We Got a Playdate and We're Crankin' It!

Gotta crank it

I pre-ordered a playdate during this stream. I don't need this but I NEED this.

This video needs an age gate.

@csl316: Shiny new video game toy will always attract a certain amount of editors and critics. Case in point: Patrick Klepek seems to be digging it to.

The Playdate always felt it was riding along the Pretentious Spectrum in a manner that felt charming rather than snake-oily.

Crank it crank it real good.

I think I'm gonna hold off on trying to get one until I see more games. I know it's not the same thing, but I'm saving for the Analogue Pocket and can't justify buying this for just $40 less. Yet.

I haven't finished watching this but I saw in the Pen to Pixels review that you can side load other games people make for this and that has me super intrigued too. Begin the countdown for someone getting it to run Doom.

Put me firmly in the 'I don't get it' group.

This looks like something your friend's parents bought them for Christmas 2014 instead of a 3DS, and they are desperately trying to convince you (and themselves) how cool it is, while you are giving tepid approval while playing Mario Kart.

I really like how the games highlighted used the crank as a mechanic. Seems very well-implemented and the quick and minimalist approach to the games is cool. It’s not something I personally would have much interest in, but it’s a neat little novelty.

The ass on that pizza...

This looks real neat but not getting one until 2023 kinda takes the wind out of my sales some.

I like that the delivery format has encouraged the game designers to work within constraints, but I was sort of hoping that the games would somehow use the crank in a more transcendent way.

As it stands, these games would all work fine on a standard controller by rotating the analog stick. The crank does have a slight mechanical advantage (in that it doesn't return to a neutral center position when released), but this could be overcome by letting the player hold the L and R buttons to continually spin clockwise/counterclockwise.

The hardware is definitely cute, and the screen seems nice. Maybe this'll be worth a purchase down the line if it continues to get cool exclusive games developed for it.

@poundkeeper: I saw this comment before watching the video and was very confused, but Ive now seen the video and agree wholeheartedly..

Jan just wants to crank it in the shower. I can respect someone that likes to keep it clean.

This seems very neat, but it sounds like a slightly bigger screen and perhaps a crank with a rattle to it might have been more satisfying.

TheodoricFriede

The main appeal of this thing is that it allows developers to create new games that are based around a novel new input-option, to see what kind of experiences that can deliver.

As a potential buyer of this thing, you must be 1. interested in seeing indie-devs flex their creative muscles to figure out what to do with this crank-mechanic 2. be willing to support this small-time platform and the indie devs that have decided to put something together for it by paying quite a hefty price for the device itself.

Naturally it's not going to be a great value and you're not going to see big developers and high budgets on this thing, and it doesn't have the economics of scale on it's side to compete with traditional consoles. But if you're the kind of person that just wants to see what kind of gameplay ideas can bubble up when you make a crank be part of the device, this might be a more interesting purchase for that customer than buying a Mister or a Nintendo Classic Mini. Just like those options, this is a niche gaming product instead of competing with the playstations and Switches of the world.

This is an interesting device. It's like the next evolution in those cheap Tiger handheld games that used to be sold in stores in one device.

T&C Surf Designs gang represent.

I want one so bad but I guess at this point I can wait a bit to see when I would get one when I order

Jeez, I've said this before, but alot of indie developers need to realize that their writing isn't half as endearing or funny they think it is, and cut the games' dialogue by two thirds at least.

I need to say this or is going to drive out crazy: That surf game starts counting a 360 at what is CLEARLY 180 degrees and it's driving me insane >:(

This is a neat thing. If they actually cared enough to have European distribution, I would've gotten one, but alas ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

This looks charming as hell.

All of that charm evaporates immediately at $180.

I'd gladly pick this up at, say, $100.

"impossible! No human being can crank that fast!"

It's sad that the backend issues has made it random what quality versions are available to download on these vids. I have to use a YT downloader, assuming the video is on YT, to get the highest quality version. I hope they can get these issues sorted out at some point.

Neato, but I didn't know it wouldn't have a backlight. I'm not sure how I missed that before now.

Allan key in a drill ot outrun the pigs?

Great video. Got a lot of FOMO about the Playdate this week due to the reviews. Similar to the Steamdeck I tried to get my order in within seconds of the ordering opening but ran into issues immediately where their international payment partner fell over (I'm in Canada) and nearly all the initial units got sold to US residents since that payment system was working. By the time they fixed the issue I ended up in the 3rd Late 2022 group but I guess at least I should get mine this year.

Been fiddling with the SDK. The simulator app is pretty good, hard to simulate the crank or accelerometer but I'll try to get something up and running before I get my unit.

This thing is great, I've been crankin' it on the bus. I've cranked it on the way to work, feels good to just crank out a quick one. Hell, I've been crankin' it before bed to help me sleep, too.

Appreciate seeing Jeff crank it for us on camera.

Teenage engineering should build this into the next OP-1