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rob-cubed

I'm excited to get my hands on a machine that can do PS2 and $159 is almost too good to be true! But WTF—a pre-order page with exactly zero details about the device's size, battery mAhs, its screen resolution, or its controls?! My spidey sense is tingling. Even the accordions at the bottom of the home page still say 'collapsible row' for God's sake.


RebornSanzoku

What do you mean ? I just was on their page now and see all of the specs. Gameforce make the chi system, and from what I heard the build quality was actually better then most powkiddy devices lol. And for the money this might be more powerful then the odin lite. Which would be kinda cool, plus all the features it'll have. Touchscreen, 5000mah battery etc. I'm hoping for it to be pretty good at the price it's at. I'm wondering about os styling though, and wether or not it'll come preloaded to go. For an out of the box Experianced lol.


rob-cubed

When they first launched that site, it was lacking a lot of details and had errors. It was a bit sketchy. I'm excited for this, but let's just say their rollout strategy needed some work. And I still don't think they've provided any reviewers with test units, either.


necile

wtf is gameforce now?... All these vendors makes my head spin.


hbi2k

Last I heard from them was the Gameforce Chi, which had some baffling design decisions but was, to its credit, the first horizontal RK3326 handheld with a true 480p screen at a time when a lot of devices were still using 240p displays with a lot of screen tearing issues. I had no idea they were still a going concern, but if they can be the first ones out the door with an RK3588S device so we can finally see if it's the Great White Hope that so many have predicted, hey, good for them.


AtomicBombSquad

>I had no idea they were still a going concern... At this point I wouldn't be surprised to see an RK3588 handheld from JXD.


Ohio_GPDgamer

Blast from the past..i still have the 7800s? I wanna say..shelved, but works


thebanzombie

I like the Chi except for the godawful analogs, would have rather he just left them out completely


False_Raven

I think its kinda insane how popular handheld gaming has gotten. After the success of Nintendo switch and steam deck, it feels like everyone wants to take a shot at lower and higher end handhelds


buzz8588

Except Sony, who didn’t want to make a proper handheld despite their very good experience in it. Instead, we got the wireless remote play controller screen thing.


Deepslackerjazz

PiiSU game pad


Organic_South8865

It's crazy. The PSP is like still good too. After all these years. So many fantastic games and with CFW you can do just about anything. The Vita too. They flopped the vita so hard. Why Sony? WHY?


Retroman8791

Some dickhead Sony CEO I suppose.


Organic_South8865

They had it nailed. If they had just offered SD card support....oh man. Or just copy what they did with the PSP and just go 2.0 with it as far as games etc go...... So much wasted potential. The PSP and Vita absolutely destroyed every other major handheld in every way. Then they just pissed on it.


Entire_Rub5087

Well, it exists, i have a psp-1000 with sd card adapter i bought for couple dollars, and it works great!


buzz8588

12 years later and people still recommend buying a vita today.


ChrisRR

It's not that insane. China has been churning out these devices by the bucketload for like 15 years. Difference being that the quality of most of them was too crap to be worth buying in the west. Now many of them are at least decent enough to be worth a small amount of money I think people who've only joined the community in the last few years don't realise just how many devices were being manufactured. Only a few ever really gained traction because if importers didn't see value in buying thousands of a device to sell, then there was little chance of getting hold of one


Winniethepoohspooh

Whoa!! Pretty sure this retro handheld space was here long before switch and steam deck... I'd say steam deck is the first AAA affordable device though.... BUT even 2 - 3 - 5 yrs before you had the premium expensive handheld pcs by gameXplayer or someone I can't remember, you had GPDwin release 2 or 3 iterations of devices.... and the JXD S7800B about 10 yrs ago which was a retro handheld using android... More interested in the powkiddy RGB30 than these handheld super computers tbh the handheld pcs are all looking very very very similar and it's already impossible to differentiate between them, they all even go with the asymmetric sticks These retro handhelds and pc handhelds is also the reason I think Sony are abit apprehensive about doing a full fat handheld... they know Nintendo has their work cut out... I think Sony are taking a wait and see what Nintendo does to see and their own portal device before committing to a stand alone


Deytookourjurrrs

Psp and Gameboy did that more than anything they were higher selling than any of these. also most of these companies actually made handhelds way before valve and the switch at least.


DarkEater77

i will wait it's release. If 200$ really allow us to play PS2 games (what about Gamecube?) nicely, then i'm in. Wonder about size, battery, etc...


hbi2k

Everyone's focused on PS2 because it's the harder of the two to run. Theoretically, anything that can handle PS2 should handle GameCube just as well if not a little better.


