This week on NPC: Next Portable Console, Federico has hands-on first impressions of the Steam Controller, follow up on our RG Rotate purchases, Dusklight, CrankBoy, and more.

Also available on YouTube here.

Links and Show Notes The Latest Portable Gaming News

• Valve Steam Controller
  • Steam Controller
  • SteamOS
  • Lenovo Legion Go Gen 2
  • Bazzite
  • Nintendo Switch 2 Pro Controller
  • 8BitDo Ultimate 3-mode Controller
• Handheld and Controller Follow-Up
  • ANBERNIC RG Rotate
  • MOBAPAD M12 HD
  • NYXI Hyperion 3
• Dusklight Twilight Princess Port
  • Dusklight
  • Dusklight on GitHub
  • AltStore
  • AYN Odin 3
• Lenovo G02 retro handheld
• Switch 2 Price Increase
  • Notice Regarding Price Revisions for Nintendo Products and Services (Nintendo)
  • Nintendo just announced a $500 Switch 2 bundle that includes a first-party game (Engadget)
• Crankboy for Playdate
  • Playdate
  • Crankboy
  • Crankboy on GitHub

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This week on NPC: Next Portable Console, mysterious Valve shipments are heading to the U.S., GameHub hits 6.0, one of us got multiple Steam Controllers, and plastic versus aluminum.

Also available on YouTube here.

Links and Show Notes Steam Controller Pre-Orders

• Steam Controller
• Steam Deck
• Steam Deck Docking Station

Valve Hardware Speculation

• Valve Imported 50 Tons of Game Consoles (The Verge)

Anbernic RG Rotate

• Anbernic RG Rotate
• Retro Game Corps First Impressions

Lenovo Legion Tab

• Lenovo Legion Tab (US, $849)

Game Native and Android PC Emulation

• Game Native (Android)
• AYN Odin 3
• AYN Thor
• AYN Odin 2 Mini
• Lossless Scaling
• LSFG VK (Vulkan Frame Generation)
• Lenovo Legion Go 2

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This week on Next Portable Console, we finally have RG Rotate specs and prices, get excited for the Steam Controller, update listeners on the latest grips available for the Switch 2, and cover the GameHub for Mac beta.

Also available on YouTube here.

Links and Show Notes The Latest Portable Gaming News

• Anbernic teases the RG Rotate with gameplay demo showing PSP, 3DS, GameCube, and PS2 running
• Dbrand's Joy-Lock gives Switch 2 Joy-Cons an adjustable ratcheting grip
• Genki Grips Development Update: Locking In The Details
• GameHub brings Windows PC game compatibility to Mac in an early beta with solid early results

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NPC XL is a weekly members-only version of NPC with extra content, available exclusively through our new Patreon for $5/month.

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This week on Next Portable Console, OnePlus makes a phone controller with only triggers, Tico 0.7.0 brings GameCube and Wii emulation to the Switch, Ayn raises prices, and Steam comes to Android via ROCKNIX.

Also available on YouTube here.

Links and Show Notes The Latest Portable Gaming News

• OnePlus reveals Marksman Gaming Controller alongside Ace 6 Ultra smartphone
• Tico 0.7.0 brings experimental GameCube and Wii emulation to Nintendo Switch via Dolphin
• AYN raises Thor Max price and downgrades storage to UFS 3.1
• Valve's Proton 11 beta enables Steam on Arm-based Android handhelds via ROCKNIX

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This week on Next Portable Console, TrimUI's slow drip of details on the Brick Pro continues, shipping manifests suggest the Steam Controller may beat the Steam Machine to market, and OnePlus makes a strong bid for weirdest handheld announcement of 2026.

Also available on YouTube here.

Links and Show Notes The Latest Portable Gaming News

• The TrimUI Brick Pro nears official release with packaging revealed
• ONEXPLAYER teases X2 Mini handheld with Ryzen AI Max+ 395 and 8.8-inch OLED
• Shipping manifest leak suggests Steam Controller launch is imminent
• Lenovo teasing larger Legion Tab gaming tablet
• OnePlus reportedly developing an Android gaming handheld targeting FPS games with purple faux leather grips

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NPC XL is a weekly members-only version of NPC with extra content, available exclusively through our new Patreon for $5/month.

Each week on NPC XL, Federico, Brendon, and John record a special segment or deep dive about a particular topic that is released alongside the "regular" NPC episodes.

You can subscribe here: https://www.patreon.com/c/NextPortableConsole

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This week on Next Portable Console, the SN Operator is delayed, an Ayn Odin non-drama, a new contender for weirdest handheld of 2026, even more on the RG Rotate, and how we find retro game shops.

Also available on YouTube here.

