Yea, it was partly the motivation for making the video now vs when I had originally purchased the Surface Duo back in July of last year. The price of the N3DS XL going up and the SD price going down kind of makes something like this much more appealing.
Ebay barely has some options to buy it 🤔😔, Amazon doesn't have it, and being outside of the US I just have two options to get it. I don't know where else to get it besides Facebook 🤧
@@MegaDrainProductions My tab S7+ is complete sh*t at 3ds, PS2, and dolphin Emulation but I can play PSP at up to 5k for a lot of games. The optimization for PPSSPP on mobile is simply unrivaled.
@@Jdogg4089 are you setting up correctly? Which version of emulator's are you using? Don't use the Google play ps2 emulator's those have been crippled by the dev and has admitted it so.
You are the first youtuber that i found that mentioned fold phones for ds/3ds emulation. I always hated the aproach to play ds games on a single screen console, like for example the handheld consoles that are out there.
The custom layout values in the Citra config provided are good, but not perfect. For pixel-peepers like myself, I'd suggest these values instead: custom_layout = True custom_top_left = 0 custom_top_right = 1800 custom_top_top = 135 custom_top_bottom = 1215 custom_bottom_left = 0 custom_bottom_right = 1800 custom_bottom_top = 1434 custom_bottom_bottom = 2784 landscape_custom_layout = True landscape_top_left = 0 landscape_top_right = 1800 landscape_top_top = 135 landscape_top_bottom = 1215 landscape_bottom_left = 0 landscape_bottom_right = 1800 landscape_bottom_top = 1434 landscape_bottom_bottom = 2784 This will grow the bottom screen to use all available space. Meanwhile the top screen will use the full display width and the maximum possible height while maintaining the proper aspect ratio.
Last week I was scouring the internet for a guide like this that really embraced this aspect of the Duo. Everything I saw was lazily tested and evaluated and just a small part of a larger review of the phone. This video showing up in my feed feels like such a gift, I also believe in this product and now that I have some real evidence that the citra performance on the OG duo is solid I’m ready to dive in. Thank you!
I'm super glad it did show up in your feed and you've found your way to my channel, welcome! 🙏💗 Citra performance in particular really surprised me. I definitely recommend using Citra MMJ for it!
I've had my duo for about a year now for just this reason and I have been waiting for someone to make this video. Great work! Such an underrated emulation device!
4/3 AMOLED screen?! For single screen that’s like retro gold. With DUAL SCREEN that’s retro heaven. I wonder if anyone would do a custom mod permanently connecting a controller shell with this setup. I’d pay $$$ for that (and especially watch the video!)
Not bad. It’s the first genuine way to emulate DS and 3DS games that I have seen. There are a few notable drawbacks that you covered in your video. Notably needing 3 different devices (phone, stylus, and controller) in order to get a similar experience and the subsequent “footprint” increase as a result. But if you really wanted to play 3DS games on something besides a 3DS, this would probably be the way to go. 👍
This device looks really interesting for DS/3DS and even more demanding systems. It's almost like a RP3+ Flip with dual screen and a more powerful processor!
Nooo... now I have to get this. I've always wondered why no one cares to make a 3DS/DS emulation handheld, given that the original systems have such low pixel density displays (especially the XL versions).
@@DemonDeathAmateur2000 it is cheap, i lit bought last year a 2ds for 40 euros out of eBay, and the average price was like 50-55, then new xl systems were going for just 100
Metroid pinball is one of my favourite ds games. It's so good and I'm delighted you showed it off. I'm definitely going to go for this setup as it looks amazing.
Im always kind of tempted to get an unlocked surface duo to use an emulation handheld, but the price is a bit much for something that I can just use a modded DS for just fine lol.
this needs to be the Switch successor's design. Backwards compatibility with DS/3DS games. Fold the screen for traditional single display with joycons on the sides that can play everything from NES to Switch games. Unfold the screen, detach joycons, flip it 90 degrees and have it propped up on a kickstand for a more comfortable table top multiplayer mode or a more immersive single player experience with a bigger display.
I keep coming back to this video and thinking about all the other systems this could potentially run...and I'm getting excited. Also, Tales of Innocence playing while introducing that Nacon controller? Solid choice of game there!!