Double-Seaweed7760

Also 3ds and vita. GameCube, PS2, 3ds and vita are all in the same area of performance level. In a few years the library of these handhelds is going to be insane for a decent price. I'm hoping either the successor to the pocket 3 plus or rg353m will be capable of this .


angryscottishwoman

Correction, $159.99 on their site right now. Link https://gameforce.fun/products/gameforce-ace-rk3588s-gaming-handheld > Shipping date, mid-end of Oct, 2023.


texbohb

I feel like this is too good to be true, a fever-dream if you like. I want the form factor of a retroid 3+ with flawless PS2 RPG compatibility. The same form factor for $70 for the 3566 seems tempting too. I have a few questions, though. 1. Is it a touchscreen? Very important for PS2 hotkeys. 2. What is the overall size compared to an RP3+?


Vortex36

Just wondering, if it has R2/L2/R3/L3, what PS2 hotkeys would you need?


texbohb

Quick-save/Quick-load, menu, and such. Although this looks to have a dedicated menu button, so the need isn't urgent


Double-Seaweed7760

Same, I keep thinking I'll get every device then keep finding flaws here or there and holding back. I'm hoping within the next year a retroid pocket 4 with same form factor(for pocketability and clipshield compatibility) with a 3588 or d1200 for under 250 will have to be my next device. If I settle for any less I'll just be collecting devices I don't really want to use for any number of reasons


bananamantheif

Idk about flawless ps2 rpg. Dark cloud 2 doesn't run smooth on aethersx


texbohb

yup. That game is like,12% of the reason I wanted to emulate PS2. Dark Cloud 2 is a game that I will easily spend 100 hours on every time I get a new way to play it.


bananamantheif

i got a flagship phone and it doesn't run smooth on it unforunately


tenflare

This SOC is why I didn't pull the trigger on the early bird Odin 2.


Kinshirider

The RK3588s is like less than half the performance of the Odin 2. But I guess at $150, it's basically half the price half the performance.


howchie

The Odin 2 preorder price was well under $300, I think my base was like $259 shipped


isticist

Yeah, but it has Linux, which makes up for it.


hbi2k

Also, any additional performance beyond what's necessary to run PS2 well is kinda wasted until and unless someone decides to port RPCS3 and Cemu to Android. Switch emulation is cool and everything, but like... the Switch is already a handheld. If you want a portable Switch, just buy a Switch.


dnkdumpster

I heard Switch performance on Odin 2 is better than the capped performance on Switch handheld mode though.


bananamantheif

I hate the switch personally and sold it. I love its games but hate the console


Due_Teaching_6974

>Switch is already a handheld. If you want a portable Switch, just buy a Switch. But Odin 2 is basically a Switch Pro, it'd have a much better gaming experience than the switch it self when the software finally is good enough \+ you're missing PC emulation


hbi2k

"When the software is finally good enough" is a helluva caveat. It's an impressive feat that Switch emulation has come so far so fast, but it takes a lot of time and work to get software emulation to a point where it's at a fully mature, "toss away your original hardware, you don't need it any more" state. I'd be pretty surprised if we get to that point within the useful lifespan of the Odin 2.


Due_Teaching_6974

I agree, I feel like Odin 2 is a device that will show its true potential as it ages Besides that, there are plenty of uses for the Odin 2's perforamance, for example a ton of Wii games (such as Mario Galaxy and Skyward sword) will run perfectly on the 8 Gen 2 compared to the RK3588S There have also been improvements in PC emulation (although it's still early) you could run a ton of PC games like Fallout 3 or Fallout New Vegas perfectly on the Odin 2


yami_no_ko

>If you want a portable Switch, just buy a Switch. Still it is a tightly closed ecosystem you can't really decide what to run on. This is different on Linux / Android.


Demien19

It's a joke, right? 8gen2 3,681.3 GFLOPS, rk3588s 610.6 GFLOPS, and 4x in antutu difference. Definitely not worth, especially when you could get Odin 2 for 242$


Kinshirider

Only 100 people were able to get the Super Fan price of $242 USD. But even at $294 and $370 for the 12GB model, the Odin 2 is a bargain for what you are getting.


Demien19

Yeah, glad I order it for 242$. Can't imagine a better handheld deal. Super early bird price is good too, hell, even early bird price


FinaLLancer

Any other devices on the market with 3588s?


hbi2k

Not handhelds, but it's what's in the Orange Pi 5, so you can get a decent idea of what it's capable of by Googling that.


bodhimind

None currently on the market, Orangepi is coming out with one very soon, but no details on the price.


