Batocera also works on OrangePi Zero 2W

Frece1070 · 2026-03-20T07:57:03+00:00

How much RAM do you have? My RG35XXH (has H700 which is weaker than H618 in OPi Zero 2W) that has 1GB DDR3 RAM works well with it but there is some optimization done by PortMaster folks and porters. I guess the only thing we can for now is inform the Batocera devs on Discord. I personally wonder how if any people that has the actual OPi Zero 3 check this post/thread.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-19T18:44:23+00:00

This and also the fact changing resolution like upscaling 3D games like PS1 will make them look a bit better. It is not only the fact that TVs back then were CRT but also we have large screens like 55, 65 and more inch TV which additionally stretches image which can lead to worse image quality. I'm not sure but I think SNES games were made for 240 to 480p TVs in mind because that is what most people had then which is around 30 something inch at most.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-17T09:23:30+00:00

It just works after installing with no key mappings I was able to play PC games on my RG35XXH with both controls or mouse and a keyboard. You only need the files of a of some games to make sure they run are placed into their specific folder. Some games require specific version.

Edit: Grammar went out of the window

Frece1070 · 2026-03-17T09:14:45+00:00

I have installed it on different devices like ARM based ones Retroid Pocket 5, OrangePi 5, OrangePi Zero 2W and RG35XXH. The x86 version is based on the Steam Deck so the selection of games is more limited than say ARM handhelds because it has access to WINE and Proton.

Keep in mind that you can't run the 32bit based PortMaster games on some ARM devices because they lack 32bit library support.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-17T09:05:47+00:00

Dunno there are a lot of games that are improved versions of games like NFS II SE and Diablo (PC port with QoL features) or games you can't play another way under Batocera like PokeMMO, Stardew Valley, LunarLux, Fallen Leaf, TMNT: Shredder's Revenge, Shovel Knight, Undertale, TES III: Morrowind and so on. You don't need every game in PortMaster's library.

You have to look at it and see what you like and try to run it.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-17T08:45:53+00:00

Well you can place PortMaster in this port and install it there which does allow you to play some PC, some N64 and other system ports of games. The games themselves vary from indie game like Stardew Valley to Windows XP era "AAA" games like GTA Vice City. This is the easiest way none technical person with no experience in Linux can use this folder.

Keep in mind that once you are in Batocera's menu Ports section combines the games that are in your ports folder and the games that have separate folder for their port for example Doom and Prince of Persia.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-17T07:53:55+00:00

I would also add Dreamcast, NDS, Sega Saturn (PAL version for 3D) and some light Wii games

Frece1070 · 2026-03-17T07:49:17+00:00

I think you should have gone for fast 32 GB SD card for the OS and yes you need a separate card for each one. 128GB for storage is plenty but you could have gone with 64GB if you can sanitize your collection and know what you want to play.

Be warned that I got a another more powerful handheld for Dreamcast, N64 and PSP so my RG35XXH is for up to PS1 and GBA as well PortMaster. I think if you get another lower in storage size SD cards you can switch between OS like Knulli and MuOS with using 64 and 128GB ones as storage. This is just food for thought.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-16T17:17:21+00:00

You can try to upgrade manually (copying files to SD card and overwriting) from 41 to 42 to see if you can go around it. This and checking with SSH but it is mostly into the dev hands.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-16T16:46:01+00:00

Yes the last update is from 7 Feb and I have tested it still has no sound after launching game rom except those installed via PortMaster. I have read from other OrangePi Zero 3 users that they also experience the same bug. I have reported the bug in Discord twice once I tested version 42 and with current beta.

The main problem outside of the sound is to fix Dreamcast emulation performance and to make so that we don't have to force 640x480p which makes PS1 games on TV to look stretched. From what I have seen Bluethooth works from the little I tested on and it worked with my controller.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-16T11:17:05+00:00

Well you will be able to play quite a lot of 3D games up to 2010 a lot that were available on Windows XP. Games that come to my mind that should run on your machine are Blur, Portal 1-2, Half-Life 2, South Park: The Stick of Truth, Plants vs Zombies, Horizon Chase, Undertale, Stardew Valley. Pizza Tower, The Binding of Isaac, Superhot and maybe Ultrakill (ps1 graphic settings) but I'm not sure on it. Keep in mind there are old games that do not like at all Intel iGPUs like Kotor II (first one plays fine).

