MyArcade's Atari Gamestation Go review — MyArcade has crafted a superb retro handheld

I’ve spent the past couple of weeks testing out MyArcade’s latest handheld console, the Atari Gamestation Go, and have walked away thoroughly impressed. Everything from the game selection, variety of controls, aesthetics, and just how lightweight the entire thing is while still feeling like a premium product showcases MyArcade’s dedication to creating a fantastic user experience. While the enjoyment you get out of the Gamestation Go will be highly determined by your enjoyment of and nostalgia for Atari, Jaleco, and Piko classics, there's no denying that MyArcade has crafted a superb handheld console.

Playing retro titles on handhelds is nothing new. If you scour the internet you are sure to find thousands of cheap retro handhelds, albeit most of shady origin and legality. Where the Atari Gamestation Go stands out, especially when compared to its cheaper competition, is with its smart design which not only looks and feels great in your hands, but also plays flawlessly. Other handhelds may technically be able to play the included games via emulation, but the Atari GameStation Go allows you to play them exactly as originally intended, whether that involves a trak-ball, a paddle, a numeric keypad, or a basic d-pad and button controls. While the inclusion of all these controls might sound like a logistical nightmare for any designer, MyArcade has admirably pulled off creating a design that is both functional and comfortable without sacrificing aesthetics.

In fact, the entire experience of unboxing and playing the Atari Gamestation Go feels premium, leaving me incredibly impressed with how far MyArcade has come over the years both in presentation and product quality. The Gamestation Go comes well padded in a large box, complete with an HDMI cord, a USB-C to USB charging cable, and a USB AC-Adapter. Also included is a certificate of authenticity, which is a small, but thoughtful addition to the overall package. 

The Atari Gamestation Go features a carefully curated list of more than 200 retro classics, spanning Atari’s home console, arcade, and pinball offerings, the M-Network, multiple PAC-MAN releases, Jaleco’s 8-bit, 16-bit, and arcade eras, and Piko’s 8-bit, 16-bit, and arcade eras. As an added bonus, the Gamestation Go even includes five relatively new Atari Recharged releases, which are fresh takes on iconic Atari titles and every bit as entertaining as the classics they are reimagining.

Titles included on the Gamestation Go feature a great mix of platformers, sports, beat em ups, and RPGs, along with other essential experiences from the NES, Atari 2600, Atari 5200, Atari 7800, SNES, Arcade, Gameboy, and more. Each category has its own list of titles, and while scrolling through these lists you are able to favorite specific titles for easier access in the future. Unfortunately, your favorites only show up under that specific category rather than as a category of their own on the main selection screen, which would have been much appreciated. During play, you have a few options when pausing the game, including saving your progress, loading previous saves, viewing controls, and adjusting the screen brightness and aspect ratio. If you are tired of a game you can either quit via the pause menu, or press the much-appreciated Home button located on the top of the console which will immediately return you to the main Gamestation Go selection screen.

The Gamestation Go features a surprisingly vibrant and high resolution 7-inch display, which is more than enough to showcase these iconic retro titles in all their pixelated glory. Equally impressive is MyArcade’s SmartGlow technology, a neat feature which illuminates only the controls needed for each game, taking out the guesswork that may stem from having so many different control options available. 

Fully charged, you can expect to get around 4 to 5 hours of playtime, which is quite impressive for the size and features included and easily beats out most other equally sized handheld consoles. The Gamestation Go also features the ability to play on your TV via the included HDMI cable, an option you could utilize when charging if you so choose.The included HDMI cord is a decent length, but don’t expect to be able to sit across a large room and play on your TV without needing to purchase a longer HDMI cable. While connected to the TV I experienced no noticeable slow down, though the sound had a bit of static at times. Of course, that honestly could just be a remnant of the games themselves, rather than the fault of the console. 

I’m not sure of future plans for the Gamestation Go, but MyArcade has included built-in Wi-Fi connectivity to allow for future updates, though creating an account or even logging on to your Wi-Fi is completely optional for play. Also included is a MicroSD slot which, yes, allows you to do exactly what you assume it does, and, yes, works quite well for a variety of consoles, even those not included on the Gamestation Go, though can quickly grow overwhelming due to a lack of ways to organize your additional titles.