Analogue Pocket Review
The Perfect Game Boy?
I’m a Nintendo Game Boy baby. The DMG-01 was my first gaming console and Tetris was the first game I ever owned. It’s fair to say that the Game Boy set me on a relentless path of finding the perfect handheld gaming device that I am still enthralled with finding today. Advancing technology has completely opened the floodgates to the handheld gaming space and we’ve gotten products from an abundance of makers that I would have salivated for a mere decade ago. At the top of that mountain is this handheld I’ve been using for a couple of years now and it might just be the best Game Boy ever made. It just wasn’t made by Nintendo.
Purchase Price: $219.99
Build Quality
Hard To Get?
Analogue sells the Pocket in batches and often times sell out.
The Analogue Pocket may very well be the most premium Game Boy to exist at this point in time. It’s a larger body than any official Game Boy to release, but it fits well into an adult hand. There are plenty of Game Boy replicas out there, but the Pocket feels special. The first thing that will immediately catch your eye is the 3.5” LCD screen. For many handheld enthusiasts, this display will be the sharpest, brightest, and most eye pleasing display on a handheld of this form factor. It may not be the most accurate way to replicate the authenticity of an original Game Boy screen, but it’s literally 10 times sharper than the original Game Boy. Seriously, a 1600 x 1440p resolution at this small size pushes the count to 615 ppi. That’s an incredibly sharp display that is just a joy to look at. I’m not one to completely relive the nostalgia of the 90’s with non-backlit screens or pixel grid patterns, but you can have your fun in replicating the past digitally through the Pocket.
The hardware on the Analogue Pocket lets the LCD display recreate the original hardware look for the Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance games. Scan lines can be modified a few levels as well as the color of that the platform would have emitted if it was on real hardware. There’s enough here for anyone to simulate their past experiences with handheld gaming. It’s also a given that a modern Game Boy will allow users to tinker with the aspect ratio to once again attempt to capture a certain authenticity to the playing experience of a cartridge in the 1990’s.
The back of a Game Boy Color next to the Analogue Pocket
The main function of the Pocket will be to relive the golden age of Nintendo mobile gaming. Gamers can take their old cartridges and insert them into the back just like the Game Boy Color housed cartridges all those years ago. The Pockets game reader is natively compatible with Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance game cartridges. Analogue sells cartridge adapters that allow the Pocket to plug in games for the Game Gear, Neo Geo Pocket, & Atari Lynx as well.
All in all, this is a one stop shop to play the classics legitimately through files owned by gamers from the past. That's a value that is hard to replicate to this extent in modern times. Sure you can individually buy pre-owned handheld consoles to authentically have that throwback experience, but when you think about the compact nature of the Pocket, and the rising cost of retro consoles, I can see the appeal of the Pocket to retro gamers. FPGA in gaming is tailor made for recreating retro classic form factors and the Analogue Pocket does it cleanly.
Old Meets New
That’s not even including the modern gaming amenities like the beautiful and bright display. How about being able to put the console to sleep without needing to save progress so you can pick it back up where you left off. Save states are also something that once I’ve adapted to using it in modern gaming, it’s hard to live without going back to the rough “do or die” levels of Game Boy play.
But a huge addition to the Pocket’s functionality is due to openFPGA and the ability to play roms. Running FPGA cores of various systems expands my gaming library to more than just that of my portable systems. It also allows me to leave the cartridges home when I’m not in a position to carry a wider library of games out with me. This is what we’ve come to rely on in the retro handheld community and it's vital that the Pocket obtained this ability to remain competitive.
Making small progress on a game during lunch
While the general interface to navigate menus is rudimentary, I’m happy to just be able to play NES Tetris on a gorgeous display anywhere I feel like it. I sound like a broken record, but there’s something magical about experiencing some of my favorite titles on such a high resolution display. Going through my library of titles just to see how beautiful the sprites look with modern technology was enough for me to warrant the hefty price tag of the hardware. Still, Analogue has done a fantastic job building hardware that is worth every penny. The games play flawlessly on the hardware while the buttons give off a snappy, and solid input.