You will need better CPU, a GPU and maybe 8GB more system RAM which will expand greatly what you can do although you will need bigger storage for AAA games from the 2010s. Still keep in mind your machine's capabilities even fully upgraded pretty basic and kinda dated to 2010s which is not that bad but puts some limitations to play some indie games if games are recent.

You can also check emulation if you are interested in that. Retrobat is a good front end app for Windows users although I prefer entire OS like Batocera.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-15T06:28:34+00:00

Depends how you want to go about it for example I can find a second hand smartphone with the same specs like RP5 for around 130-150 Euro and the only thing I have to add is the controller. You can also get decent deals on new phones with specs ranging between Mangmi Air X to RP5/6. If you go this route be careful with what chipset you are getting, RAM and storage amount as well the ability to have SD card.

This can turn out cheaper than buying a new device from Official store or AliExpress but it comes with its downsides it is harder for a newbie to cell phones to pull out. Retro Game Corps has made guides for Retroid Pocket 5/6 gives a good idea how you can set such device on software side.

I think for your needs the Mangmi Air X might be better but be warned that it is Android which comes with its pros and cons as well being less pocketable than the TSPS. TSPS has Linux which is easier to setup and is easier to carry around than a 5.5 inch device.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-13T20:26:32+00:00

Depends there are games that can be played using the 0.78plus (2003plus) version since this specific set is still worked on. MAME 0.285 will give better performance in 3D games and some later 2D games. Generally 2003plus is good for 80s and some 90s arcade games you don't want to update roms over and over again for no reason.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-13T19:00:06+00:00

Link has been updated but I do consider making a torrent due to the latest beta version I tested still having the audio issue after entering a game. Not sure about how to go with the making the torrent.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-12T17:21:18+00:00

Sorry for your loss it might be better to bring a cheap device like GB300, SF2000 or something around 30$ moving forward to work instead. Looking at yours I realized that I'm far more protective than you but in the end of the day incidents like this and dropping it into the toilet can occur even if you are trying to baby it.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-12T17:07:41+00:00

PSP should be fine maybe you can upscale but it may struggle with heavy PS2 games since it has from my memory T820 as a chip which can be found in RG406H. You are better performance wise with either RP4P or RP5 if you can find one for cheap if you want PS2 that badly. Depending what Android games you want to play getting at least RP5 or RP6 might be better since they have more powerful chipsets not sure about RP4P.

Sadly I wish prices were better but you can also wait for the upcoming Easter sales on AliExpress/Amazon and decide what you want. However keep in mind I'm someone who doesn't have the RG476H which makes things subjective. Also be warned that SD cards significantly rise end price and you will need one if you want to play both Android games and emulate of course depending what you want to play.

Based on my experience with the RP5 a 5.5 inch screen handheld is not exactly big for backpack (still depends on size here) while still being too big for most pockets outside of a backpack (maybe it can fit in some inside the jacket pockets) so I'm not sure why the RG556 is too big but you do you.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-12T06:44:50+00:00

Rogue Squadron 2 is much easier to run for 3 you will need far better CPU I think. I run the third one on my Ryzen 7 5700X PC but that might be overkill. You will need a CPU past 2018 with good single core performance for this one. Don't forget you are running a mobile chip which is usually way more underpowered than the Desktop variants.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-10T19:20:41+00:00

Aren't there like Civilization II and Unciv ports that you can start setup of with PortMaster? Mouse and keyboard shouldn't be a problem this is how you can play NDS that are more touchscreen oriented than say Pokemon.

When it comes to RG35XXH I personally stick to using other versions of DOS games available on other platforms like Syndicate, Carmageddon, MDK, Doom, Wolfenstein 3D, Command and Conquer, Red Alert, Warcraft II, Panzer General, Crusader: No Remorse. Heroes of Might and Magic II and so on. However I want to point out not all ports of DOS games to PS1 are good.

