Search the Community

For us 90s babies, the Holy Trinity of Disney Channel, Nickelodeon, and Cartoon Network formed a big part of our childhood. The internet was just about coming into fruition, with the rise of a plethora of websites with numerous entertaining flash games and of course, the early days of YouTube. And though those things have come and gone, one thing in my life remained constant: My love for Pokemon. I first got into Pokemon 20 years ago, and I remember exactly how it went down. Let me set the scene: My friends and I were sitting on the staircase steps of the corridor leading to the school hall in our primary school. It was a sunny afternoon in 2005. That year was pretty much life-changing for me: I got my own computer, got cable for the first time (goodbye Kids Central, hello Holy Trinity), and as per the story goes – got into Pokemon. My friend showed me a few Pokemon trading cards he had. I don’t exactly remember what they were, but I remembered I wanted to start collecting too, just to be a part of the trend. Spoiler alert: no regrets. You couldn't pay me enough to sell my childhood collection. It would be like losing a huge part of me. And thus began my foray into the hobby. I got my dad to buy me a Nintendo DS and my very first Pokemon game: Leaf Green (yes I know, I was late to the game). I begged and begged for him to buy me Pokemon cards. I saved up my allowance to grab the pre-built decks (I remember they were going for about $18.90) just for the EX chase cards. And slowly, my passion for the hobby grew. A year later, I had a binder full of amazing cards and all five GBA games for the Pokemon series (Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald, Leaf Green, Fire Red), all of which I still have with me today. Throw away a huge part of my adolescence? Blasphemy. Perish the thought. I stopped collecting the cards in 2007, although I still played the games. I got the Diamond and Pearl versions for the DS, but as a growing child, my focus quickly shifted to other games such as Counter Strike, Blackshot, and Soldier Front (you’re an OG if you remember this). However, Pokemon still remained a big, big part of me. I replayed the GBA games, I tried to get all my favourite Pokemon to Level 100, I beat the Elite Four over and over again just to try and hit personal milestones. The passion may have withered, but it never died. They're all still working perfectly. Fun fact: I've logged over 500 man hours on Leaf Green alone. But my passion ignited again in December 2023. My mum wanted to get me a Christmas present, so she asked what I wanted. I thought about it for a while, before deciding on a Nintendo Switch. And obviously there was only one game series I wanted to start with. With Eevee being my favourite Pokemon and Blastoise (Squirtle was my first ever starter) coming a close second, I chose Let’s Go, Eevee! as my first Pokemon console game in 16 years. And suddenly, the memories came flooding back. The wave of nostalgia hit like a truck. I felt like a kid again, carrying a handheld gaming console around and playing Pokemon on it. Back like I never left. And of course I had to buy the classic remakes first. I practically grew up on them. And so began the revival of a passion that just took an extended break. Mystery Dungeon came next (the remake of the DS game I also played 16 years back), with Legends: Arceus and Pokemon Scarlet following shortly after. I was back, I was hooked, and now I have adult money to fulfil the yearnings my inner kid never got to. Still, I didn’t think I’d get back into the trading card game (TCG), until the Twilight Masquerade (TWM) set dropped in May 2024. It featured a specialised Eevee artwork (known as an Illustrated Rare) and immediately I knew I had to have it. Out of impulse, I went down to the Pokemon Centre at Jewel and got myself a TWM booster box to try and pull it myself. Spoiler alert: I didn’t. But again, ripping the packs after almost two decades brought me back to my nine-year-old self ripping booster packs for the first time and getting so excited at whatever I manage to get, caring not for the rarity or the price, but because I pulled it myself. And so, I fell back in love with the TCG hobby. A year later. The binder purely contains Eevee singles, all different variations from different sets. The goal is to fill up all 360 slots. Slowly, but surely. Fast forward ten months. Yes, I managed to get the Eevee card I mentioned. And the Japanese version too. Oh, and both English and Japanese versions in PSA10 slabs too. Along with a binder with different Eevee cards. And numerous other Eevees in PSA10 slabs. Alongside other cards ranging from Full Arts to Special Illustrated Rares. I may have dropped quite a number of greenbacks on this hobby, but at the end of the day, what matters most is my happiness and the healing of my inner child. I’m going full geek but I don’t give a damn. I’m back, baby! ~ Fremont (Images by Fremont Seow, Facebook)

