AYN Thor: A dream come true?

My likes and my reservations about AYN's new star device

A while ago, I found my old Nintendo DS Lite in a drawer at my mom’s house. I was immediately hit with a wave of nostalgia and felt very giddy. I had spent so much time on this little device when I was little, and it was one of the reasons why I got so into gaming. It’s also the catalyst for me becoming a localization specialist, as I played the Ace Attorney series on it several times as a kid, and the localization of that series has always fascinated me, and helped me learn English as a kid.¹

I immediately opened the lid of the DS, and turned the device on. To my absolute delight, it still worked! I’m talking about at least 10 years of disuse here, and I hadn’t plugged a charger in. So, it still had some battery left even after 10 years, maybe even more. Ace Attorney: Apollo Justice cartridge was still in it, and I was apparently in the middle of talking to the noodle guy in the second episode/case.

Talking to Mr Guy Eldoon himself on my old DS Lite

Unfortunately, I couldn’t find my other games or the charger anywhere in the house, and my mom is still unsure if she threw them away (which I doubt) or if they’re hidden really well somewhere. Because of that, the battery actually finally drained after a few minutes, and I couldn’t turn it on again.

Holding it again reminded me of how much I loved this little thing, how portable it was, and how it kept me company during some of the toughest times of my life.

All I’m trying to say is, the Nintendo DS was one hell of a device. I think it truly withstood the test of time. And I think it was one of the best portable game devices ever, the form factor is unmatched. Which is why I always had my eye on the newer DS’es, but I refrained from getting them because of the limited library and expensive games.

Then I saw the AYN Thor, and I was immediately intrigued.

What is the AYN Thor?

The AYN Thor is an Android emulator. It is basically a device that runs on Android, and allows you to play games on multiple platforms. Android emulators are usually used for playing games from older eras, like Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, PlayStation Portable, etc.

I’ll start by saying that I had no intention of getting a dedicated device for emulators. I’m not too into retro games, and the ones that I do play, I usually play on my phone (which I admit is not very ideal but oh well). So getting a whole new device just for emulation was not one of my goals. So when I saw this device, I thought to myself “oh, neat”, and went on about my day.

Then I found out that you can run PC games on it.

Needless to say, I was sold. As I mentioned at the beginning, the Nintendo DS holds a very special place in my heart. The form factor is amazing, and I was looking for a portable device. I’m a proud owner of an LCD Steam Deck since late 2022, but you have to admit that the Deck is bulky, heavy, and takes a lot of space in your backpack. I wanted something that I could fit in my small tote bag. This seemed like the device.

The shipping

I was warned that the shipping would take a lot of time. The Thor is still not in normal production; you need to technically ‘‘preorder’’ it, and the device is made to order, it is not mass produced yet. And around those times were the days that I was moving to Spain, which also made me wary of ordering immediately since my address was going to change. In the end, I made the purchase for a Thor Pro on February 19th. It arrived at the end of March. So it was a LONG time waiting, and every day I wondered if I spent my money on a device that won’t arrive. Thankfully, it arrived without issues aside from the long wait time.

Also worth noting that the Base, Pro and Max versions share the same kind of chip, while the Lite features a less powerful version. I opted to go for the Pro since I’ll probably mostly use it for PC games, but if you intend to only emulate older devices and keep the budget low, the Lite should be enough for you.

The setup and some tips

I feel the need to mention something very important if you want to get this device: you need to be comfortable tinkering with software to get it working as you want. The setup is not difficult, there is a plethora of guides on the internet that show you what you need to do step by step. But you will have to download and move files, research how to do some things, and troubleshoot online. I imagine that a lot of people in my generation are used to dealing with files and stuff like that, but I just felt the need to address this. The Thor is not a console. It is not the seamless experience that you might expect from a PlayStation or a Switch. There will be software issues, some things won’t work the way you want at first, and you will need to look for solutions.

I’ve always enjoyed tinkering, so for me it’s like a puzzle, but I’m just setting expectations so as not to misdirect anyone. If you want to use the device as it comes (the stock Android), you’ll only be able to run Google Play Games. So, I’m going to give you a few pointers to start customizing your Thor to your liking.

Firstly, it depends on what you want to use the device for. Do you want to play retro games on it? It is as simple as checking out a setup guide. Here are two different guides that can get you started: here and here. You don’t need to do everything in the guides. Simply go to the section for the device you want to emulate. For example, if you want to emulate PSP games, search for it, download the PPSSPP emulator, and follow the instructions.

I personally diverged a little from the guides, since I have experience with emulation. I downloaded DraStic emulator for Nintendo DS, and Citra for 3DS games. I simply went with them because I used them before and I’m comfortable with them, but the guides provide newer alternatives that get more regularly updated. DraStic used to be on the Google Play Store, and I had bought it, but apparently, it was pulled from the store. However, it is still on Github so you can head there and check it out if you wish to.

Oh, and I must note that most of these emulators are free and open-source, so you can download them to your heart’s content.

