PS Vita as a Retro Gaming Handheld (Review)

I've heard a lot of people say that the PlayStation Vita is the ultimate retro handheld gaming device. So in this deep-dive video we'll look at how it performs as an emulation device, and whether it's a good choice for you.

Timestamps:
00:00 introduction
01:22 specs and features
02:09 supported systems
03:13 hardware review
08:00 comparison with other handhelds
10:04 emulation performance
15:30 user interface
17:09 PSP, PS1, and Vita games
22:06 PS4 Remote Play
23:45 likes, dislikes, and conclusion

Intro theme song sampled from "Hexadecimal Genome" by Bit Shifter:

#Vita #PSVita #Retro

[alanscott]

"This system is made to play Sony hardware game and it's not meant to play Sega games."

Buddy, the Sega Saturn was barely meant to play Sega Saturn games.

[clumsysensei]

Hey man, I've been using my vita for over 4 years and let me tell you that the emulation isnt bad. The problem was retroarch, you should just use emulators that were made on psp, then you will have no crashes at all and the vita has a n64 emulator in the making that has over half the library playable. So yes the vita is amazing on retro emulation. You just took the wrong path

[SolidPython]

I kinda wish you mentioned that even though the Retroarch arcade emulation is pretty poor on Vita, with the 100% PSP/PS1 compatibility you still get TONS of essential arcade games through various releases, collections and compilations.

Just “some” PSP examples like:
Midway Arcade Treasures(Mortal Kombat 1-3, Rampage, Spy Hunter etc), Darkstalkers Chronicle The Chaos Tower(all 3 games in 1), Namco Museum, Metal Slug Collection, Capcom Classics Collections(Street Fighter 1 and several version of 2, Strider, Final Fight, Captain Commando etc), Capcom Puzzle World, King of Fighters The Orochi Saga, Samurai Shodown Anthology, Street Fighter Alpha 3 MAX, SNK Classics Collection 0 and 1, Activision Hits Remixed, Sega Genesis Collection, EA Replay, Atari Classics Evolved and Atari Flashback Classics etc

On PS1 front you can have versions of some of the popular arcade games at the time as well like Marvel Super Heroes, X-Men vs Street Fighter, Tekken 1-3, Mortal Kombat 4, Soul Edge, Marvel vs Capcom, Street Fighter Alpha 2, Dead or Alive etc.

And if you want a lil bit of Dreamcast on your Vita as well, there’s an official Jet Set Radio remaster on Vita, Crazy Taxi Fare Wars(includes first 2 games) and Power Stone Collection on PSP.

I know the point of the video was mostly the emulation, but I just wanna give a heads up for people even though you can’t emulate some of these games, it doesn’t mean there’s no way for you to play these games on Vita! :)

[quinnmiller]

It’s cool that it took them one year and 5 months to get all of those system available and fix most issues you mentioned. Dreamcast can be an issue depending on which core you choose.

[arlonborges]

Maybe it is time to make a 2024 version of this and show how is the retro gaming in the PsVita, specially after last year's jailbraking becoming so easy to do.

[gustavocastillo]

20:42 I'm a huge metal gear fan, and as soon as I saw Adrenaline I knew I was able to play my beloved metal gear acid 2! You've helped me make my purchase decision. Thanks so much :D

[markuskus]

It's been 2 years since the video came out and a lot has changed. Nintendo 64 games now work perfectly on Vita thanks to Daedalusx64. I just finished Super Mario 64 and it's running without any problems.

[zeeejay]

anyone else watching this in 2023 hoping russ works on it again?

[greygoose]

I love my PS Vita. That D Pad is just so satisfying to use and the OLED screen is absolutely gorgeous. It's no longer my main emulation device, but every time I boot it up I'm reminded how gorgeous it looks.

[ianbaldwin]

One of the most comprehensive reviews on YouTube. Thank you fellow gamer for your service. Salute

[jessevandorsten]

I think there are some cases that add the L, R 2 and 3 buttons via pads on the back

[chrislaustin]

Yeah, I would HIGHLY recommend you do better research in the future, as Retroarch is just about the worst emulator on the Vita, and I only use it for situations were it's the only option. The Vita has many specific system emulators that run great, and most of the best ones, are from the PSP. As they are much more optimized for the PSP, and when used on the Vita, gets a great horsepower boost. Final Burn Alpha runs Aliens VS Predator perfectly, as I play it most days and that's the Vita specific emu. The best emu's are mostly PSP versions, like SNES9, Nester J, gpSP kai & Picodrive and these can all be used by setting them up through Adrenaline(yes, more work, but much better results). And while they aren't perfect, there's very few games that can't run in one emulator, that won't run better in a different one. I understand that Retroarch is an all in 1 type of deal(so 1st choice for ease), but I would recommend you make another video and try some emulators that actually work, before stating the Vita isn't good for emulation, because it's much, much better than what you have shown here(and by a very good margin).

[TheUberdude]

The vita is a god as far as emulation goes. I missed the boat on the vita originally but got a fat and slim version last year and there both fantastic.

[stevethorpe]

Always the most common comment in retro handheld and emulation groups is always the Vita is the greatest thing ever etc. This was probably the best review video i've seen in comparison to an emulation handheld. Great video!

[ooth]

I ordered a vita to play psp & vita games, so knowing a hacked one can play those perfectly is comforting. thanks 😊

[pacoroto]

Hey! emulation has gotten A LOT better since this video, I know it's been only like 4 months, but with the new version of retroarch I haven't experienced any crash and you can emulate perfectly from PSX and below, though some psx games get small slowdowns.

[skeptical]

I have a vita and honestly having the ability to play any vita, psp, or ps1 game cause I modded it is fcking amazing.

[andrebrait]

gpSP requires the GBA BIOS to be in the system folder in order to run. There was a bug in its dynarec too, but that was fixed a while ago. You should try it again.

[Gathies]

"5 inches feels like the perfect size"
me: tell that to my ex girlfriend

[warnacokelat]

My dream when I was a I kid was to have a portable PS1 that I can play anywhere.
The vita is the PS1 machine that I've always wanted.