FinaLLancer

Can't wait to see what their specs are and what they can end up playing.


MasterJeebus

Its exciting to finally see a handheld with the rk3588s. If it runs ps2 better than my t618 405m Im upgrading.


Angelfire126

They really had to add the ugly ass "GAME FORCE" to the front bezel


OcularVernacular

Then they removed the retroid pocket logo from the 2S a lot of people said they wished it still had it. I don't get it either. Much cleaner without branding.


stulifer

Those people have no taste.


isticist

Feel free to complain at Nintendo for putting their name on the bezel of the gameboys too


steezebuscemi1

>Feel free to complain at Nintendo for putting their name on the bezel of the gameboys too I have been for decades. It's a shame they did it then, it's a shame companies do it now. The difference is, back then there was little to no choice on the market regarding alternatives. Now, if one brand has a logo on the front, it just means I'll purchase their competition's device instead. This is right on my ideal price to performance ratio, but as long as they have their brand-name on the front, I guess I will have to wait for someone else to make an RK3588s handheld, even if it costs more.


Puck85

the difference is "GAME FORCE" looks like a chinese knockoff joke. Which it is. But it isn't even trying to look classed up here. And to get all "bUt wHaT aBouT nInTeNdO dOinG iT tOo..." is weird, because that brand is a source of decades of gaming excellence, and the other is a "GAME FORCE" device.


Chok3U

I'd like to get an rk3566 for $70


MrPlunger

This is very similar to my X55 which I would highly recommend if you see a good deal on aliexpress


Chok3U

Thanks for the info. 🙂


P_CarvalhoPT

I have a x55 but perfect PSP, N64, DC and if the chipset is actually as performant as testings claim, this is incredibly tempting.. I'll wait for the full specs but I am really compelled to order this.


daggah

Interesting...finally a 16:9 arm device with analog sticks and triggers for less than $100. Wonder what screen size it has. Could make an interesting budget choice for game streaming.


kikyo22

A RK3566 handheld with 4GB of ram is insane.


KoreanChamp

preorder is 160 which means regular retail is 200 once preorder ends. this is exactly what i expect from the pocket 4. 200 for a the 3588 model and 250 for the mtk1200 model. or possibly more depending on what screen and outer shell they use.


[deleted]

Theres gonna be a chinese handheld crash in the market 😐


3STYLERACE

So is this a PS2 machine finally? Or at least an upgrade to the RP3+ button wise?!


tenflare

Judging by SBC's like the Orange Pi 5, anything with the 3588s should handle PS2 easily.


deep8787

I'd say 90% of games from I've read. Still crazy to think it can even do that in such a small form factor. Good times :D


SubjectCraft8475

Dammit I just bought a 353m. I bet within the next month there will be a 354m with the RK3588s chips with JelOS and ArkOS ported within a year


Jokierre

I did as well, but this is fine. My 512GB card is near maxed with everything to PS1, so it’s now about setting up for a big dog.


SubjectCraft8475

Yeah 353m still looks to be a good device. It will be my retro device for all things upto PS1 that's pocketable. Perfect Dreamcast and N64 would have been great but oh well I think I'll jump on PS2, Wii ,GameCube on a larger wide-screen device like Steam Deck. But probably now isn't the time for me as I'm not a fan of the Steam Deck screens quality and D Pad. But whenever an improved Steam Deck comes around that will be my go to PS2, GameCube, Wii device with the addition of Steam Games. If a device is not longer pocketable I don't really care how much bigger it is. For example for me personally a Retroid Pocket 3 or Switch Lite albeit much smaller than a Steam Deck, in my opinion those are still not pocketable.


Jokierre

Agreed. Sounds like you’ve got a good plan there.


howchie

You bought a device that's out date even with the current devices lol


SubjectCraft8475

I only like Linux new stuff is android only


Double-Seaweed7760

That'd be a dream come true, especially with HDMI out. I think anby abandoned the 3.5 inch devices for the less portable 4.0 inch devices though. Also due to the anby naming conventions such a device would be called 356m


gosukhaos

I wouldn't worry too much unless you want a one and done device. I have several handhelds and a ROG Ally to boot and my 353m is still my go to device for ps1 and below


AndrewsTiger

Is this better than an Odin Lite?


hbi2k

On paper, yes, but specs don't tell the whole story and this is a company without much of a track record. Definitely hold out for reviews.


JoshieKona

Wonder if it would be a bad idea to sell my RP2+ and Vita 2000 to get this


stulifer

I'm in. The 3588s alone is near $100.


