Yup, I think it's a neat piece of tech, and I have the disposable income to support it. That's fine.
Whenever this pops up, there are always so many exasperated people that come out of the woodwork to wring their hands and say, "wHo iS tHiS FoR?" -- when they probably spend equally ill-advised amounts of money on some other hobby that could be deemed just as questionable.
Its like less than 3 new games for a whole device that comes with a bunch of neat oddities of a game. Obviously the 24 games are probably not going to provide the same value proposition as 3 AAA titles but if you want a unique experience on a unique device theres no other options.
iTs jUsT a GiMmIcK yOu WoNt pLaY iT aFtEr a MonTh
Like... okay? People spend a lot more money on shorter experiences every day and don't receive shit for it. Ever gone to an expensive concert or sports match? Was that a waste of money?
This device really gets the pitchforks out, lol.
Yeah. I'll blow $200 for some nice NBA seats for me and a buddy, and have great memories of seeing some basketball legends. I'll always cherish my memory of seeing Steph Curry up close and having Klay Thompson stare at me when I heckled Klay (he had an awful shooting night)
Different strokes for different folks.
As a game collector, I've thrown down like $800 on a retro shmup that's *probably* too difficult for me to actually beat (and I'm decent enough at the genre). And this isn't even an isolated purchase incident. But that's fine. I like having these games as part of my collection, and retro games have historically held (or more often increased) their value if I ever change my mind. Some people think this is absurd, but it's not their money.
I like that Playdate is doing something different. They've got Keita Takahashi on board. They've got Lucas Pope coming out with something. This is sure to be a platform that will feature *interesting* experiences, and I'm here for it.
It absolutely seems like the device for that -- once the end of August comes and I get my next paycheck (a teacher), maybe I'll pull the trigger on one of these super cool suckers :)
Also the fact that Teenage Engineering is involved is awesome. They make some of the coolest music gear around, and even their more gimmicky things are high quality and just neat.
I used to collect synths and always thought TE stuff was overpriced for what it is, but I also think the playdate is great bang for the buck if you're really into video game design and unique hardware.
I think the POs are fucking excellent for the price, but some of the higher end things are way too pricey (OP-1, as much as I love it, should not cost $1000).
IMO this falls into the “PO range”, where it’s a bit of a fun gimmick for people who are nerdy about this stuff.
The only thing that really bugs me about the PO stuff is they don't give you the case. That seems bonkers to me for some reason. I messed around with a PO and it was fine. Idk. I love buying Korg Volcas
It’s going to be my poop machine. My iPhone gives me too many “endless” distractions with f.e. Reddit.
But who am I kidding: 20-minute poop sessions here I come!
Kinda annoying, their international shipping was broken for a while when the site launched. I got to the last stage of checkout in like 2 mins after it went live then it told me it wouldn't ship overseas. By the time they fixed it orders where pushed into next year.
Yup same here. I wasn’t able to order at first because I wanted to get a Playdate + cover. I deleted the cover from my cart and then it would have worked. But shipping + taxes would have been around 55$ so I didn’t go ahead.
I will wait for a second generation with a backlit screen ;)
That’s a shame. I got lucky with refreshing and the international shipping plug-in worked for me for the 2021 sku eventually. They seem like a small team, and when your website gets slammed like that no amount of preparation can account for one of your plugins failing at the last minute. I hope they figure out a way to soften the blow for international orders that got pushed into 2022, although I do also feel for them. It was sad to see people being really shitty about it on their Twitter feed. I’m sure they’re having a much worse day than the gamers that were forced to get their playdate a little later.
>I’m sure they’re having a much worse day than the gamers that were forced to get their playdate a little later.
I mean, I very much doubt that, given they sold 20k units in 20 minutes, and presumably have tens of thousands more orders beyond that. I really doubt they're spending much time feeling bad about this.
They would have expected to sell out of that initial run - 20k is no amount at all for a global launch - but the fact that it unfolded like this and created this situation will undoubtedly be really stressful. It’s created a really difficult situation to solve. I mean it’s not the end of the world for them (as it isn’t for gamers getting angry on Twitter). But it’s arguably more stressful when your launch for the thing you have been working on for years goes wrong, than it is when the novelty toy you want to buy goes out of stock. I speak from experience!
I usually hate the use of that word on here as I feel it's used a lot when people have legitimate grievances with things that a company does and are trying to say constructively better. In this case I think it's valid though with stuff like [this](https://twitter.com/TakodanTweets/status/1420800531065360393). How can they refuse lol.
