Pocket Native Aims to Make 3DS Games Playable on Budget Handhelds

There’s no shortage of emulators for retro handhelds. I mean, at this point, they’re sprouting faster than my old-man ear hair, and that’s saying something.

With the cost of just about everything these days, not everyone has the luxury of chasing the latest and greatest handheld. Of course, this is coming from someone who just bought a slew of them, so take that for what it’s worth.

Enter Pocket Native, an open-source project that takes a different approach to 3DS games. Rather than demand the latest and most powerful hardware, it aims to make these games playable on inexpensive handhelds like the R36S.

I’m not all that familiar with R36S handhelds myself, so I had to do a little research. You may recognize them from those AliExpress-style ads that promise thousands of games preloaded on a cheap little handheld. Turns out, these Linux-based devices feature a 3.5-inch display, a Rockchip RK3326 processor, and just 1GB of RAM. They’re primarily designed for older retro systems, which usually excludes the 3DS.

Pocket Native, developed by whovian64, is a fork of Zakuro, a 3DS emulator created by fearkov. It uses ahead-of-time recompilation to translate a game’s code into a native program before you play it.

With emulators like Azahar, the translation happens while the game runs. Pocket Native performs the work ahead of time on a PC, which can reduce the processing power required during gameplay. It still relies on emulation for graphics, audio, and other system functions, but the approach enables hardware that would otherwise struggle with 3DS games.

The possibility of playing 3DS games on inexpensive Linux handhelds, some with just 1GB of RAM, is a good development for those looking to breath some new life into their older devices. Pocket Native combines Zakuro’s foundation with improved graphics, controls, performance, and support for an expanding collection of handhelds.

There’s still work to be done with compatibility and ease of use, but winter is just around the corner. If an evening of retro handheld experimentation sounds like your idea of a good time, Pocket Native might be worth a look during cozy season.

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