Whoops, I accidentally made three thumbnails that are very similar in tone and theme this week! I guess there are only so many ways you can hold a handheld for a photo.

🎥 Now Playing

Gaming on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 has two exceptional displays and a ton of performance power (and a super high price point). Let's see what it's like to game on this thing.

Retroid Pocket Duo Lite: Baby Thor

Retroid's first dual-screen handheld has arrived, here are some (lengthy) first impressions. I’ve been testing it pretty thoroughly all week, I should have the full review out soon.

The Socket Frontend is FULL of Nostalgia

Socket is a new Android frontend launcher that lets you navigate your games via cartridge, with a fun nostalgic look and feel. Here's how to set it up and get the most out of it.

Other Russ Sightings:

Expedition: Handheld - In Entry #31, Adam and I cover the Retroid Pocket Duo Lite Plus kerfuffle, why I am likely returning my Steam Frame, and more.

NerdNest - The original four horsemen returned to The Nerd Nest, and we talked even more about the Steam Frame, plus recent Bungie and Xbox news. Stick around to the end where we each chose a game cancellation that bothers us to this day.

📰 Power-Up(dates)

• Opal Emu is a browser-based, multi-system emulator built around a simple pitch: drop a ROM in and it plays instantly, no install, account, or config required. It auto-detects the console from the file, keeps everything local to your device, and saves your progress automatically. It supports a wide range of systems including NES, SNES, GB/GBC/GBA, N64, DS, most Sega consoles, PS1, PSP, Atari 2600/7800/Jaguar, and Virtual Boy. Features include save states (exportable across devices), rewind/fast-forward, multiple display filters including a CRT shader, controller support with remapping, mobile touch controls, cheat codes, and offline/PWA support.

• Valve released its official SteamOS ARM build for the Steam Frame this week, and within days it's already been ported to several Android handhelds. The AYN Odin 2 was first to get a build via MaSieS4Fun, followed by hashtagbasit’s efforts, which brings support to the KONKR Pocket Fit G3 and AYANEO Pocket S2/S2 Pr0: all of which share the same Snapdragon G3 Gen 3 chip as the Steam Frame. A third project, Holodor, aims to bring the build to the Odin 3, though no downloadable build exists yet. The Armada team addressed questions about how the official build affects their project, noting they've had access to the Frame's software for a few days and haven't found anything suggesting meaningfully different performance or compatibility versus Armada. I’ll keep an eye on it but I will likely stick with Armada for the foreseeable future.

• While ModRetro has promised full open-sourcing of the M64's firmware, so far they've only released the schematics. That hasn't stopped Reddit user fulviov from building an unofficial custom firmware called OM64. Features so far include a graphical loader with skins/themes (running as a separate core so it doesn't eat into FPGA resources), multiple video output options, Wi-Fi with OTA update support, and Bluetooth gamepad support. Unfortunately it is limited to Game Boy and SNES cores (notably, there's no N64 core yet) but the developer intends to port over all available cores before a public release. It's experimental and could soft-brick your M64, and the developer has also disclosed using AI tools, but it still looks promising.

• Anbernic has released NNDDSS v1.0.2 for the RG DS Plus, finally adding 2x resolution upscaling, which is one of the most requested features since the handheld launched. Other changes include “improved game performance and smoothness”, dynamic 3D internal resolution adjustment, in-game firmware language selection, new shaders, and optimized save/load states. The update is also easier to install this time, since it no longer requires re-flashing the entire stock Linux OS: users just need to drop the new build onto TF Card 2 and install it from the APP menu. Once updated, 2x scaling can be enabled per-game under Menu > Game Settings > Graphics > Resolution.

• Dr. Marcel Pflug, custodian of the Game Boy Museum, has compressed 25 years of curation into a searchable database that runs on original Game Boy hardware: a catalog of the collection pressed onto the format it documents. The museum has amassed over 360 cataloged items, from original DMG-001 units to games, accessories, and ephemera, and each one gets its own entry in the ROM, complete with a built-in search function. The standout feature is per-item QR codes: point a smartphone at the screen and it links straight to that artifact's full entry, photos included, on the museum's website. The ROM is free and works on both emulators and original hardware, though it contains no playable games, since this is archival work through and through.

❤️ Currently Grinding

Retro Game: New Super Mario Bros 2 (3DS)

In testing the Retroid Pocket Duo Lite this week, I wanted to focus on a choice few games to see how long-term gaming fared on this dual-screen handheld. My two choices were Pokemon HeartGold (NDS) and this week’s retro game, which is New Super Mario Bros 2 (3DS).

I really like the “New” Super Mario games, they are a nice mix of old-school platforming but with some more inventive power-ups and secret exit paths. It’s a far cry from being actually “retro” (it came out 14 years ago), but the classic gameplay sits right at home with older entries. Some folks have criticized this one for its generally lower difficulty, but that’s one of my favorite aspects: I love that the game just throws coin after coin at you as you progress. Dare I say it’s a very profitable feeling, considering that you can get multiple 1-ups in nearly every level.

Modern Game: Beat Saber (Steam)

With the Steam Frame arriving this week, I decided to take advantage of the current (and rare) Beat Saber sale and grab it on Steam for $15. I had actually never played it before, despite hearing that it’s one of the all-time best VR experiences. Turns out those rumors were true, because it’s a lot of fun; playing it made me feel like I was INSIDE a rhythm game like Rock Band, but as a freaking Jedi with two lightsabers and a lot less coordination than Darth Maul.

It runs pretty well natively on the Steam Frame, at 1080p. I also tried streaming it from my Steam Machine but that was a stuttery mess, which is the nail in the coffin for rhythm-focused games. So I’ve just been keeping it directly on the frame, and each of my family members are now hooked, too.