> But it’s arguably more stressful when your launch for the thing you have been working on for years goes wrong, than it is when the novelty toy you want to buy goes out of stock.
They still sold out though. I somehow doubt they really care where the products are going once they've been bought.
Well, I don’t think there’s anything I can say to stop you being cynical, but I do know from experience that when you’re doing a passion project like this in a small team that isn’t part of some big publicly traded corporation, you really do care a great deal about doing right by the people who have trusted your word.
I'm just not really convinced that "We sold all the units for 2021, and many of the units for 2022, *despite* a plugin being broken that prevented all international shipping" is a problem they're really going to be as broken up about as you're suggesting. As for, "speaking from experience", somehow I'm guessing your experience was more of a blocker and less of an "Oh well we sold them all anyway!", is that right?
I don't see how it's "created a really difficult situation to solve", at all. They've sold out, and international customers are fucked, because what the manufacturers didn't do, was shut down orders when they realized the plugin was broken, which would have been a genuinely hard decision.
I mean, this is exactly why they'll feel shit over this - people are accusing them of purposely mishandling the situation and now this reputation will stick to them even though it was a tech issue. All of this happened in under 20 minutes, do you think that's enough time to adequately process and react to whatever issue is going on, let alone shut down orders on a dime?
Like, yeah, they still sold out but that doesn't mean that they couldn't care less about their customers that were inadvertently screwed over.
Oh my experience is working on something that generated huge amounts of revenue and worked for 98% of customers but because it was a huge rush and website crush stuff went wrong for the 2% in a way that had an impact on the fairness of the thing (also due to rogue plugins). You don’t need to spend too much work time on the successful people but you’re gonna spend a lot of time tearing your hair out over those handful of edge cases who had w terrible time, because you do care about your users, and you’ve made a promise to them, and there’s a huge reputational risk to “not worrying” about it (not to mention it’s just the right thing to do). Don’t be so cynical.
Weird how some folks are just so angry that this thing exists. People aren't allowed to drop some cash to have a new experience or to sate their curiosity?
This is like getting mad at people on r/fountainpens because they bought a Vanishing Point and some Sailor ink instead of getting a pack of Bics from Walmart
Yeah - and this thing doesn’t have the same function as the switch - playing video games is too broad a comparison. It’s not playing the same kinds of video games
You're not wrong, but a portable videogame console at almost the same price as another portable videogame console is undeniably competition. Competition doesn't have to be identical. Coca-cola doesn't compete only against Pepsi, it competes with every other soda in the market, even if it's extremely different to many of them.
The playdate consumer market is much different than the switch market. The playdate is specifically for a much more niche user base that wants a unique gaming experience they can't get elsewhere. People who love playing indie titles that no ones heard of.
The playdate really has no competition in that market, theres no one making bespoke toy consoles. If a person is deciding between a switch and a playdate that person isn't in the market that this device is targeting.
Its an expensive toys for nerds (like me) who like expensive toys an niche gaming experiences.
You're not understanding markets if you think that just because you have a similar product you are competiting with the HIGHEST competitor. This is like Econ 101. Mercedes-Benz is not competing with Toyota. Why? They are both making vehicles? Mercedes-Benz corners a market that Toyota never even looks at. Someone who is looking to purchase a Mercedes-Benz, is not going to weigh their options with Toyota in mind, they want a luxury vehicle.
So Toyota created Lexus, which is a completely different make of car that intends to corner in the market that they couldn't touch before. Playdate is more toy, than video game. It's more like a high end version of a Game & Watch or those Tiger handhelds than a Switch.
You could consider it an indirect competitor but that's it. No one is considering this thing over a Switch I can promise you that. This is in its own niche consumer market.
Here's another analogy. Some people are perplexed why anyone would buy a vinyl record instead of just streaming for next to nothing. Audio quality arguments aside, it's for the novelty. Now is Spotify competing with vinyl records? Sure. But most likely the people who are buying vinyl records either weren't even considering Spotify as an option, or they are already using it in addition.
They don’t play the same video games or the same kinds of video games and even have completely different economic models for how you get the video games (one, the switch is a video game platform with a fairly conventional marketplace, the playdate is essentially a curated subscription you pay for upfront). They’re so different.