Running GameNative to play Chants of Sennaar

If you want to play PC games on it, as I do, you have basically 3 options for “emulators”: Gamehub, Gamehub Lite, and GameNative. Gamehub currently only plays Steam games, so I opted to go for GameNative as it can also run Epic and GOG games. I found it pretty easy to set up and use. It is also an open-source project.

For the frontend (which is the user interface part), I went with Cocoon. It gives your device a console-like feel and is regularly updated; I highly recommend it. It also has a setup wizard that makes installing it much less daunting. Of course, it is not a console software; it’s just a frontend being developed by independent people, so there might be some bugs and unintuitive parts. But as far as frontends go, I found this one to be very cute and highly customizable.

The stock Cocoon frontend without any customizations. I saw people going wild with their customizations, but I think the stock one is very cute as well.

I also bought the official case from AYN’s website, as I wanted to be able to just throw the device into my tote bag or backpack without worrying too much about it. Of course, the clamshell form of the Thor already provides some protection, but you can never be too careful. I think the official case is very nice and seems to be sturdy, but I did hear that you can also use a 3DS XL case if you already have one on hand.

The official carrying case and the Thor

The games

As I’ve said, I got this device because it can run PC games. I’ve been meaning to run my indie games on a smaller device than the Steam Deck because of portability issues, and I can confidently say that the Thor has exceeded my expectations so far.

Don’t expect to run AAA games on this device. I’m sure with enough tinkering, you can get some to run decently, but whether it is worth it or not is entirely up to you. It runs a lot of games well, but I think it has some issues rendering some 3D games, as it stuttered significantly while trying to run Wanderstop.

So far, I’ve finished both Dredge and Chants of Sennaar on this, with no issues whatsoever. I’ve also played some of Disco Elysium, Minami Lane, Ghost Trick and NAIAD on it, and they all ran perfectly, though my testing wasn’t as thorough for these ones (yet). I also tried running Fire Emblem Awakening and Professor Layton vs Pheonix Wright via the Citra emulator, and it was also smooth as butter.

Basically, so far, it has run almost everything I threw at it almost perfectly. I’m not going to try playing Cyberpunk on this, but for most indie games, it handles them beautifully.

Concerns

It’s only been a short time since I received the device and I haven’t had the chance to use it too much, but so far, it’s exactly as I wanted. The battery life, the compact form, the portability, the gorgeous OLED touchscreens…

But with devices like these, there are bound to be some issues. I think the Thor has the chance to hit big, but I’m under no illusion that it will be the next Switch or the Steam Deck. It is from a relatively unknown company, and it takes a lot of work to set up for how you want to use it. Most people are not comfortable using Android devices and this will probably stay a niche device for people who enjoy customizing their software.

What makes me worried is the lack of statistical data about its potential issues. You see, every time I make a purchase like this, I go deep diving into reviews, videos, and comments, and try to see what issues the other users came across. I weigh the pros and cons and try to make a healthy decision. As it is still in the pre-order phase, the data is scarce, and most of the user reviews are on Reddit, and sometimes on YouTube. And the scarce data may mislead. When I ordered the device, there were little to no issues with the device, aside from a cosmetic hinge crack that some devices got. Nowadays, I keep seeing other issues, and I cannot tell if it’s because people with good devices don’t really post about how issue-free their device is, or if it’s because the latest batches got worse Quality Control. So far, I’m happy to report that I have absolutely no issues with it, but only time can tell how it will be.

The hinge also worries me a little, as devices with hinges can be a lot more vulnerable than others. I learned this the hard way with my old Galaxy Z Flip 4 phone, another device that I really loved. Again, no issues with mine after 2 weeks of use, but I’m being cautious.

With the device and the technology behind it being as new as it is, and AYN being a relatively new company, I have my reservations about the longevity of the device. I hope that it surprises me in the best way possible, but I am also trying to approach this realistically before recommending it to anyone. Unlike my trusty NDS Lite that was still operational after 10+ years of disuse, I don’t know if the Thor will give me that kind of durability.

But I’m keeping positive thoughts. If there are no technical issues with the device, I can see it being the ultimate portable emulator. It has so much potential, and if AYN plays their cards right, they can dominate this part of the gaming sphere.

Overall thoughts

I can say that Thor is a fantastic device that has met all my expectations so far. It’s cute, it’s portable, and it’s powerful. It’s basically everything I want in a handheld gaming device. I still love my Steam Deck and will use it to run more demanding games or games that require a bigger screen, but for traveling or short gaming sessions, the Thor will probably be my go-to. Even though I have my reservations about the device, I hope I’m proven wrong and it provides me with years of entertainment.

If you are in the market for such a device, and don’t mind following a few guides online, this just might be the device for you. Please do note that due to the RAM prices skyrocketing, the price for the Thor keeps going up every batch, so you may want to take that into consideration. Also, do mind the long shipping times, it will probably be at least a month before you get the device. But all in all, I think it was worth it for me!

1. More on Ace Attorney’s localization and my own localization journey here, if you wish to check it out