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Playdate – A New Handheld Gaming System

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Re: Playdate – A New Handheld Gaming System

#201

Post by reilly3000 »

djfergus wrote: post #197

What a fascinating concept. Makes me feel out of touch with consumers these days, I'd have imagined the appeal of this would be very low but since the Panic team has a great track record and volume manufacturing is not cheap I guess they have assessed their demand. I'm curious who is buying this instead of e.g. a GPD XD (full android clamshell with dedicated game controls).

I think its positioned more at 'us' vs the consumer. Small run for game/gadget lovers with some disposable income and memories of when everything wasn't formulaic IAP-driven nonsense.

Re: Playdate – A New Handheld Gaming System

#202

Post by cormacrelf »

dangus wrote: post #198

I'll give this idea one plus - it's a got a playful, fun design. I get the idea of going simple and fun with this. As a device to plunk down $150 on, no way. - If the crank is so fun, they didn't manage to show it. - Hopefully they'll show more games, because the promise of 12 black and white games involving two buttons a crank isn't awe-inspiring. - The 2DS is the same price and is vastly more powerful and capable.…

Don't be quick to dismiss a physical control from Teenage Engineering. Those Swedes are geniuses. Have you seen the OP-1? They are masters of constraints that push creativity along. I have no doubt they can make a crank fun.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7z4hoazra_g

Re: Playdate – A New Handheld Gaming System

#203

Post by sergiotapia »

egypturnash wrote: post #194
sergiotapia wrote: post #185

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thanks for bringing this up, what were they thinking?

"we don't want racist idiots making money off of our hard work"?

You're judging a whole person over a single uttered word. Thankfully normal people don't operate at that insane level. My son's elementary school friends are not racist. Rappers are not racist. The latinos in my miami neighborhood are not racist. Twitter has given loons a public platform to spew their garbage and websites encourage it because outrage sells. Enjoy your 2 minutes of hate.

Re: Playdate – A New Handheld Gaming System

#204

Post by _bxg1 »

Pils wrote: post #123
_bxg1 wrote: post #3

I personally love weird single-purpose hardware. Unfortunately it tends not to do very well commercially. Anybody remember this guy? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WikiReader

When hardware is increasingly becoming just a way to interface with a larger platform (IoT, game console subscription services, etc.), I think there will be a certain nostalgia for more static, tactile and analog hardware. I collect records, own a couple pocket operators, and buy physical books for similar reasons. Single-purpose hardware has identity. It has explicit purpose. If it is well-designed, it has an interf…

> I think there will be a certain nostalgia for more static, tactile and analog hardware

There already is, for me. I'd imagine a product like this depends on that nostalgia to a degree.

Re: Playdate – A New Handheld Gaming System

#205

Post by 0x8BADF00D »

cormacrelf wrote: post #202
dangus wrote: post #198

I'll give this idea one plus - it's a got a playful, fun design. I get the idea of going simple and fun with this. As a device to plunk down $150 on, no way. - If the crank is so fun, they didn't manage to show it. - Hopefully they'll show more games, because the promise of 12 black and white games involving two buttons a crank isn't awe-inspiring. - The 2DS is the same price and is vastly more powerful and capable.…

Don't be quick to dismiss a physical control from Teenage Engineering. Those Swedes are geniuses. Have you seen the OP-1? They are masters of constraints that push creativity along. I have no doubt they can make a crank fun. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7z4hoazra_g

If it was a little cheaper, I would probably pick it up for my nephew. But at the current price point it’s just way too expensive. Vague promises of future content are not enough to justify the price IMO.

Re: Playdate – A New Handheld Gaming System

#206

Post by Causality1 »

nickloewen wrote: post #116
Causality1 wrote: post #41

Is this cute? Yeah, absolutely, but there are actually a lot of cute little handheld gaming devices just like it, except they have nicer screens and don't cost $150. Like the Bitboy, Pixel Classic, PocketGo, Pocket Sprite. Even the Micro Arcade series which are credit card sized single-game handheld with full color screens.

Those all appear to either emulate other consoles, or come with games built-in, though. This seems to be closer to the MakeCode consoles discussed elsewhere in these comments, since it sounds like it will allow you to make your own games for it (although it's not clear yet how easy that will be). In that respect, it seems fairly unique to me, if only because it is beautifully designed and polished. It seems like the…

How do you know any of that? There's no photos on the site to indicate how polished it is, no mention of being able to run homebrew on it.

Re: Playdate – A New Handheld Gaming System

#208

Post by mastrsushi »

This company seems well aware they aren't a match for Nintendo. Based on the comments, Hacker News does not seem very aware.

Much like how Teenage Engineering's OP-1 is not competitively priced. This is another example of an insightfully designed, well built product for adults. Older millenials looking for a sentimental package so they can feel like it's their 8th birthday again. They are reunboxing a gameboy color.

Their goal isn't to revitalize the dying, Nintendo/Smartphone dominated scene of handheld gaming. Just a small company releasing a niche product in a low quantity for a low risk profit.

No different than a craft brew or a local farmers market.

Re: Playdate – A New Handheld Gaming System

#209

Post by madrox »

mastrsushi wrote: post #208

This company seems well aware they aren't a match for Nintendo. Based on the comments, Hacker News does not seem very aware. Much like how Teenage Engineering's OP-1 is not competitively priced. This is another example of an insightfully designed, well built product for adults. Older millenials looking for a sentimental package so they can feel like it's their 8th birthday again. They are reunboxing a gameboy color.…

This is the best take, and I'm excited to live in a world where hardware entertainment devices don't require mass market appeal and can be "artisanal."

In many ways, I think this is the antidote to a lot of the bad behaviors Silicon Valley has developed in the last several years. Sometimes not achieving hyperscale is OK.

Re: Playdate – A New Handheld Gaming System

#210

Post by egypturnash »

sergiotapia wrote: post #203
egypturnash wrote: post #194

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"we don't want racist idiots making money off of our hard work"?

You're judging a whole person over a single uttered word. Thankfully normal people don't operate at that insane level. My son's elementary school friends are not racist. Rappers are not racist. The latinos in my miami neighborhood are not racist. Twitter has given loons a public platform to spew their garbage and websites encourage it because outrage sells. Enjoy your 2 minutes of hate.

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