When in 2019 many of us were thinking more about next-generation machines like the PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X, a company called Panic (with a tradition in the software and video game world) thought it would launch portable console with a single-bit black and white screen and a joystick for controlling games.
It couldn’t be more analog, more anachronistic, more retro.. However, lol, at least it got my attention, and yes, of course I wanted the photorealism that the new consoles promised (and we’re still waiting for), but I also wanted to try a console with a joystick.
And after some time on the market, this device came into my hands thanks to the generosity of Alberto Lloret from HobbyConsolas, who did the analysis of the Playdate. You may never buy it and may not have heard of it, but if you like curious pots, keep reading because this is of course.
| game time | |
|---|---|
| Screen | 2.8″ | Resolution 400 x 240 pixels | 1 bit |
| CPU | Cortex M7 @ 168MHz |
| ram | 16 MB |
| storage | 4 GB internal memory non-expandable |
| Buttons and controls | Buttons A, B | Cross | Accelerometer | lever | Menu + sleep |
| Battery | USB-C charging |
| Dimensions and weight | 76 x 74 x 9 mm | 86 grams |
| Price | $179 |
Playdate Analysis Sections:
- Design and screen: hopelessly attractive and anachronistic
- Gaming and Experience: Joystick-centric experience and open development kit
- Autonomy: USB-C charging and enviable autonomy
- Conclusion: you have never played anything like this
Hopelessly attractive and anachronistic
This is one of those devices fall in love at first sight. Yes, that nothing is written in the tastes, but it seems to me very, very nice.
In the Playdate review that Lloret posted in Hobby a few weeks ago, we can see that he also found it very attractive, and once you have it in your hands, you will find that it is not only beautiful, but also gives a lot. feeling.
True, for the price ($180, to which taxes must be added), this may already be a premium, but in the hand you can see how well built.
It’s very, very compact, very light at 86 grams, and a pleasure to carry in your pocket. I returned to feeling The GameBoy Micro, a console that continues to scare me in mid-2022 because it fits nicely in my hand and despite its size, I find it quite comfortable.
The material is yellow plastic, which attracts a lot of attention and is comfortable because the corners are rounded. No fingerprints, plastic doesn’t look cheap and you have three holes with metal protection, so that … no idea, put a pendant on your wrist?
Like I said, I don’t know why, but they are. On the front we have some buttons, which I’ll talk about next, a mono speaker that sounds pretty good, but if you turn it all the way up it gets distorted…and a little more.
We have a 3.5 stereo jack.yes, at the bottom, as well as USB-C and a microphone.
The screen feels very elegant to me because it has a thin black bezel that goes great with the yellow color and the quality you can imagine.
It is an LCD panel with a resolution of 400 x 240 pixels and a 1-bit resolution.. Obviously it’s not about the color and it uses very, very little power because the pixels have the ability to remember their black or white color to alternate between them without refreshing the panel.
You can see it well no backlight and viewing angles are good. There is not much to tell, because … well, from the video and photo you can get an idea of \u200b\u200bwhat the screen is like.
And nothing more, no slots for cartridges or additional buttons, but with a very special lever and a game system that is as original as the concept of the console itself.
Stick-centric experience and open development kit
Surely you were waiting for me to talk about the lever, but he did not come, but I really believe that the lever is not so much a matter of design as of direct experience.
Next to the elements of the three corners, the lever is the only metal element. I love it because it gives me very good vibes for durability.
The end we are holding is made of plastic, it rotates and is very handy, but if you think it will be annoying, don’t worry, because if the game does not use a lever, you can fold it like this. that it is more or less collected on the side straight.
Panic did not force developers to use this elementbut it is clear that this is the main reason for the purchase, since the games we have tried and which use it are the most original precisely because of the dynamics generated.
You rarely play with it at first, but once you get the hang of it, you wonder why no one – almost no one who has any kind of peripheral – has ever done anything like this before. Curiously, there is no fishing game that you think will be on a console with this control, but there is.
After all, the control mode is unique, but as I said, not all games use them. There are some buttons that come into play, which I found very pleasant to the touch and, as far as games are concerned, in the fantastic analysis of HobbyConsolas, they go into detail about eachbut I have to say that… there is everything.
Some fascinated me, others seemed like a chestnut tree, there are more story ones, and there are more purely arcade ones.
Surely you will find the one you fall in love with, because there are 24 of them.and after those games of the first season, as they called them, it is not clear what will happen next.
After all, games are the backbone of consoles, and no matter how good the hardware, very good design, or very good control ideas, if they’re not exploited by the software, they’re worthless because this machine becomes a paperweight. Beautiful, but expensive and useless.
Thus, at the moment there are 24 games, but for the future the ball is up to independent developers and, above all, to enthusiast communities who do little with the devkit (which, by the way, can be used for free from here).
USB-C charging and enviable autonomy
In terms of autonomy, however, there is not much to tell. Ok, great that it charges via USB-C and no, there is no charger in the box..
They’ve learned a thing or two from Nintendo, Samsung, Apple and Google, and yes, you’ll appreciate it, but we don’t have fast charging, so with whatever charger you have at home, you can power the console.
And about autonomy, there are two dimensions. For one day, we have a clock mode where we can leave the console on a surface that displays a retro digital clock.
This is something similar to what Game & Watch re-releases allow, for example, the anniversary of Zelda or Super Mario, and there Panic promises 14 days of autonomy.
The game… everything changes. The company promises 8 hours, everything will depend on what you play, which is also commented by my colleague Alberto.
At the moment there are no super-hardware gamesbut since the devkit is free, tomorrow we might find some version of something that eats up the battery.
You never played anything like this
And coming to the end of the Playdate analysis, I really don’t know very well whether I recommend it or not.. This usually doesn’t happen to me, since I’m always honest (not for nothing that I devote myself to this), but sometimes everything is so relative that … well, you have to form your own opinion by reading and seeing different analyzes.
The design bothers me. It’s the prettiest piece of hardware I’ve had in my hands in months (or years) along with things like the Xiaomi 12, the screen looks great, the speaker with the handle seems super original to me and feels cute.
However, I can’t recommend it to you for sure because although I liked it, I don’t know if I would have bought it.and that might already give you an idea of how confused I am. Why? Well, because yes, I like the concept of the game and the design, but it seems very expensive for the little security it offers us.
And it’s that the upcoming small games are curious, but of course not all of them will suit you, and it’s not very well known what will happen when the 24 announced games are available.
Everything in the hands of independent developersfrom users who play and share small games, or from yourself, and of course it doesn’t really give us too much security.
Yes, they are tied to the port of Doom and there will certainly be more classic games adapted for this small console, but Seems like a bit expensive console to me considering what I’m saying.
And before I end this review, a thought flashes through my head: “20 seconds ago you were thinking about not buying it, but now you are going to reserve it for the next batch. “.
Source: Computer Hoy