I also love the minimalist approach with color. The white is completely white except for a mint green power button accent. It’s just so clean and gives off this snobby expensive vibe. It’s like the Analogue is screaming that this is a rich man’s Game Boy and I’m all for it. The Pocket is a little chunkier than most retro gaming replicas shaped like a Game Boy Color, but that helps with the comfortability of the shoulder triggers. It’s not shallow like a lot of competitors out there, allowing for plenty of resting space for my index fingers.
Modern Game Boy Gaming
The entire console is quite comfortable to hold in my hands. I like the fact that Analogue also chose to add a lined texture on the rear battery compartment where the majority of my fingers rest when gripping the Pocket. This gives my fingers some friction to keep steady rather than a smooth back that could be potentially slippery.
Speaking of the battery, the rechargeable 4,300 mAh cell is impressive. I’ve probably logged about 8-10 hours of gameplay between each charge. But what I’m most impressed with from the Pocket is the terrific standby performance. I just don’t have that much time to game nowadays. I also don’t have the energy or patience to game for long periods of time. I love making a little bit of progress in an RPG incrementally, before hitting the green power button to put the Pocket to sleep.
A cable link port is also on the Pocket
I sometimes don’t get back to the game for days and the battery life wasn’t drained to zero. In fact, it’s always retained a hefty chunk of what I left it at. This is exactly the type of adult gaming console I need in my life. Gaming is not a priority for me like it was in my teenage days. I can’t afford to spend another 15 minutes more to get to a save point before calling it a day. I’m glad Analogue understands this and has implemented a mixture of terrific battery life and software assistance to make gaming more convenient rather than stay stringent of purist replication.
The rest of the hardware aspects are also pretty sound for the most part. There’s a USB-C port as well as a 3.5mm headphone jack. The stereo speakers are in my opinion one of the best ones out of a Game Boy replica I’ve used. It gets loud without distorting, and for the most part, retains the clearness of what we can have come to expect on things like smartphones. There’s also a micro-SD card for saving files and roms onto. But to some fans out there, the coolest port on the hardware is an original-style Game Boy link port. Yup! Those same cables I used to trade Pokemon religiously with on the GBC is also on the Pocket. You can seriously relive and re-experience whatever levels of authenticity you want to with the Pocket.
A Few Things To Improve
It’s not completely perfect as I would recommend Analogue to separate the volume rockers from the power button further if they make a sequel to the Pocket. The buttons are essentially flush to the frame and are rather tiny. I often put the Pocket to sleep on accident while attempting to lower the volume.
Analogue doesn’t provide buyers with a cover for the cartridge slot. This isn’t the end of the world as the original Game Boy and its sequel hardware also had exposed slots. It wasn’t until I believe the Nintendo DS Lite that having a slot cover to prevent dust, dirt, and other things from being trapped became a norm. I actually went out and purchased a DS Lite cover as well as a 3D printed third-party mold to cover my Pocket’s cartridge slot. I think it looks better covered when not in use too.
And finally, seeing as the Pocket technically is running on “real” hardware in a scientific sense, GBA rom hacks don’t work. That means if you’re looking to run through some crazy Pokemon rom hacks on the GBA, you’ll have to find an emulator based handheld to dive into instead.
final thoughts
Even after a couple of years with the Analogue Pocket, I find myself still giddy pulling it out and staring at it. It’s beautiful to look at. The games are beautiful to stare at. And most importantly, this is where the games play the best at. There’s something so unique about cartridge loading that I never realized just how much I missed it until I started using the Analogue Pocket and the Epilogue GB Operator. This isn’t my main retro gaming console as it’s limited in home consoles that I can emulate, but when it comes to Game Boy gaming in modern times, there’s no handheld I would rather have in my hands to experience those games over the Analogue Pocket.
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