I`m a handheld video game enthusiast. I`m sure of this, because people in the office make fun of how much I use and love the PlayStation Vita (hi, CNET!). The first console I owned was a Game Boy, and I`ve owned and loved every Nintendo and Sony portable released since (even the PocketStation). I have a long commute, so I always have a dedicated gaming device in my backpack. But lately, I`ve been spending an exceptional amount of time on a platform I had previously written off: a phone.Now that your eyes have rolled, I want to clarify that I`m not talking about the kinds of games you might traditionally associate with being `phone games,` though I do love those--I`ve played far more than a healthy amount of Marvel Puzzle Quest, and I love playing the cool stuff that crops up in the bespoke iOS scene: Florence, Reigns, Threes, 80 Days, and anything by Zach Gage. Instead, my recent revelation involves the kinds of video games that I would have previously preferred to play on a home console or PC.Florence is pretty cool. You should play Florence.Here`s an obvious statement: There`s never been a better time to be a handheld gamer. The 3DS is filled with great, unique first-party Nintendo titles. If you like Japanese RPGs, 2D platformers, and revisiting the finest titles in the original PlayStation library, the Vita is incredibly good, I promise (that OLED screen! That d-pad!). And of course, the Nintendo Switch is a fantastic hybrid console that redefined what kinds of games I could expect from a portable system.Now, thanks to my phone, I`m getting that same Switch-style buzz once again. I recently took a vacation, and as usual, I packed my three portable consoles to entertain me during periods of extended downtime. The thing is, you can`t always prepare for when or where extended downtime happens. For one reason or another, there were a few times where I felt like playing a video game, didn`t have a console on me, and eventually was content to see what was on my ph ...
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