Speaking of portable game consoles, we started with GameWatch, then Game Boy, Game Gear, Wonder Swan, Neo-Geo Pocket, PSP and Game Boy Advance, and recently Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo Switch, and PS Vita have become the mainstream.
Many people play games on their smartphones instead of game consoles, and new portable game consoles are not released very often anymore.
But now, Panic Inc, a developer and distributor of iOS apps, has announced a brand new portable game console!
It is called " Playdate "! What kind of game console is it?
Yellow body with mysterious crank
It has a small, bright yellow body with a monochrome screen. It has a simple layout with a cross-shaped keyboard and A and B buttons.
But then, there is a mysterious crank on the right side of the body! What is this?
Rotate to control!
I wonder what the crank is used for, but what does it do?
Seeing is believing, so let's take a look at the video officially released by Playdate.
そのタイトルですが、お気に入りのクリエーターの皆さん @KeitaTakahash @bfod @helvetica @shauninman などと幸運にも知り合うことができました。
Playdate専用タイトルの中から1つをご紹介します: Crankin’s Time Travel Adventure ー 塊魂を手がけたことで知られる高橋慶太氏のタイトルです。 pic.twitter.com/KGuRatL4iK
— PlaydateJP (@PlaydateJP) May 23, 2019
I see. In the video, it seems that the screen is controlled by turning a crank.
Turning it clockwise makes the character move forward, and turning it counterclockwise makes it move backward.
The game in this video is titled "Crankin's Time Travel Adventure" and is the work of Keita Takahashi, the creator of the popular PlayStation game "KODOMON".
Detailed specifications are still a secret.
Detailed specifications of Playdate have not been announced at this time.
Looking at the images, there seems to be a power button on the top of the body, a hole on the bottom that looks like an earphone jack, and a USB Type-C port, but there does not seem to be a slot for inserting software.
According to the official website, it includes 12 game titles that will be available in Season 1 - no additional charges are required". So will the game titles be in the form of downloads? I'm curious.
So far, we have images of four titles, including Crankin's Time Travel Adventure.
Release date and price
The price is 149 USD and the company is aiming to ship in 2020.
Orders will be taken at the end of this year, and you can sign up for an email newsletter on the official Playdate website to be notified the moment orders are available.
"Due to the small amount of stock available, please register as soon as possible. So if you're interested, hurry up and consider it!
It seems that updates will be sent out via the PlaydateJP Twitter account, so follow them if you're interested!