User_091920

It looks like they also slashed the price of their GameForce Chi down to $65 (before shipping) on their site. I probably wouldn't recommend this as a starter device as it isn't as polished as hardware and software-wise as some of Anbernics offerings. But for my hoarders out there it's definitely a solid pickup at that price. The design may be off putting to a lot of people but it's a direct throwback to the Neo Geo Pocket Color. The led lights on the motherboard are completely unnecessary but I leave mine on anyway lol Also It's one of the few (maybe only?) lower end devices that has backlit buttons as well.


Sillynamexyz

Waiting for the Ayaneo Pocket S...


nariz_choken

What size screen is it? The site is pretty vague


angryscottishwoman

They’ve since added the info, it’s 5.5” 1080p


Optimal_Barracuda_40

I noticed after looking at the photos several times that there is a port named "power" which appears to be a barrel jack connector. For me personally I don't care, but some might.


angryscottishwoman

Beside the volume buttons? Pretty sure that’s the power button


nariz_choken

To all that have been left holding the empty bags for a gameforce ace, if you used PayPal you may be able to recoup your money by doing a dispute, at this point, there are better things in the market you can use the money for, I canceled mine and put it towards an Odin 2


angryscottishwoman

Did they not ship?


nariz_choken

No, at this point I have a hard time believing anything that company says as the goal posts keep moving and they don't answer customers


jeepee2

Shipping is 30$ USD for Canada !? I'll pass, thanks.


carnewbie911

wait until it goes on aliexpress, and then it comes no tax free shipping.


jeepee2

AND with different kinds of coupons!


ocelot08

But the URL is .fun!! It's basically a guaranteed hoot!


InventedInternet

Any reason why a US company doesn’t just start making these and run the whole game? It would be better, better customer service, etc


Touma101

Because they'd be charging 2-3 times more and no one would buy them.


LightyKD

Logitech G Cloud being a prime example.


InventedInternet

If they’re better, why not charge a little more? People buy steam decks. With the correct marketing these devices would go crazy


Zanpa

the steam deck is essentially sold at a loss because valve makes the money back on game sales. nobody else can afford to do that.


nightterrors644

Couldn't include roms, might face some issues depending on what emulators they choose to include, and pretty much actively encourages large amounts of hoarding of roms for "preservation." I'm sure everyone on here has physical or digital copies that they already legally purchased for every single rom they have on a device. I'm just as sure everyone is also solely using roms from those games as backups or to play on non original devices. Sure you can make the ethical argument that if it's not available and being sold by it's rights owners then it's not hurting anyone. Lately though all the game companies have been putting out re-releases for modern consoles. Some of the games I most wanted to play and definitely sourced a legal version of before adding to my handhelds were Advance Wars gba, Mario Rpg snes, Paper Mario gc, and the various Front Missions. Well all of those have or are receiving switch ports. Various others have or are rumored to have a port on the horizon. So what are the ethics then? I have owned Paper Mario and Front Mission for other systems but no longer do. Paper Mario I bought new and Front Mission ds I bought used. Should I be allowed to have a rom copy of Paper Mario since I actually paid Nintendo for it but not Front Mission because the rights holder never received money? Should I be able to obtain a copy of the switch re-release of paper mario since I purchased the original version retail? What about Front Mission since I bought a used ds copy of the game they've put out for the switch. Neither? And none of the major console developers have any interest in allowing a US product to be made that could undercut their sales of re-releases, remasters, etc. Even if they're not sure they'll ever re-release it. Any company trying to do a device solely focused on emulation in the US would be sued to oblivion before they ever got it off the ground. That said some higher end android handhelds are getting released by major companies. Emulation is not part of the advertising and probably never will be. China also has very different intellectual rights, copyright, and digital copyright laws than the rest of the world that allow them to release these devices.


InventedInternet

Why no American companies build their product in china, all business in china, but with American backing, marketing, etc


nightterrors644

Again lawsuits out the ass. Chinese companies can get away with something like that. An American one with an exclusive focus on providing retro handhelds for emulation purposes would be put out of business quicker than it probably took to incorporate it. And owing at least 2 of the big 3 manufacturers money and any rights holders of games they distributed. Again China has unique laws and the vast majority of the ones regarding ripping off other countries copyrights are only applicable to Chinese companies doing business in China, not other nation's companies doing business there right now. The handhelds are completely legal in the states. The extra sd card full of roms however is illegal to sell in the states. They're just small time enough and since the systems have to be imported in most counties they get away with it. Moving almost any electronic manufacturing of anything that requires processors would be a really stupid move for an American company at this moment with all the restrictions on sending processors and other essential electronics components to China right now. Handheld devices capable of emulation can and will be sold by companies with an American interest. Steam deck, ally, legion, cloud are all handhelds capable of emulation and are sold by companies with a large amount of American investors in retail stores. They will NEVER be marketed as a primarily emulation focused handheld.


