I've said this regularly since we launched Retro Dodo - an N64 handheld that plays my cartridges is all I've ever wanted. I've spoken to many people about it over the years and heard lots of stories about times when it nearly became a reality at Nintendo, but the only handhelds I've seen thus far have been projects made by the Retro Gaming community.
If there's one company that could make it happen, however, it's Hyperkin. The makers of the Supaboy and the upcoming Mega95 have shown that making handheld consoles that use original hardware is something they're very good at, and after a comment from a fan on their Facebook page spotted by our friends over at Games Radar, the N64 that I've been hoping for for years could be a little nearer to becoming a reality.
When asked if we will ever see an N64 handheld, Hyperking didn't respond with a flat-out 'no'. They responded with 'not in the next year or two, but potentially in the future. It's not a lot to go on right now I know, but if it hasn't been discounted entirely, I'm a happy man.
But think about what we've had in the past 12 months alone - the arrival of the Analogue 3D, the upcoming M64, people revisiting the N64 back catalogue and talking about making new games for the system. There has never been a better time to be an N64 fan, and once everyone has got hold of their modern N64 alternatives and the hype is even bigger, it would be a great time for Hyperkin to strike with a handheld version of their own. Their X5Alteron (which I used to make my mockup in the featured image above) already has an N64 button layout for playing N64 emulators, so maybe we're not as far away as we think!
Would you be keen to get an N64 handheld, or are you happy just using emulators? Let's hear your thoughts!
