Unlike a lot of people, I was never into playing video games. Sure, I’ve played a bunch of Minecraft (who hasn’t), but I never sunk that much time into any other titles. Whenever people ask what games I play, I always respond with the same “Oh, I’m not really into video games” and change the subject.

I’ve tried to play retro games in the past, but they never clicked with me. I enjoyed playing them, but when emulating them on my phone, tablet, and laptop, I always got distracted and ended up doing something else after 10 minutes. However, about a month ago, I learned about emulation handhelds. For some reason, something about these handhelds intrigued me. As I continued researching, a company called Anbernic kept showing up and seemed to be a good option for high-quality, inexpensive handhelds.

Eventually, after hours of research, I bit the bullet and bought the Anbernic RG 40XXV, and after countless hours a day using it, I have a newfound appreciation for retro games (and may have even become a gamer in the process).

It’s portable and very comfortable to hold

Perfect for playing for long periods of time

The Anbernic RG40XXV is small, at about 5 x 4 inches. Its compact size makes it very portable, and I’ve been able to carry it around and play games whenever I need to kill time. I’ve found myself playing games in the morning as I drink my coffee, and I’ve even stayed up late because I’ve lost track of time playing while lying in bed.

It’s also very comfortable to hold. I’ve been able to hold it without any issues for over an hour, and can even hold it and play some games with just one hand (great for eating snacks while in the middle of a game!). It’s why I’ve spent more time playing games on this device than on my PC. It’s more enjoyable to pick up and play whenever I want, rather than having to block out time for a lengthy play session on a console or PC.

Its 4-inch screen and controls are wonderful

This device has satisfying controls, and its screen is immersive

The device is basically a beefed-up Game Boy. It has the face buttons, d-pads, and the start and select buttons, but also has a joystick and R1, R2, L1, and L2 buttons as well. Because of these extra controls, I’m able to play a wider variety of games than just those requiring cardinal direction movement with a d-pad. The extra controls also bring an extra flair to familiar games; I’ve found that I enjoy some games a lot more after rebinding the d-pad input to be controlled by the joystick.

Before I started playing any games, I assumed the handheld’s 4-inch screen would be too small and uncomfortable on the eyes (even though it’s one of the bigger screens Anbernic offers). I was wrong. For such a small screen, it sure is immersive, and it has caused me to lose track of time while playing.

It's given me an excuse to try out more retro games

I’ve been introduced to so many amazing games

Because of the Anbernic RG40XXV, I’ve played more games in a span of a month than I have in my entire life. After buying the device, I felt obligated to find a bunch of games to play on it to justify the purchase. This allowed me to rediscover games I was already familiar with and even introduced me to some I had never heard of.

Since the device has built-in internet, I’ve also been able to enhance my experience while playing certain games. For example, I was able to connect to sites like RetroAchievements, allowing me to earn achievements as I play through my games. This made playing games more engaging, and I found myself playing some games longer as I strived to earn as many achievements as possible.

Because most retro games are so small, you could theoretically fit thousands of retro games for systems up to the PS1. This is great since extra money wouldn’t need to be spent on a large microSD card (which is what the device uses to hold the operating system and games).

I think I can finally call myself a gamer

Over the past month, I have spent countless hours playing games on the Anbernic RG40XXV, and it has given me a newfound appreciation and love for retro games. It turns out that telling people I didn’t like playing games wasn’t entirely true, as for the longest time, playing AAA games on my PC was the only way I experienced video games. I never thought of putting my focus into retro gaming, but I now realize I made a mistake not doing so.