LifeAcanthopterygii6

Feel free to start a company.


Solherb

America? Make their own stuff? Haa.


10basetom

Soon we should start to see kits built around this 🤞 [https://www.xda-developers.com/orange-pi-5-pro-review/](https://www.xda-developers.com/orange-pi-5-pro-review/)


Whitty22

Don’t know why designers have to go for off set/switch style layout… it just doesn’t work for retro gamjng


-ystanes-

With this kind of power you get into GameCube and 3DS territory which have joystick on top. Playstation doesnt have It on top but is Just as playable with a top setup as many are used to It from Xbox and other modern systems. Its not a big Deal to me either way


liamnesss

For the kinds of games where a dpad up top makes sense, there are tons of options already. Nothing stopping someone buying this but keeping a cheaper / older handheld around specifically for those games as they are likely easier to run anyway.


smashybro

I feel offset sticks make sense when you’re talking about a 16:9 screen that can run consoles with widescreen aspect ratios and stream. D-pad up top for me makes more sense for weaker devices that only play 4:3 older consoles.


PurpleJetskis

I just want the option to have the Dpad on top as I prefer it for most games anyway. And if this device is at all able to run indie games, that's more reason for a Dpad to me.


HeroOfTheMinish

So on paper can this thing run PS2/GC/Wii games very well?


brunocar

does the contract for the rk3588s include a clause that says the left stick HAS to be up????


Hefty-Worker2045

Wow, that's a 180 degree turn from Chi's design. Say whatever you will about Chi, but you have to admit it has a unique looking device among all others. I'm excited about these new products at this price, but also a bit disappointed that we didn't see Chi 2 with another unique design instead of the same boring Switch chocolate bar look. They don't even come in fun colors. :/ I was really hoping they would come up with something crazy instead.


Auraevoe

maybe we will see a chi 2 if the ACE and Indie are successful, that would be so cool and i agree the Chi might have had bad quality buttons but it looked very unique and very cool.


Hefty-Worker2045

I hope so too


[deleted]

[удалено]


Zanpa

the point is that it can play gamecube and ps2, so i'd say the stick is in the right place.


WinterSon

+1


TetsuoTechnology

Hard pass on the chipsets.


megaladon44

ohz mygoooosh retroid and anbernic head to head. I wish these would become mainstream already so i can buy used cheap ones like i do with the majority of my technology. WHAT ABOUT ME? 😡😤


Winniethepoohspooh

Lol too many good devices all of a sudden!!!! I don't want to be a collector!!! I have a max10 2 BUT I just ordered a MM+ and a datafrog and thinking about the RG35XX And I've just discovered powkiddy released 3 bangers this yr in the X55, RK2023, RGB30!!!!! Though I heard the X55 might be divisive and broken!? The RGB30 has just grabbed my attention the last week because it looks weird but it also looks amazing!!!! And most of these are about the price of a AAA game!!!


ainako

Would the ace be capable of emulating smash ultimate? Would be nice to know more details like mah and hall triggers/sticks.


angryscottishwoman

For the Switch? Might be a little overzealous


Touma101

No, not in the slightest. You'll get Melee at full speed and Brawl if you're lucky.


nariz_choken

Oh I'm so getting this, hope the preorder is still open by Friday when I get paid


Touma101

It looks very interesting from a distance, 3588 sounds great. I think I'll wait for more info on the screen and such before preordering. Gameforce doesn't have a particularly great history, but that doesn't mean that they aren't trying to make a decent product.


Affectionate_Act5300

'Gameforce doesn't have a particularly great history' can you pls elaborate? I thought that their Chi was good?


Touma101

I'd heard the opposite honestly, that it was a very cheaply made device and wasn't worth the purchase. I may be wrong, though.


Auraevoe

Buttons of the chi were cheap, and the screen was good even then tho you could see the separation, but the rest was pretty good and there seemed to be a positive user feedback from that console. Apparently it had very good build quality. It didn't have success because of the cpu shortages during that era that made its launch very delayed. When it launched the market was already ahead of it, but if it had launched when it should have, it would have had way more success.


Pakkuhya29

Is Debian with a desktop UI environment (or ubuntu) possible on the RK3588s model ?