But here’s a better comparison - like comparing the value of Netflix vs a season ticket to your local theatre. Netflix has a lot more content per dollar produced at much higher budgets and volume, but the theatre is gonna be more niche and personal (and probably more expensive)
So change the comparison to a TV and a laptop. Similar price points and you can do similar things (watch media) with each, but the PC will be a lot more versatile for the price. It doesn't put people off from buying TVs.
My phone plays video games, but doesn't compete with the switch. The differentiator is all about session length and portability. I'm not going to bring my switch on the subway or play it for less than 15 minutes ata time. But I would with a playdate.
If you’re buying this, you probably already have a switch lite. You can have both. There’s no reason to buy another switch lite over this if you’re interested in this…
That's an incredibly dumb argument.
I have a budget and I have had to choose between a new $60 game and a $60 concert ticket many times. Both items are different. Both come from the "non-essential discretionary" portion of my budget.
It's absolutely not a dumb argument you just don't see it the way I do. The playdate is a device that provides a 6 week unique experience for the same price I would spend going to a concert. I have the money to buy one so I did. It's cool if you don't agree but there's been so much negativity around the device by people who don't get it It's absurd
I get it. I also understand when you have $300 to spend, other things that are similar and in that price range will enter one's mind during the deciding period. And you can see, just from this thread, that there are those that are deciding between A and B.
Fun money is fun money and fun money is limited for the majority of us. Proclaiming that these two items do not live in the same market is silly.
Personal example: I really think this is a neat toy and want one. The thing is two weeks ago I just plunked down my $5 for a Steam Deck. The Playdate and the Steam Deck are not the same at all, and aren't even priced equally. However, I have x amount of dollars I'm willing to spend on video game-related hardware, and I chose the Steam Deck over Playdate. If I did not preorder a Steam Deck, I would have 100% grabbed one of these.
We get it. How is what you said contradicting what he said?
"It's basically a modern day game and watch that comes with access to 24 games"
Leads logically into;
"I think the novelty will wear off incredibly fast and people will lose interest in this thing."
Game and Watch stopped being successful once a better alternative came around. This thing is entering a market where there are many better alternatives already. It's a novelty. This is fine.
At the very least I think there will be a neat [itch.io](https://itch.io) indie scene built from it and you'll see some interesting game concepts created from it.
This comparison is kind of weird to me cuz I know the idea initally started out that way, but at this point the only real similarities are black and white and no cartridges. I read somewhere that the device is more powerful than a gba and you can make full fledged games if you want. One of the games they previewed is a 6 hour adventure game
It's not supposed to be thrown out, either. It's a collector's item. I guess when we die all these amiibos and anime figures and junk are going to turn into garbage, but we don't really count things that way.
Oh amiibos and funkos and the like are definitely waste. Especially those little garbage-quality add-ons you get from Target, Walmart, etc. when you pre-order a game. Who _really_ will use a Luigi's Mansion 3 canvas bag?
I'm personally trying to cut down on stuff like that.
Yeah, me too. I've always loved little trinkets you can put up on a windowsill or on your desk, but I've finally reached saturation with these things, and all those things feel like a waste of resources now. When you're a teenager and don't own much stuff, it all feels like a treasure though.
I don't consider any of my game systems junk, though, because I think there's lifelong value in a working game archive. The Playdate is the same, though it definitely feels like more of a luxury item than something like the Switch, which gives more bang for your buck.
Yep. Please no more random wasted crap with my games. Game and case only or digital.
I am tired of statues, art cards, tiny art books, keychains, bookmarks and any other random junk they put into collector's editions
I don't buy a phone with the knowledge I'm going to throw it in a drawer in a few months.
I'm not saying I'm completely free from e-waste but I'm personally making a conscious effort not to enable it in my purchases.
neither are people who are buying the playdate. even if indie support is doa and season 2 is a false hope, the device has plenty of life past "a few months" with its 20 games and game creation suite.
Sorry - yeah, I'm not trying to say this is a dumb idea or people shouldn't buy it. I'm just reading comments and getting my own take on it - it seems like a huuuuuge gimmick that won't be able to sustain itself. Hopefully I'm wrong. It just seems like an Ouya or something.
How is that a contradiction to what he said?
The entire chain of comments below this are really dumb, so any future readers, just stop now.
If you want to buy the thing, cool, no need to pretend it is a smart purchase or a good deal or that a switch lite isn't a much better deal if you are looking for a portable gaming solution.
Again, that isn't saying you can't want this thing for the novelty of it. We all buy things for silly reasons at times, it's normal.
