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I figured Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4 would make me feel like a teenage dirtbag again, but I didn't expect it to turn me into a moody adolescent. Yet, that's exactly what I've turned into thanks to the remake's reduced track list, and the only remedy for my angsty emo Mr. Hyde transformation is playing the originals on a handheld.
As GamesRadar's resident retro game console expert, I could ditch Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4 for original hardware. However, I don't want to fuel my desire to go back to the early 2000s too much, so instead, I'm using the Anbernic RG556, a gaming handheld that can easily handle my PS2 library while offering great portable performance.
Out of all the handhelds I've tested this year, the RG556 feels like the best fit for PS2 games like Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 and 4. It's packing a Quad-Core Mali-G57 GPU, Octa-Core Unisoc T820 CPU, and 8GB LPDDR4X RAM, so it packs enough of a punch to hit native resolutions and beyond. Personally, I feel like horizontal handheld layouts work better for this console generation, too, especially if you enable widescreen mode.
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You're also getting some pretty boujie extras with the RG556, including hall-effect thumbsticks, a gyro sensor, and pretty efficient active cooling for if you fancy pushing Android it its limits. But, the real star of the show here is the handheld's 5.48-inch AMOLED screen, as it'll let you revisit plenty of old consoles at 1080p while embracing excellent vibrancy.
Look, I'm not saying I won't be playing the new remake on Steam Deck OLED when I get some spare time, nor will I be ditching the GameCube originals on a CRT. What the RG556 is going to do, though, is let me play the Tony Hawk games in all their glory with nice controls and zero performance issues. Plus, there's something spectacular about plugging a set of gumy headphones I've had since 2005 into the portable and blasting my ears with that OG soundtrack.
I should clarify, however, that this isn't just a Tonk Hawk time machine; it can provide access to plenty of other classics too and make short work of Play Store outings. Dead Cells in particular absolutely shines on this device, and actually puts my Switch to shame in terms of frame rates.
I've had a blast grinding rails and messing up my knees in RG556 this week, but there are a few tiny changes I'd make to this handheld to help it achieve perfection. For starters, the face buttons are slightly too small for my battleworn thumbs, which can make multi-presses a little awkward.
The plastic on this handheld also gets grubby exceptionally fast, and the seams do have more of a gap than I'd like. Your mileage may vary, but after an intense skate session, the portable looks just as gnarly as an old used PS2 controller. It's nothing a wipedown can't help, but I know from using the likes of the Anbernic RG Cube that the company has access to cleaner plastics.
For the money, the RG556 is one of the best emulator devices out there in my book. It's not as pleasantly cheap as the Anbernic RG34XX Plus, but you're getting a much nicer screen and a sizable performance bump that'll let you hit the sixth generation of consoles and beyond.
I'm still bummed out about the new Tony Hawk's soundtrack, but hey, at least I found a new favorite way to play the originals.
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