I always had this thought after installing a dsi theme on my DS emu on my galaxy Z fold 2 like it's a great idea however I never pictured it with a telescopic controller which takes it to a whole new level. With the controller hooked up it deadass looks exactly like some of the old Switch fan renders. Google something like "Nintendo NX leaks" and you'll see what I mean. I think it looks dope AF and get jealous every time I boot up a (3)/DS ) game on my fold cause it's like sure this is working properly and actually looks pretty dope with the dsi skin installed but I knew I needed that surface duo to get the feeling I was looking for. Nice video, too, dude! The way in which you speak with comfortability and confidence I thought for a fact you were a big RU-vidr. Keep up the great work dude!
This is amazing! I'm not super familiar with phone prices, so when I looked this up, I was shocked. The first Amazon link had it priced at only $265. I'm not sure if that's good for a phone or not, honestly, but it definitely seems like it. I'm not as interested in DS emulation; my RP3+ can do that perfectly, but I am extremely interested in 3DS emulation. I just might go this route. Thank you for another amazing video; your channel deserves so much more love! Keep up the great work; God bless you! EDIT: Could you showcase other emulations on this? I assume it would work well on the NES, but I wonder how the screen would work with it. Also, could you show off Captain Toad's Treasure Tracker for the 3DS?
Thank you so much for the kind words, much appreciated! 🙏🙏 NES will be really nice when using just a single screen since it's a 4:3 aspect ratio. You can see some SNES footage with Turtles in Time here to get an idea of how vivid and sharp older games can look: 05:18 Great choice, I love Captain Toad! I might be able to showcase it during a livestream on the Retro Handhelds channel.
It's original price was $1,399 so yeah its pretty good. The price tanked after Microsoft realized no one actually wanted to use this thing as their phone lmao
Meteos is my favorite DS puzzle game. Never played the Disney version. Shame the Nintendo Switch never got a Meteos game. Liberation Maiden is also a gem on 3DS. I hope Nintendo continues its Switch products. But I also hope Big N, drops a Modern spec DS handheld someday too. Very nostalgic video RTD👏
just remember to set Dolphin to run 16:9 mode for New Super Mario Bros Wii (the game just letterboxes if you run in 4:3, which presents a loss of vertical resolution) this is basically a 3ds Super XL.
For everyone who isn't aware the gamesir X to USB C non-pro model has the USB C on the left so it'll fit your device like this and the c-fold I should know because I have one but stay away from the Gamester X3 sadly that won't fit your device well
I just bought the Microsoft Duo today on Amazon, I never got the chance to play Pokemon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire and didn't want to play it on my PC or any handheld because of the lack of dual screens and I hated how it looks on a single screen. Its just unplayable to me. But after seeing your video and another RU-vidrs video about the Duo, I immediately bought one. Not only can I play DS/3DS games on it but its OLED to boot! I can't wait!
Very awesome! I'm glad that you discovered the Surface Duo for DS/3DS gaming, it's still one of my favorite ways to play those games. 🔥 I agree about the OLED, it's absolutely stunning in person. It's great for a lot of retro content because they're 4:3 aspect ratio as well.
@@Wolfusio not necessary, but definitely missing if you care about the legacy of the 3DS and want to preserve the games. Snake Eater is a great example of a game that was remade on the 3DS specifically for the 3D to add to the storytelling.
Real shame that the Surface Duo/Neo doesn’t seem to be in Microsoft’s future, at least this iteration of it where it’s two screens. Instead it seems like they’ll go with a foldable screen. Which is a shame, I hope somebody can continue this form factor.
I don’t know why I had this reaction, but I realized you were playing tales of innocence and I freaking out, shocked that somebody else actually plays it
A year into owning this thing and I find that I only use it for DS/3DS emulation...but I still love it for that! I just finished Zelda A Link Between Worlds just the other day and the game looked and played amazing upscaled on the device! It remains one of my favorite purchases I've made in the last few years (mainly because of how cheap I was able to pick one up...about $300 for the device, a stylus and a gamepad).