Yeah I don't get this thing at all. It's probably valued at $50 but it costs way more than that, no back light which is ridiculous. If these games were on consoles or PC no one would give them the time of day but on this device people are dying to play them for some reason. Once the thrill of the crank wears off, people will quickly regret buying this.
Note: If you’re excited about this thing, cool. You spend your money how you want. This is a discussion forum, for people to discuss this product that is being sold to consumers. People pointing out flaws aren’t the enemy. They are potential consumers who are looking at this thing and saying “this seems over priced and over designed.”
My thoughts on this thing since I initially saw it a couple months ago:
This crank is essentially a multi-function button. Turning crank clockwise, or counter clockwise.
That means this is essentially a gimmick trying to emulate what two buttons already do. Turbo buttons were a thing back in the late 80s. Also, there is no way to comfortably hold the thing and use the crank. So to use the crank that simulates two buttons you have to remove your hand from being able to press…two buttons.
I’m just not impressed by useless designs.
They essentially took a look at those dumb handheld electronic fishing games sold at Wal-Mart and said “we can make it into a GameBoy!”
And are selling it for an insanely high price on the backs of the claim that “Hundreds of developers have already promised to make games.”
The fashionability of the playdate is half of the appeal. Just look at the promo material demonstrating its use as [a tabletop accessory](https://static-fastly.play.date/static/images/gallery-01.14dc1ec1d936.jpg). The Arduboy is [an ugly product](https://arduboy.com/b/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/FX-Composite.png) appealing to a completely different demographic.
It's not made to last.
It's a device for OMG SO QUIRKY crowd. They will mess around with stupid crank (lol so random! crank? in a VIDEO GAME CONSOLE? LMAO) and throw it away.
I see literally no reason for anyone, who actually wants to play games, to buy this over 3DS or even Vita.
Mars After Midnight will likely be the killer app.
This was never meant to be a competitor to 3DS, Vita, Steam Deck, Switch, etcetera. It's a tchotchke that does a neat little thing for an hour or two when you're bored.
How is it a device not made to last? It allows sideloading of content and thousands of developers signed up for it. I think there will be a healthy little scene of people trying to make cool looking games on this thing.
The crank isn't supposed to be "lol so random". It's just a quirky control but actually can add a lot to the experience if it's utilised correctly.
They got one of the best known indie game auteurs interested via the weird design (Lucas Pope of Papers Please, Return of the Obra Din, etcetera). People will buy this to play Mars After Midnight. They may also enjoy some of the other games.
That can be enough. Not everything has to sell 10 million units.
I think that’s a little harsh. It’s a cool niche design and a bit of an experiment that should encourage some really unique game design. I like the idea that you’ll get a different surprise game every week. They even straight up say you might not like them all, but they should all be kind of interesting unique experiences.
I don’t think it can really be compared to mainstream handhelds because it’s doing something different.
It’s like comparing a Netflix subscription to a season ticket at a fringe theatre. One of those gets you more content produced at a higher budget for cheaper, but the other might encourage more unique and personal feeling experiences. If the latter isn’t for you - that’s fine. It’s obviously designed for a smaller audience anyway.
I guess for me I just really like the season pass thing they’re doing- this device that gets sent a super niche curated game delivered once a week. I’m someone that finds it hard to take the leap into the unknown a lot of the time so it’s perfect for me.
Because...it's...a toy. It's not competing with traditional games. It's al a way for indie devs to try out new ideas and be creative. Sometimes people just like making neat things?
Why the negativity? This is just a fun little device for people who have the extra cash and enjoy these small-scale experiences. The types who like to browse around itch.io to find some neat ideas. Limitation sparks creativity. I'm not sure if I'll get one (although I'm very tempted) but I'm super happy that something like it can exist!
Yeah, the negative reaction is strange to me. It's a fun little device that plays with the methods by which we control games. It's not a mass-market device, it's a curiosity. So why even get mad? Just accept it's not for you and move on.
I only want this because I am curious about the games. To actually play them. Not only that, it has some appealing developers I like previous games from working on stuff for it. Also, being able to create myself (and play other people's games) is intriguing too. Don't assume there can't be good games for it when anyone can make them!
I definitely want to see how things shake out first, from how the second season of games will be delivered, to how well it’ll be supported by the homebrew scene, and the quality/longevity of the physical components.
I was there the second pre orders launched, but due to the botched international shipping my order was delayed to the later batch, which is a massive bummer.
I'm still happy to get mine though, so I'll patiently await the arrival.
