game license, with a full product line scheduled for 2026.

The MagicX One 35 is a new pocket-sized retro gaming handheld sporting a MediaTek Helio G85 chipset, a 700-nit display and up to 4 GB of LPDDR4X RAM. Available for as little as $55, the MagicX One 35 comes in three colours and should be powerful enough to emulate up to PS Vita games.

Facepunch refines Source 2–based creation platform with improved workflow, physics stability and rendering performance

The upcoming remake of the original two Dragon Quest games (also known as Dragon Warrior in the United States) will bring new dungeons, new characters, and new questlines in an attempt to better staple the original games to the third entry.

An iPhone 4s was modded into a retro handheld - it uses an iOS 6.1.3 downgrade and jailbreak to run RetroArch emulators. Physical PS Vita buttons & a Bluetooth keyboard PCB provide tactile controls in a laser-engraved Kirby-themed metal case.

Megabonk, a solo-developed 3D reverse-bullet-hell roguelike by Vedinad, has sold one million copies in two weeks since its September 18 release, peaking at over 102,000 concurrent Steam players and rising to sixth on Steam’s global top-sellers list while clocking in a a low $5.49 price tag.

Kazuhiro Aoyama, director of the 1999 Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, expressed confusion after learning that Resident Evil 9: Requiem appears to depict Raccoon City and landmarks like the RPD intact, contradicting Nemesis’s canonical destruction by a thermobaric missile.

Veteran composer Grant Kirkhope, best known for the DK Rap from Donkey Kong 64 says Nintendo “arbitrarily” failed to inform or credit him after the track appeared in The Super Mario Bros. Movie and on Switch 2’s Donkey Kong Bananza, prompting his refusal to watch the former.

The R46H is a new 4-inch horizontal retro gaming handheld with a budget price tag but a rather high-resolution display. Available for under $50, the R46H has a 768p IPS panel and should be powerful enough to emulate up to most Nintendo DS and PlayStation Portable games.

The R36XX is a 3.5-inch vertical retro gaming handheld available in over half a dozen colour options. Many with translucent finishes, the R36XX rivals other popular solutions like the BatleXP G350, R36S and the Anbernic RG35XX series.

Sony is marking the 30th anniversary of PlayStation's 1995 North American and European debut with a roster of nostalgic merchandise led by "PlayStation: First 30 Years," a 400‑page Read‑Only Memory photography book available for pre‑order (standard £95; deluxe boxed edition £245, limited to 1,994 copies) and due to ship worldwide in spring 2026.

The BatleXP Flip is a clamshell handheld aimed at playing retro games up to and including titles from the Nintendo 64 and Sony PlayStation Portable catalogues. Available for under $75 in a choice of two colours, the BatleXP Flip is a dead-ringer for an Anbernic handheld, just like the BatleXP G350 before it.

Footage showing what could be Anbernic's next retro gaming handheld has surfaced online. Rumoured to be the Anbernic RG DS, the device is the spitting image of the Nintendo DS Lite and Nintendo DSi.

Pocketpair is on a roll lately, with the developer promising both a 2026 release date for the title that has been in early access and a 'massive amount' of new content in tow, and its new Palworld x Ultrakill collaboration might just be the tip of the iceberg.

The new Iqon3 mini PC comes in a rugged passively-cooled chassis that can be easily installed in retro arcade or casino gaming cabinets. Powered by the efficient AMD Ryzen Pro 8000 APUs, these models come with a robust port selection combining modern USB and classic serial ports, plus a wide array of hardware and software security features.

Mangmi has finally confirmed the global launch date for its long-awaited Air X gaming handheld. Not only that, but the company has also revealed launch offers and teased emulation performance across popular systems like the PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable.

DOOM has conquered yet another unexpected platform: an electronic vaping device, joining a legendary list of strange gaming platforms that includes pregnancy tests, refrigerators, and oscilloscopes. There’s now also a port of the iconic shooter running natively on a scientific calculator.