Writing about a gaming device... you would be thinking that I must be quite the gamer. However, the reality is quite the contrary. Being a car guy through and through, even the games that I play are predominantly driving or racing ones. That said, there are other games that I've enjoyed from young - from the Pokemon titles on Gameboy Color and Gameboy Advance to the RPG games on Playstation 2 (PS2) and rhythm games such as DJ Max on the Playstation Portable (PSP), these were the games that kept me occupied during my childhood and teenage years. And it is why I ended up buying the device you see here - the Retroid Pocket 3+! So, what is the Retroid Pocket 3+? It is an android-powered handheld console that is relatively affordable, and is made predominantly for running emulators. You see, software developers and retro game aficionados quickly realised that the powerful Android mobile devices could be made to run emulator software, which would allow you to emulate retro console games. In the past, you would require a proper gaming PC to run Playstation 2 games. However, mobile hardware has became powerful enough to do so these days. But there still presents a serious issue - your powerful smartphone does not have physical buttons and analog sticks for an enjoyable gaming experience. And this is where the a device such as the Retroid Pocket 3+ comes in - it looks like a smaller Nintendo Switch lite, and it has all the buttons you'll need for retro gaming. While it's hardware isn't able to run all Playstation 2 games smoothly, it is still able to handle quite a fair bit. And the best part is that it isn't prohibitively expensive! Being an Android device means that it will run many native Android applications and games, such as the Grand Theft Auto 3/Vice City/San Andreas trilogy (these were originally PS2 games!). Of course, you can also run apps such as Youtube and other media players (sadly Netflix isn't supported), which means that it'll double up as a media player as well. But you don't really buy one of these to play Android games, it really is in its element when you are a fan of retro games. Want to play Pokemon? You'll be glad to know that Gameboy Color and Gameboy Advance emulation are easily achievable by almost any hardware these days. In fact, the Retroid Pocket 3+ will even run some Nintendo 3DS games! The most amazing thing about retro game emulation is the fact that I can now play my favourite home-console title on the go. Youngsters these days probably wouldn't be able to understand it as they are well too familiar with the capabilities of the smart devices in recent times. But in the early 2000s, where the PS2 was the most advanced console in the market, we had to set up the console, connect it to the TV, and play these games with wired controllers. But now, I can play my favourite PS2 JRPG game on the go. I don't even have to be made to play till I find a save point (RPG gamers would understand...) - the emulator comes with a save-state function that allow you to start the game from the exact point as and when you want to. With these functions, you can really enjoy the flexibility - drove 5 out of 10 laps in Gran Turismo and you feel like taking a break? Sure, just create a save-state, and pick it up again when you want to. It's kind of funny how I chanced upon this device - I was actually contemplating the repair of my old PSP for nostalgia sake, then I read about how such devices can not only emulate the PSP smoothly at upscaled resolution, resulting in sharper images, but also capable of much more. I've since gotten the Retroid Pocket 3+ and never looked back. The portability of the device also made it an excellent travel buddy. Being so easy to pick up and just start gaming, I've spent countless hours on it since the day I received it. My only gripe is that the Retroid Pocket 3+ could be a little more powerful, as it has some trouble running quite a fair bit of PS2 titles among others. That said, the Retroid Pocket 4 Pro packing almost twice the performance of the 3+ was recently announced, and I am contemplating getting it.... Are you also into gaming or retro gaming? Feel free to share your thoughts and recommendations! If you aren't familiar with retro gaming, but would like to get something after reading this post of mine, feel free to comment as well, I would be happy to share what I know with you! - Zhi Xuan

Hi all,any idea where can find shop dat trade-in older version of Gameboy Advance SP for the newer version of Gameboy DS (dual screen)? There used 2 be a shop in clementi central dat does dat trading, but the shop close down due upgrading. Understand they had another shop in Yishun but dun knoe where leh? Any help here? Or any shop dat u guys knoe around yr neighbour hood does this kinda trading? TQ!!!