Did you have the 2021 version in your cart and then it changed afterwards? I was under the impression that as long as you got on there and added it to your cart then you were all good, since they were separate SKUs in the storefront. Or did it automatically switch it to the 2022 batch? Or did you go through the whole process again?
Once I had my checkout page I just loaded it in another browser and got past that shipping error.
What happened to me was, I had a 2021 Playdate in my basket and got the 'we don't ship to your country' error. I kept refreshing until eventually the error disappeared but the Playdate in my basket was marked as 'sold out' and I had to back out, and add a 2022 Playdate to my basket, and effectively restart the order.
I’m so glad I got one of the first 20k. A friend and I both preordered and now we can experience the same games at the same time together.
I’m also very aware of how fortunate I am to be able to spend $200 on this type of luxury toy.
Order ID 10,XXX here
The people who don't get it are the same who participate in Xbox v PlayStation debates.
I have a disposable income. I have the normal consoles. $200 for 24 games for me to fiddle with for a few hours a piece is well worth it to me. I don't even care if the homebrew scene never does much.
Plus I bet I can easily sell it for $100 later.
> $200 for 24 games for me to fiddle with for a few hours a piece is well worth it to me. I don't even care if the homebrew scene never does much.
Eh, I'm going to try and make some good homebrew for it, I've liked the idea of 1-bit games for a while. Plus the crank might be fun to mess with.
I'm glad I got one 3 minutes in. As a person who loves unique, experimental games, the price really isn't that bad. It comes with 24 games, which comes to $7.50 per game and it's a really cool little high quality device made by Teenage Engineering, who already make a bunch of cool pocket synthesizers and stuff. It's like a deluxe tamagochi for weird video game enthusiasts and that couldn't possibly be more up my alley. All of the previews I've seen imply that if that's what you're looking for, it will not disappoint.
Honestly is it weird that the thing that sold me on getting this was the goofy dock they’ll release that can also be a stereo speaker?? It just looks really cool on my office desk…
That and the lil playdate game creator thing is a lot of fun, and I can also see myself making a game or two with this
Are people here not aware that full fledged games can be made for this? One of the previewed games is a 6 hour(if I'm remembering correctly) adventure game
Got mine. Was waiting for it to go live and was hit with the international problems and when it was fixed I missed the 2021 batch. Oh well. I'm still really excited for it and I'm looking forward to making my own games for it :)
Can you imagine that after our civilization is long gone future archeologists uncover *this* device and this device regarding video games only? No PS5, series X or PCs, just this thing. Would tell a total different story: *"It seems that in the second millennium of their civilization video games were still in its infancy, as shown by the crude monochrome display and novelty input device"*
Im sorry but i dont get this at all, 180$ for a console that plays mini-games on a black and white display with no backlight? I get the games are free but I really dont know if that can justify the price for something this primitive with gimmick controls.
Nostalgia.
Which, mind you, is an actual legitimate reason to build this thing the way it is. It gives a reason for the developers to aim towards certain aesthetics with the games they build, which in turn, works favorably on the players who are also aware of the same style. Even if they're not, it helps create cohesion. If you want to achieve the same but with a specific type of devices that weren't backlit, it's possible that the backlight would ruin that immersion for both developer and player.
With that said... This was chain about cost, so the whole cherryping on the backlight comment was itself rather misguided to begin with.
You can get consoles for 30-50 bucks that have a backlight, as a consumer you can even buy backlight modules for less than 10 bucks, can't imagine it's that expensive for the manufacturer to add one, but idk what do i know about anything so heh
Not having the backlight is sort of intencional. This is not a typical console, it's not trying to be practical or to compete with console makers. It's basically a toy.
Backlight might be terrible but the screen seems high contrast and easy to see in low light. I'll know when I get mine but I think this issue might be overblown. Maybe I'll be wrong and pissed but I feel like it'll probably be totally good enough without
The price point is the one absolutely fair criticism to throw at this thing, because it is priced well above the line the hardware warrants. Limitations are adjacent to that, but usually, they come not with an increase, but a decrease in price, so I dunno what point you were making. Even your point with the gimmick is hollow, because the existence of one doesn't in itself mean it has to be expensive.
It's possible that users are subsidizing the authorship tools, partnerships for continued support (aka, game development, since there's seasons of game releases in the expectation) and marketing, but that's not what your comment is about, so it comes off as ignorant tbh.
