My review unit had a slightly accelerated version of its Season One roll-out, with those 24 games arriving over the course of 12 days rather than weeks, but seeing that flashing purple light on its lock button and little note on the homescreen everyday never got old.
Sure, there’s every possibility it may end up as another Ouya-style disaster show, but if you’ve ever longed for something like Lexaloffle’s Pico-8 platform to be more than just a ‘fantasy console’, then the Playdate is exactly what you’ve been waiting for.īefore we dig into the nitty gritty of the hardware itself, there is just a distinct thrill of having new games appear in your library. It’s a surprisingly versatile bit of kit, the Playdate, and one I feel will enchant and enthral anyone who has a deep and inherent love of all things games. Heck, Panic have even added the ability to stream from it, capture video and screenshots from it, and hook it up to an external monitor, keyboard or controller via its Playdate Mirror app. It’s there in the openness of the Playdate ecosystem, too, where you can make your own Playdate games in its browser-based Pulp creation tool, download the source code, share it with friends (or sell it) and sideload it onto your Playdate all in a matter of minutes. It’s there in its eclectic first season of indie games, a series of 24 titles that not only delight in the minutiae of its hardware but are delivered weekly for free in batches of two direct to your console over Wi-Fi. But inside this dinky yellow wafer, the spirit of PC gaming has never been stronger. It’s a standalone handheld console that fits into the palm of your hand (yes, even palms as small as mine), and is controlled via a d-pad, two face buttons and its unique, standout feature, the crank.
On paper, Panic’s Playdate doesn’t have a lot to do with PC. Its added PC functionality is also a surprising bonus.
A joyous and magical little handheld that will appeal to anyone who has a deep love of games and new experiences.
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