In a world of ever intensifying gaming, some days it’s nice to sit back and enjoy more simple games from yesteryear. Over the last few years, more and more companies have started developing retro game playing retro handhelds of all sizes and shapes. However, how does one know what system is worth investing into? Today we are checking out the Miyoo Mini V2, made by the same company who made the BittBoy a handful of years ago.
The Miyoo Mini V2 takes many design aesthetics from the original BittBoy in terms of shape and size and turns things up a notch to improve upon the design. The Miyoo Mini V2 resembles Nintendo‘s original DMG Game Boy while being about the size of a standard deck of cards, and retails for only $66.99. It also offers great build quality for its price, as I did not notice any plastic creaking during my time using it.
The Miyoo Mini V2 features 4 control buttons along with D-Pad and Start/Select and menu buttons on the front of the system. On the rear, you will find 4 trigger buttons; L1, L2, R1 and R2 respectively. On the sides and bottom, you find a volume wheel, headphone jack, Micro SD card slot and USB-C charge port. While an analog stick would be nice for some games, given the overall size of the Miyoo Mini, it’s a compromise I am easily able to get over. The 2.8” glass screen, while on the smaller side in terms of emulator screens, is very clear and vibrant. Text is easily legible even while playing games often played on TV’s.
“The Miyoo Mini V2 takes many design aesthetics from the original BittBoy in terms of shape and size and turns things up a notch to improve upon the design.”
But what can the Miyoo Mini V2 play in terms of games? That is where Miyoo packs quite the powerful punch for its compactness. The Miyoo Mini V2 had no problems playing most 8 and 16-bit retro games played from ROM files from systems such as Game Boy, Game Boy Colour, Game Boy Advance, NES, SNES, and even SEGA Genesis. The Miyoo Mini is also able to play a majority of games available for Sony PlayStation 1 with no to minimal lag, generally playing at over 50 frames per second. Quite the improvement over some of Miyoo’s previous systems that often struggled to emulate PS1.
Thanks to the 2000mah battery built into the Miyoo Mini V2, you will easily be able to play your games for several hours. I was regularly able to play for 4-5 hours playing Final Fantasy 9 for PS1. Less demanding games such as Pokémon or other Game Boy games should result in even longer gameplay. Perfect for those boring rides on the bus or train, waiting for appointments or even just to pass the time in the evening.
I can easily recommend the Miyoo Mini V2 to anyone looking to enter the world of retro handheld emulation without breaking the bank or even parents looking for a cheap system to give to their children to entertain them on road trips. It has become my go-to system for regular retro gaming just because I can easily slip it into my pocket without even noticing it is there.
