Blog of that guy who’s wandering around. 📸
My companion this time was the tiny Miyoo Mini.
During this walk, I met an older man who told me about the days when Łódź was alive day and night. The textile factories ran in two shifts, and trains carried goods across the country. Back then, most of Poland’s clothes were made here, along with the fabrics. Then production moved to China, and the whole industry collapsed.
Another vacation stroll through Łódź, Poland, with photos and some pocket console gaming. Couldn’t resist stopping by Niebostan again for coffee and their delicious vegan sandwich. Also checked out some new streets and courtyards.
This time, I had my Super Pocket with the Indie Heroes 4 cartridge. Played two games: Batty Zabella and Murtop.
Batty Zabella is a point & click game that feels like the gaming equivalent of 90s photocopied zines. I love the raw, underground comic book style! Genre-wise, it’s a mix of gothic horror, comedy, and slice-of-life. Haven’t finished it yet, but I’m already in love with the atmosphere Kyle Sharpe created!
Besides the Evercade cartridge version, you can also grab the .gb ROM.
Murtop is described as a mix between Dig Dug and Bomberman, created by Hiulit from Barcelona. You play as Murti the rabbit, trying to take out all mole enemies and rack up the highest score. There are two ways to do it: blow them up with a bomb or drop a boulder on their heads (worth more points but much harder to pull off!).
When I read the Indie Heroes 4 press release, I was mildly interested, but after playing it—I’m completely hooked! Super fun and insanely addictive!
Even though the Super Pocket doesn’t have internet, you can still submit your high scores to the global leaderboard just by scanning a QR code. Such a simple yet genius solution!
You can play Murtop via PortMaster, grab it on an Evercade cartridge, or get the PC version on Itchio.
I had such a blast on my last walk with pocket consoles that I did it again the very next day—just with a slightly different route and one extra console: the Anbernic RG40XXV. I hadn’t taken it on the road before, so it was the perfect excuse! I hopped on a train to Łódź, Poland, with three consoles in my bag: the Anbernic (blue), Super Pocket (wood-like finish), and Nintendo DSi (white). On the train, I played Dragon Ball GT: Final Bout—a game I used to grind as a kid on my PSX. Funny how, nowadays, you can learn all the moves in an hour with a quick Google search. Back then, we spent hours figuring it out ourselves.
The day in the city kicked off with a completely unplanned visit to the comic and game museum. Turns out, it’s super close to Łódź Fabryczna station, where I always get off. Took a ton of pics—just sharing a handful from the gaming section here.
One of the coolest parts is the Retro Zone—rooms filled with old-school computers, set up like Polish apartments from the tough communist era. Think Bruce Lee, The Cure, and Kora (the late polish singer) posters on the walls, VHS tapes, and vintage computer magazines.
Then there’s the Game Lab, a series of rooms showcasing the different stages of game development—from prototyping to character design, sound, and testing. This part was co-created with polish gamedev studio CD Projekt (aka the folks behind The Witcher and Cyberpunk), which is pretty awesome.
While I was there, I played a bit of Resident Evil Survivor on the RG40XXV—a game I beat multiple times as a kid on my PSX. I’ll never forget those summers: playing Resident Evil, then heading to the beach with my mom (I grew up in Gdańsk, by the sea), swimming in the Baltic Sea for hours, then coming home to play some more. That door-opening cutscene? Burned into my memory forever.
Later, I went to grab a tempeh sandwich at my absolute favorite spot in Łódź—Niebostan. No other place in this city makes me feel more at home. It’s spacious, with an indoor area, an outdoor blue metal platform, and a cozy backyard. The decor is cool, there’s always some visual art on display, and the staff is super friendly. The crowd is interesting, the plant-based food is delicious, and… there’s a bathtub with a hole cut into it, turned into a couch! Absolute genius.
Spent the rest of the day wandering around Łódź, snapping photos, and playing on the Super Pocket here and there. In the evening, I found myself back at Niebostan, sipping a beer and playing my all-time favorite, Broken Sword 1, with the background chatter of the bar around me. I’m a pretty anxious person, and truly relaxing is a struggle, but at that moment—lying on an outdoor couch in my favorite bar, playing one of the most important games of my life—I felt completely at peace.
I love Broken Sword because Charles Cecil is a master storyteller. I love Broken Sword because the voice acting is insanely good—it’s funny when it should be funny, emotional when it should be emotional, and atmospheric when it needs to be atmospheric. I love Broken Sword because it nails the balance between adventure, comedy, and romance—the kind of romance that sticks with you forever. The dynamic between George and Nico? Always reminded me of Fox Mulder and Dana Scully from The X-Files, one of my all-time favorite shows.
That night, out of nowhere, it started pouring rain. I took shelter in my second favorite Łódź hangout—Planszówkowi Astronauci, a cozy board game café where you can sip tea, beer, hot chocolate, or a cocktail while playing board games.