I feel like the Linux Handhelds made by GPH in the 2000s are a nowadays almost forgotten piece of history, even though they were in some ways the predecessor to today’s Steam Deck. So I wanted to create a bit of an appreciation post for this chapter in Linux Gaming history. Did any of you use a GP2X back in the day as well? For me, it wasn’t just my introduction to Linux gaming, but also game development, as I programmed my first games for it using GLBasic. It was a fantastic machine for emulation as well, got introduced to many old games from the 80s and 90s through it.
I had great fun playing Pirates! Gold on the GP2X back in high-school. I always lamented the short battery life, lack of wifi connectivity, and no USB host mode. But it was a different era and just having a Linux handheld at all was extraordinary at the time. Makes me really appreciate the Steam Deck for all it’s features and ease of use.