Ayaneo has finally revealed how much its tiny Android gaming handheld will cost globally. Starting for under $70 with a 960p display and Hall effect controls, the Ayaneo Pocket AIR Mini will support fast wired charging too unlike some of its rivals.

The Anbernic RG476H is a new pocketable retro gaming handheld with a 120 Hz display and enough power to emulate PlayStation 2 and Nintendo Gamecube games. Weighing in at less than 300 g, the Anbernic RG476H also features Hall effect joysticks, a 5,000 mAh battery and a choice of three colour options.

AyaNeo's new handheld, Pocket S Mini, launches in March 2026. It has a compact 4:3 display and Snapdragon's G3x Gen 2 chipset. It will be available in two color options: black and white.

The XF40H is Game Console's latest attempt to dethrone the Powkiddy RGB30. Available for under $30 in some cases, the XF40H features hardware like a 4-inch and 720p display with a 1:1 aspect ratio, as well as a battery rated for 4,000 mAh.

Besides the Dragon Quest VII remake showcased during the latest Nintendo Direct, fans of the series can look forward to a new mobile game: Dragon Quest Smash/Grow. Departing from the traditional JRPG formula, this upcoming game embraces roguelite elements whilst retaining the franchise’s characteristic art style.

Funnyplaying has updated the Retro Pixel Pocket with a more powerful chipset. At the same time, the Retro Pixel Pocket is cheaper than ever with a sub-$50 launch price.

Anbernic and a prominent YouTuber within the retro gaming handheld community have indicated that the RG476H will be available soon, potentially by the end of the week. While the Anbernic RG476H is said to impress in some areas, it simultaneously falls short in others.

A physical prototype of the SuperStation One, an FPGA console that mimics the original Sony PlayStation, appeared in photos posted on the project lead's X account. Taki Udon, a popular influencer in the retro gaming community, posted photos of a Midnight Blue version of the console as well as a video of it booting into the iconic PlayStation startup screen and BIOS.

Mario is finally leaving the Mushroom Kingdom behind; Nintendo and Illumination confirmed The Super Mario Galaxy Movie during their September Direct, and it’s landing in theaters April 3, 2026. Chris Pratt, Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlie Day, Jack Black, and Kevin Michael Richardson all return, which is great news because a Mario movie would not feel the same without them. This time the gang is heading to space.

The long-awaited Miyoo Mini Flip is moving closer to being released. First seen in the spring, the comparatively small clamshell gaming handheld has now been pictured in four launch colours before its impending global release.

The Pico-Pal is a new retro gaming handheld based around a Raspberry Pi RP2350B microcontroller and an Espressif ESP32 with a 1:1 IPS display. Launching soon, the Pico-Pal does its best impression of a Game Boy Color with a transparent case.

The Camp Snap CS-Pro is an upgrade from the brand's previous models, which were popular for their bare-bones, screenless design reminiscent of disposable cameras. The CS-Pro comes with a larger 16 MP sensor, a built-in Xenon flash unit and a classic rangefinder look.

Retro gaming is booming, thanks to the accessibility of classic arcade games. The Capcom Retro Revival Pack has dozens of legendary titles like Street Fighter II, Ghosts 'n Goblins, and Progear. Costing as little as $20, the Capcom games include platformers, shoot ‘em ups, and brawlers.

The newly launched Kodak Charmera weighs just 30 g and puts out 1.3 MP stills and 30 fps video. Its seven bright, nostalgia-heavy colourways will come in a blind box packaging, so you can't see which one it is until you open the box.

Some Sam's Club members might be able to benefit from an earlier-than-expected release of Lego's faithful recreation of the Nintendo Game Boy console, which ruled the handheld console roost in its heyday more than three decades ago.

A shutdown of a Sega office in the UK provided a golden opportunity for a collector. After purchasing dev kits and games for Nintendo consoles, including the 3DS, local police raided the seller. He believes that Sega involved the authorities to reclaim legally purchased goods.

While SEGA's Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds has plenty of DLC characters making their way to the title, NiGHTS is one particularly unexpected, but welcome addition for retro gamers looking to play the title this month.