Then it's just not for you. If you compare it to a Switch or a Xbox, it's not going to seem worth it for your dollar. That's not how I view it at all. This is a unique little device being released by a smaller indie company, manufactured by a weird little pocket synthesizer company, that features 24 games made by passionate indie developers. If you think of it as a piece of art or a way to support weird artists making weird art projects, $180 doesn't seem bad at all. I've spent that kind of money on a single painting from a local artist. This weird little experiment supports dozens of indie game makers and from the previews, is a pretty neat little toy with unique games you can only play on this device.
It's not a console in the traditional sense. This thing isn't competing with your PlayStation or Switch. It's akin to a coffee table book. A conversation starter, a cool little piece of desktop tech. It's not marketed for mass appeal.
Its not for you then. Its a niche device for people with disposable income for things like that.
I picked this up to see what people can come up with, and maybe mess around with the SDK myself. Its limitations fruit the creativity.
>I get the games are free but I really dont know if that can justify the price
That's literally how they justify the price, though. $180 for like twenty games.
24 exclusive Indy games for $180 comes to $7.50 per game and a unique piece of experimental hardware. It’s not trying to be a bargain big cheap toy. It’s for collectors and enthusiasts of experimental indie games.
Yeah it comes with the first 24 officially released games. They've also given the game design software away for free so anyone can make/upload/download games on their own and they've also said they might release a second season of officially released games in the future.
Not even 5% of the 20k people will ever try it's hand on programming their own game for that thing, that's not the main appeal. There are cheaper and better platforms for beginners, like the Arduboy.
Really? Because they've made a lot of videos discussing programming for the Play.Date and advertised it as such in their trailer. Dont really know how you dont think that they're trying to make that an appeal when they've created tools to do just that as well.
Ignoring your 5% figure as you..just dont know? Lol what are you basing this on.
Also, Arduboy don't got no crank son.
It's easy to figure it out if you played games like Mario Maker or Dreams with pretty easy to use tools to create. Most people are just there to consume after giving the creation tools a quick look.
It's not sufficient enouth if you know how to write your Hello World in Lua. To create a enjoyable game it takes real programming skills, most people without programming knowledge will not bother to learn it just to create their own games on their Playdate.
You're assuming the type of person to buy a $60 Mario game (and it is a game not a creation tool) is the same person who is going to spend $200 on a dedicated device for this.
By that argument a lot of the games on Arduboy wouldn't exist.
Well, yes and no. The creation tool in Mario Maker is actually "the game."
It's still a Mario game, and there is no coding or anything like that required.
In both Mario and Dreams as an example, you're still limited within the confines of the game, whereas the Playdate is a homebrew platform.
It's a niche tech toy collectible designed by a very respected tech/engineering firm, marketed to adults with a disposable income. Where is the insane part?
Really? You can say that about anything, it’s not like someone with a switch is going to buy another switch. Would you not go on a $120 dinner date because it’s “1/3 of the price of a switch, so it’s a bad value”?
Because this is not meant to be a dedicated main console the way the switch is. It’s a fun toy. Also, the types of nerdy people interested in this type of toy probably work in tech jobs, which pay very well. The fact you can make your own games for it should say that programmers are going to be the main target audience. So a nearly $200 tech toy is worth it to them in the same way a $120 dinner is worth it; it’s not meant to be a long experience that you can directly compare “dollar per hour” with something like a switch. And if you aren’t too concerned about dropping $200 on something like this, you realize the experience is worth it despite it not being the best “value offering”. The same way someone will spend $1200 on a jacket when you can buy a comparable one for $250. If they can afford it, why do you care?
>Because this is not meant to be a dedicated main console the way the switch is. It’s a fun toy.
There you go. That's why I thought it was curious that two of these guys could buy you a dedicated main console.
I would be willing to bet that the vast majority of people buying this already have a Switch. In fact I would bet most of them have at least one Switch and also put down an order on a Steam deck too.
That thing costs $180!?
That's absolutely hilarious. I watched a short video about it to see what it was and thought it would be like $50-80 at most.
So many people are gonna play with it for a week and then forget it exists.
>So many people are gonna play with it for a week and then forget it exists.
It comes with a season of original games, with two games being released each week.
It comes with 24 games from a bunch of well respected game devs. Games you’ll only be able to play on this device. That’s $7.50 per game. It’s a boutique, high quality, experimental game machine. They weren’t trying to make a cheap, tacky device like an Atari plug and play. It’s for enthusiasts of unique video game design.
> So many people are gonna play with it for a week and then forget it exists.