Great for covering another use of Surface Duo 2. I've always wanted to have one and interested instead of other foldable devices because the possibly of what I using with that double screen
Imagine the next gen Switch look more this with a egpu dock and with different type of controller grip that can be used even without docking the clamshell console (WiiU pro controller layout, PS layout, Xbox layout, Joycon grip, GC layout, NES, SNES, etc)
Yea, the Surface Duo is a very interesting device that just so happens to be a really cool way to play DS/3DS. It's always fun to see something get another chance in a different way.
I love this! Great idea, buddy! Never owned a DS or 3DS so this doesn't exactly appeal to me given I grew up with an OG Gameboy, Turbo Express and Gamegear, but this is great.
Thank you so much, I appreciate it! 🤗 It does look like the new 128GB units on Amazon are gone now. 😭 But the market is still very solid for second hand units.
While I do like having the screens take up the full displays, I feel like some games, like Sonic Rush, would do better with a bigger screen gap to reflect how it looked on original hardware.
@@retrotechdad Your videos are good man 😊. After feeling disappointed about the Flip, I do keep thinking about the Duo. It just looks amazing and I love the higher resolutions. But I keep wondering about the controller options and I think that is going to make or break it for me...and there doesn't seem to be a lot of wireless bluetooth options.
@@LeonardoBarbosa-qw6fp yeah there's a difference in those chips for sure. Idk how well the surface 1 would handle yuzu but it was ok for older consoles
I use the Samsung Galaxy Fold 4 with the Nacon MG-X Pro, also works great with Citra / Drastic. Screens are not as big as the Duo, but I find the aspect ratio of the Fold 4 tablet screen is close to the native 4:3 of other systems such as the PS2 and GameCube so emulation works great with those systems, too. The extra dead space on the bottom screen especially is handy for the standard touch buttons as well, for those games that use the stylus more this is a handy alternative and no need to carry a seperate controller around (eg, the Professor Layton games). Also, I tried the non-pro MG-X and found the triggers to be too spongey. The Pro version better resembles an Xbox controller and is therefore more comfortable in my view.
Yea, the non-pro MG-X has the weirdest triggers I've ever used.😅 It's probably my biggest complaint with the attachment. I've been trying to keep an eye on a second-hand Fold (like a 3) to mess around with.
P.S. : If you have a cheap 8" android tablet laying around, Drastic ( DS emulator ) will likely run very well. Touchpad-heavy games, or anything that dosen't rely too much on physical buttons ( like platformers ) will be played anywhere from "okay" ( light use of buttons ) to "fantastic" ( mostly touchscreen ). 3DS games / Citra emulation needs a better processor, so a recent, mid-range tablet is needed. Again games that need physical buttons to play well will need a Bluetooth controller.
I was doing a duel screen set up with my steam deck and it was just so clunky for ds/3ds games. I've already put in 5 hours in Metroid Returns using a duo, so happy the algorithm suggested this video.
I picked up a used Surface Duo for just this use case. Glad you mentioned how good 4:3 contents looks. I reallu suggest getting the original GameSir X2 for a Duo as the USB-C port is on the left, allowing the Duo to for better. Also you can get active styluses that works just as well as the Surface Pen for fast cheaper.
This is really good to know, thanks for sharing the info! I'll have to track down a regular X2! I know some over in the discord are testing out other active stylus to see how they work as a cheaper option. It's crazy how you can put together a pretty complete DS/3DS package here!
I didn't even know this thing existed until I randomly came across this video a few days ago. Just snatched one of these up on Amazon in used, like new condition for $199. For that price I'm willing to take the risk on it being used, and if I find anything wrong with it Amazon is great with returns. I already have a phone, tablet and computer...so this thing is just for fun lol. Really looking forward to it!
The original duo was my absolute favorite phone. I did appreciate the upgrades the duo 2 had, but the camera bump really ruined the form factor. Too bad they're both so fragile.
Hmm 🤔 I been looking for something to run 3ds and take care of my other tablet needs. I currently have a retroid pocket 3 and it's nice but I'd like something new great video
This is an amasing way to emulate the DS and 2DS, sadly that 2 screens fold-phone is expensive and has not seen many units to give us cheap second hands.
