Let’s Crank Up This Playdate

Two Dozen Games In A Tiny Package

It’s finally time for a six to eight hour Playdate, for those who preordered the $180 mini gaming device anyways.  Ars Technica was one of those and have posted a review of the Playdate which you can peruse here.  It sports a 2.7″ Memory Display which offers 173 ppi of high contrast black and white video capable of providing from 30 to 60FPS and is clearly visible even in brightly lit areas.  The crank is used as part of the controls for your games, in addition to a D-Pad and two buttons.

Ars preferred the games which didn’t involve cranking madly, as it is hard to do without supporting the Playdate on something; the games where it was used gently on the other hand offered an interesting and unique interface.  For instance, the crank is used to navigate when your are typing in letters, and is a step up from the nightmare of spelling things using the D-Pad.  Of the two dozen games, 12 get a hearty thumbs up while the rest are OK, at least for that reviewer.  

In addition to the games and device, an SDK was also released which people have been busy working with to try to port over DOOM, among other things.   If $180 seems like a decent price for a wee little gaming device with games included, it is worth checking out the full review.