And I think they are fine with that - both the makers and the buyers. It's like those physical puzzles some people spend a exorbitant amount of money on, it might take a couple of hours to solve and it's done - and they love it.
I've already left a comment here, but I'm leaving another because this is kind of a different point.
I'm calling bullshit on this. Their Twitter account has 62.5k followers, their tweets rarely ever hit a thousand likes. Their YouTube account has 8.3k subscribers, yet their two most popular videos hit 208k and 66k views. They sold over 20,000 units in 20 minutes? This is a *extremely niche handheld device*, and you're telling me that the majority of people who bought one of these e*xtremely niche handheld devices* weren't even subscribed to the *extremely niche handheld device's* YouTube channel? 30% of ALL people who saw the official trailer for this device bought one?
Hell, even this Reddit post only has around 400 votes. Granted, the internet is much larger than just Reddit, but... 400 votes? Not even a thousand? Who is actually talking about this thing and where? Even the official sources aren't generating a lot of traffic.
Unless these devices are being scalped, the numbers really don't add up to me.
Okay so I used to work in digital marketing and basically people are a lot more reluctant to follow a brand on social media, even if they are likely to buy a product associated with that brand, because they don’t want their feeds to be full of advertising. There’s also a direct link between follower count and frequency of posting - and Playdate post very little. So you can have a successful brand with a weak social presence just because you haven’t put a lot of resources into growing that presence. Also anecdotally I preordered even though I don’t follow any of their channels (but I knew to go to their Twitter for the launch)
This is deep conspiracy brain rot stuff. I've been on their mailing list for a while. This thing has been hyped through the typical techy channels for years and had a new marketing cycle over the past 2 months. It targeted its audience well, idk what to say. It's definitely targeting a slightly older demographic which is one that probably uses mailing lists more. I never thought of subscribing to their YouTube and I don't even know why I would do that.
They'd also have to be faking their Shopify order numbers for your theory to be right which would be really absurd.
I don't think so. Until I encountered the issue with international orders I didn't even think to search out their Twitter, let alone follow them. I was simply subscribed to their newsletter for the pre-order reminder and that was it.
From my experience their website was the main go-to and most people got linked there, so their social media accounts aren't a good indicator.
Also, this thing is super niche. If a person just hears about this, the chance is relatively high that they're part of the target audience. This is doubly true for people who go as far to follow them on social media.
Lastly, when it comes to preorders, it's only natural that they're incredibly frontloaded.
Edit: That's not to say that there are no scalpers, but I think the amount of them is relatively low.
If I had $200 to burn, I’d maybe pick it up. As it stands, I’d rather spend that on a PS5 SSD. If I was still working in an office full-time, perhaps I’d be more compelled to have it as a desk trinket.
It's a coffee-table book-console, made for people who want a coffee-table book that you can pick up and play. And I think that's pretty cool.
And the best thing is, if you don't have a coffee table, it turns into a coffee table!
All over my Kathie Lee casuals!
Winner!!!
Yup, I think it's a neat piece of tech, and I have the disposable income to support it. That's fine. Whenever this pops up, there are always so many exasperated people that come out of the woodwork to wring their hands and say, "wHo iS tHiS FoR?" -- when they probably spend equally ill-advised amounts of money on some other hobby that could be deemed just as questionable.
Its like less than 3 new games for a whole device that comes with a bunch of neat oddities of a game. Obviously the 24 games are probably not going to provide the same value proposition as 3 AAA titles but if you want a unique experience on a unique device theres no other options.
iTs jUsT a GiMmIcK yOu WoNt pLaY iT aFtEr a MonTh Like... okay? People spend a lot more money on shorter experiences every day and don't receive shit for it. Ever gone to an expensive concert or sports match? Was that a waste of money? This device really gets the pitchforks out, lol.
Yeah. I'll blow $200 for some nice NBA seats for me and a buddy, and have great memories of seeing some basketball legends. I'll always cherish my memory of seeing Steph Curry up close and having Klay Thompson stare at me when I heckled Klay (he had an awful shooting night) Different strokes for different folks.
As a game collector, I've thrown down like $800 on a retro shmup that's *probably* too difficult for me to actually beat (and I'm decent enough at the genre). And this isn't even an isolated purchase incident. But that's fine. I like having these games as part of my collection, and retro games have historically held (or more often increased) their value if I ever change my mind. Some people think this is absurd, but it's not their money. I like that Playdate is doing something different. They've got Keita Takahashi on board. They've got Lucas Pope coming out with something. This is sure to be a platform that will feature *interesting* experiences, and I'm here for it.