Links and Show Notes The Latest Portable Gaming News

• GAMEMT E5 ModX is a modular handheld that converts between controller, horizontal, and vertical form factors
• AYN Odin 3's "Snapdragon 8 Elite" is actually a Qualcomm Dragonwing Q8 IoT chip
• Genki launches Covert Dock 3 and ShadowCast 3 Pro for Switch 2 and modern handhelds
• Anbernic RG Rotate new photos
  • More on whether the RG Rotate has a headphone jack

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NPC XL is a weekly members-only version of NPC with extra content, available exclusively through our new Patreon for $5/month.

Each week on NPC XL, Federico, Brendon, and John record a special segment or deep dive about a particular topic that is released alongside the "regular" NPC episodes.

You can subscribe here: https://www.patreon.com/c/NextPortableConsole

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PAX, the Pocket Taco, and a $900 PlayStation

This week on Next Portable Console, Brendon reports back on the hardware he saw at PAX East, John gives the Pocket Taco a try, and with Federico, they cover the latest handheld news.

Also available on YouTube here.

Links and Show Notes The Latest Portable Gaming News

• More videos of the Anbernic "RG Flic"
• AYANEO Pauses More Handhelds
• More PlayStation Handheld Rumors
• Dolphin Now Supports Game Boy Player
• Brendon on PAX East
• John Reviews the GameSir Pocket Taco

Subscribe to NPC XL

NPC XL is a weekly members-only version of NPC with extra content, available exclusively through our new Patreon for $5/month.

Each week on NPC XL, Federico, Brendon, and John record a special segment or deep dive about a particular topic that is released alongside the "regular" NPC episodes.

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This week on Next Portable Console, a PlayStation Portable update, Honda and Sony call off car-based gaming, Epilogue shows of the SN Operator and makes and app, the fate of Windows handhelds, Federico's Legion Go makes a comeback, and more.

Also available on YouTube here.

Links and Show Notes The Latest Portable Gaming News

• PlayStation Portal has added a higher quality 1080p option
• Sony and Honda cancel Afeela EV project after years of development
• Epilogue News
  • SN Operator Sneak peek
  • Epilogue releases Retrace mobile app for game cartridge identification and counterfeit detection
  • Epilogue Retrace on the App Store
• AYANEO Ends Next 2 Pre-oreders
  • AYANEO suspends pre-orders of Next 2
  • The Verge: AYANEO Windows gaming handheld sustainability
• Federico Revitalizes his Legion Go
  • Lenovo Legion Go

Subscribe to NPC XL

NPC XL is a weekly members-only version of NPC with extra content, available exclusively through our new Patreon for $5/month.

Each week on NPC XL, Federico, Brendon, and John record a special segment or deep dive about a particular topic that is released alongside the "regular" NPC episodes.

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This week on Next Portable Console, Nintendo dropped a big Switch 2 software surprise, Anbernic got back to being weird, Federico went large with his PC streaming setup, and more.

Also available on YouTube here.

Links and Show Notes The Latest Portable Gaming News

• Switch 2 Software Update
  • System Update Information for Nintendo Switch 2
• Anbernic News
  • [UPDATE] Anbernic RG Vita and RG Vita Pro Price and Release Date Revealed
  • Anbernic's Next Handheld Might Flip the Script With a Rotating Screen
  • Anbernic new device
• Federico's Big Streaming Handheld
  • Razer Kishi V2 XL
  • FINALLY! Here's how I fixed iPad stuttering

Subscribe to NPC XL

NPC XL is a weekly members-only version of NPC with extra content, available exclusively through our new Patreon for $5/month.

Each week on NPC XL, Federico, Brendon, and John record a special segment or deep dive about a particular topic that is released alongside the "regular" NPC episodes.

You can subscribe here: https://www.patreon.com/c/NextPortableConsole

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This week, the confusing state of Switch 2 Joy-Con replacements, more on emulating PC games on Android, and we place our bets on the future of Valve's Steam Machine.

Also available on YouTube here.

Links and Show Notes Switching Back to Windows for Marathon

• Marathon
• Bazzite
• SteamOS

Switch 2 Third-Party Joy-Con Controllers

• Mobapad M12 HD / M12S Switch 2 Joy-Con
• NYXI Hyperion 3 Switch 2 JoyPad
• HORI Split Pad Pro

Android Gaming & PC Emulation on Phones

• Red Magic 11 Pro
• GameHub
• GameNative v0.8 update
• Slay the Spire 2 on Steam
• AYN Thor

Gaming Tablets

• Red Magic Astra tablet
• Lenovo Legion Tab Gen 5 / Y700 (2026)
• Xiaomi 17 Ultra

Steam Machine Delay

• Valve Steam Machine delay
• Valve reaffirms 2026 launch

Subscribe to NPC XL

NPC XL is a weekly members-only version of NPC with extra content, available exclusively through our new Patreon for $5/month.

Each week on NPC XL, Federico, Brendon, and John record a special segment or deep dive about a particular topic that is released alongside the "regular" NPC episodes.

You can subscribe here: https://www.patreon.com/c/NextPortableConsole

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