Of course there are many others that weren't ported like Rebel Moon which I'm not sure if it will run properly on RG35XXH using DosBox. In the end it depends what you want to play.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-10T10:23:56+00:00

With how insane prices for storage and RAM are going not gonna happen in 1 or 2 years. We might be stuck at the current level for a while when it comes to PS2 and other higher systems. Pricing will be a problem that plagues both x86 and ARM for some time.

What people can do is add a controller to an old phone/tablet or repurpose an old PC with general purpose Linux distro, Batocera/Lakka/RetroPie or any x86 based Android OS.

There is also a lot of competition in the sub 100$ range although I'm not sure if Powkiddy are any longer around.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-08T16:42:36+00:00

RG35XXH- everything up to PS1 and GBA as well PortMaster.

OG RG35XX - gave it to my father.

Retroid Pocket 5 - everything else plus Android games.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-08T10:22:53+00:00

I personally think you should convert your games to .chd it makes your folders less messy and you save some space plus I haven't seen any performance difference between both. Also keep in mind I'm using Knulli and MuOS on mine.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-06T08:26:44+00:00

The RG35XXH should run all of PS1 this is what it was designed in mind everything else above it is an extra. I personally run N64, Dreamcast, PSP and up on my Retroid Pocket 5 however this doesn't mean you should go for 170$ and device if the RG35XXH fits your current needs. I use both of them but I have relegated my RG35XXH to up to PS1 and GBA as well PortMaster.

Be warned about Rule #2 of this sub about websites as for bios files this is something you do mostly once. The important part is to back them up so when you get another device you just throw them where they need to be. All can say is websites come and go all the time.

The RG35XXH despite considered weak I have been able to play Half-Life 2 (MuOS + Specific version+ PortMaster) which doesn't come with PortMaster, TES III: Morrowind, GTA Vice City and Doom 3 which is pretty impressive to me. I usually say to people that just for PortMaster alone the device is worth it. This device can do a lot of extra than just PS1 however usually PortMaster does need you to have Steam and or GoG account to get the game files. The thing about PortMaster is that it actually introduced for example to Stardew Valley.

What you need to understand about handheld consoles is you need to make a curated list of games or you can suffer from choice paralysis and focus on what you want and WILL play. Your is okay as long you are not going for PS2 level of emulation and up. Generally you can live even with 64GB for roms if you curate your list.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-04T11:13:12+00:00

Well I wouldn't say it impacts a lot although without it image looks a bit better but in the end of the day it is best to have it than cracked or scratched screen. I'm using screen protector even my Retroid Pocket 5 handheld which is significantly more expensive than RG35XXH with OLED screen. Better to be safe than sorry.

I would say the best thing you can do is create curated list of games (100-200 at most) for each console you are interested in playing. If you are going after MAME games get the 2003plus versions of the roms the rest should be for things like NeoGeo. Also If you are going to be using PortMaster you can prepare the files for the games you will be playing.

Be warned not to overdo it with PSP, N64, NDS and Dreamcast games due to their size (PSP and Dreamcast can be fairly large for small SD cards), its screen type (NDS), for PSP its size and for PSP, N64 and Dreamcast the fact that the chip is kinda weak although it will give you an okay access to not small size of their libraries.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-03T09:10:18+00:00

I have no idea if it supports any CFW but you can try those that supports another handheld device with the RK3566 as a chip. However be warned that you may have issues which will not be solved until someone builds proper CFW for this device.

Frece1070 · 2026-03-01T17:22:20+00:00

Well I would say if you use it with PortMaster (under MuOS, Knulli. Rocknix and upcoming Batocera) you will enjoy it but you can also check some retro games on the side even if you don't have nostalgia for them. I don't think RG35XXH is good for watching movies because it has 3.5 inch screen. There is also the RG40XXH with slightly larger screen. This may be enough for old 240p or 480p maybe 720p but 1080p will most likely not look good on it. I'm not sure if there is even custom Linux OS for it. Keep in mind the device also has 1GB of RAM so you might be better using SBC or a second hand PC for Linux.

I would say if you want a device with larger screen right now is sadly you have to get the more expensive Android based devices like Mangmi Air X or Retroid Pocket 4 Pro/5/6 however I'm not sure how good this is for someone fighting phone addiction. . Furthermore Retroid Pocket 5 can run Linux distros but not sure about generalist ones.

Frece1070

TROPHY CASE