Album: RGC Fall 2026 Mixtape

Every few months I release a new playlist, and this week I shared my Fall 2026 mix. As is (usually) tradition, I kept it to 10 songs, and built a theme into the collection: most of the songs feature a chorus, bridge, or thematic change that comes late in the song. That’s why the subtitle of the mixtape is “Wait for it”.

Apple Music / Spotify / YouTube Music

Tracklist:
1. “Do it Again” by Nada Surf
2. “Worthless Chorus” by Bars of Gold
3. “I’ll Stick Around” by Foo Fighters
4. “Unattainable” by Little Joy
5. “Smith & Jones Forever” by Silver Jews
6. “Vitamin C” by Can
7. “A Conversation with the Devil” by Gatsby’s American Dream
8. “Figures” by The Whitest Boy Alive
9. “Clean Slate” by M. Ward
10. “The Morning Stars” by Hamilton Leithauser & Rostam

In picking these songs, some of them came to mind immediately. I’ve been itching to add a Bars of Gold track for a while (this band features the same singer as iconic post-hardcore legends Bear vs Shark, but with a slightly more restrained sound—perfect for a playlist). I also think The Whitest Boy Alive is the best side-project to be borne from Kings of Convenience, and their laid-back, slightly jazzy music simply needs to be played in more households. Others were real head-scratchers, and didn’t really come to me until I spent several days shuffling songs in my iTunes library until fate sent them my way. Regardless, I hope you enjoy this season’s mix, and I’ve got big plans for the Winter 2026 collection.

💰 Bargain Bin

• Amazon has the original Switch Pro controller at its lowest price in over a year. It’s still a great controller and works with the Switch 2, and you can pick one up for $55 (down from $80). Affiliate / Non-affiliate

• Not a lot of microSD card deals right now (big surprise), but the Silicon Power 128GB A1 card is $27 (usually $30). That’s the best I could find! Affiliate / Non-affiliate

  • Note that Prime Big Deal Days are coming to the US on Oct 6-7, so if there are non-urgent items you want to pick up, it might be worthwhile to wait until then for a potential discount.

• Green Man Gaming's DC Universe Bundle is live, offering up to eight Steam games from the DC universe on a pay-what-you-want basis. Tiers scale from Recruit (2 items, $5) and Operative (5 items, $9) up to the Legend tier (all 8 items, suggested $12). The full lineup includes all four of the Batman Arkham games, Injustice 1&2, Gotham Knights, and Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, several of which are Steam Deck Verified or Playable. Affiliate / Non-affiliate

• Over at Fanatical, Bethesda’s biggest games are on sale, with some solid Steam Deck candidates as low as $2.

  • Dishonored, $2 (normally $10)

  • Doom, $4 (normally $20)

  • Doom Eternal, $9 (normally $30)

  • Fallout 4, $7 (normally $20)

  • Fallout 76, $9 (normally $40)

  • Fallout: New Vegas Ultimate Edition, $7 (normally $20)

  • Ghostwire: Tokyo Deluxe Edition, $24 (normally $80)

  • Indiana Jones and the Great Circle Premium Edition, $42 (normally $100)

  • Oblivion Remastered, $31 (normally $50)

  • Skyrim Anniversary Edition, $15 (normally $50)

  • Skyrim Special Edition, $9 (normally $40)

  • Starfield, $36 (normally $50)

  • The Elder Scrolls Online Deluxe Edition, $27 (normally $60)

  • Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus, $5 (normally $40)

  • Wolfenstein: The New Order, $4 (normally $20)

  • Wolfenstein: Youngblood Deluxe Edition, $5 (normally $30)

• Over on Anbernic’s official eBay store (Affiliate / Non-affiliate), all of their handhelds are discounted automatically at checkout, bringing a lot of handhelds into impulse buy territory. Check out some highlights below (and bear in mind that prices and shipping vary by region):

  • RG34XX, $64 (normally $80)

  • RG SP, $68 (normally $85)

  • RG Rotate, $92 (normally $115)

  • RG DS Plus, $96 (normally $120)

  • RG 406H, $140 (normally $175)

  • RG55G1, $136 (normally $170)

  • RG476H, $168 (normally $210)

⏪ Previously on Retro Game Corps

WebRcade -- Play Your Retro Games via the Cloud!

While the “emulation in the cloud” approach has caught on in recent years, one of the earliest and best implementations is WebRcade, a full blown frontend and emulator in your browser. While updates have slowed down in recent years, it got support for more platforms just this summer. This one lets you create your own custom collections that you can then self-host on a cloud service like DropBox, so you can access your personal library (and progress) on various browsers. If you’re looking for something a bit more in-depth than the Opal solution mentioned above, check out webRcade!

🎬 Behind The Scenes

This week I took a day trip to Maui, at the same time as the annual Snapdragon Summit. While I didn’t actually attend the trade show or any events, I did meet with a hardware manufacturer in the same location as the show, and I was able to snap this quick photo on the way to my meeting. I’ll talk more about the hardware next month (when the embargo lifts), but my biggest takeaway from seeing the Summit was that a) it’s a surprisingly small affair, and b) sheesh, it must be nice to visit a tropical resort each year to talk about cell phone chips.

A day trip to Maui might sound like a big deal, but it’s literally just a 20-minute flight to another county. A couple fun Maui facts:

• Maui is the only place you can buy Krispy Kreme donuts in Hawaii, so many local passengers on return flights will have a box or two in their carry-ons.

• It’s the home of a unique sherbet called guri-guri that is only sold in one little shop at the Maui Mall, and it’s definitely worth grabbing if you ever visit. My wife was kinda mad I couldn’t bring any home.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend,
Russ