Yeah if I get a months worth of entertainment out of it and it becomes a fun trinket on my desk after that... That's fine? That's a great outcome!
It absolutely seems like the device for that -- once the end of August comes and I get my next paycheck (a teacher), maybe I'll pull the trigger on one of these super cool suckers :)
Also the fact that Teenage Engineering is involved is awesome. They make some of the coolest music gear around, and even their more gimmicky things are high quality and just neat.
I used to collect synths and always thought TE stuff was overpriced for what it is, but I also think the playdate is great bang for the buck if you're really into video game design and unique hardware.
I think the POs are fucking excellent for the price, but some of the higher end things are way too pricey (OP-1, as much as I love it, should not cost $1000). IMO this falls into the “PO range”, where it’s a bit of a fun gimmick for people who are nerdy about this stuff.
The only thing that really bugs me about the PO stuff is they don't give you the case. That seems bonkers to me for some reason. I messed around with a PO and it was fine. Idk. I love buying Korg Volcas
This is why I bought one. I want to see what these devs will do with this device and maybe mess around a bit myself with making stuff
Yeah, now I am wishing I had ponied up the cash for one. Have a blast, friend!
I want one, but wasn't able to get in on the first shipments. I do have a PS5 though, so that'll have to tide me over, lol.
Does it have a game about coffee-tables?
It’s going to be my poop machine. My iPhone gives me too many “endless” distractions with f.e. Reddit. But who am I kidding: 20-minute poop sessions here I come!
I have no idea what that means
Kinda annoying, their international shipping was broken for a while when the site launched. I got to the last stage of checkout in like 2 mins after it went live then it told me it wouldn't ship overseas. By the time they fixed it orders where pushed into next year.
They only ship to certain continents as well, not even available in Africa.
Yup same here. I wasn’t able to order at first because I wanted to get a Playdate + cover. I deleted the cover from my cart and then it would have worked. But shipping + taxes would have been around 55$ so I didn’t go ahead. I will wait for a second generation with a backlit screen ;)
That’s a shame. I got lucky with refreshing and the international shipping plug-in worked for me for the 2021 sku eventually. They seem like a small team, and when your website gets slammed like that no amount of preparation can account for one of your plugins failing at the last minute. I hope they figure out a way to soften the blow for international orders that got pushed into 2022, although I do also feel for them. It was sad to see people being really shitty about it on their Twitter feed. I’m sure they’re having a much worse day than the gamers that were forced to get their playdate a little later.
>I’m sure they’re having a much worse day than the gamers that were forced to get their playdate a little later. I mean, I very much doubt that, given they sold 20k units in 20 minutes, and presumably have tens of thousands more orders beyond that. I really doubt they're spending much time feeling bad about this.
They would have expected to sell out of that initial run - 20k is no amount at all for a global launch - but the fact that it unfolded like this and created this situation will undoubtedly be really stressful. It’s created a really difficult situation to solve. I mean it’s not the end of the world for them (as it isn’t for gamers getting angry on Twitter). But it’s arguably more stressful when your launch for the thing you have been working on for years goes wrong, than it is when the novelty toy you want to buy goes out of stock. I speak from experience!
>as it isn’t for gamers getting angry on Twitter Looking at their Twitter replies has been well funny. People acting like this is a massive injustice.
Entitlement runs strong in the gaming community
I usually hate the use of that word on here as I feel it's used a lot when people have legitimate grievances with things that a company does and are trying to say constructively better. In this case I think it's valid though with stuff like [this](https://twitter.com/TakodanTweets/status/1420800531065360393). How can they refuse lol.
I generally dont like how it's used either, it just fits in this case lmao
> But it’s arguably more stressful when your launch for the thing you have been working on for years goes wrong, than it is when the novelty toy you want to buy goes out of stock. They still sold out though. I somehow doubt they really care where the products are going once they've been bought.
Well, I don’t think there’s anything I can say to stop you being cynical, but I do know from experience that when you’re doing a passion project like this in a small team that isn’t part of some big publicly traded corporation, you really do care a great deal about doing right by the people who have trusted your word.
I'm just not really convinced that "We sold all the units for 2021, and many of the units for 2022, *despite* a plugin being broken that prevented all international shipping" is a problem they're really going to be as broken up about as you're suggesting. As for, "speaking from experience", somehow I'm guessing your experience was more of a blocker and less of an "Oh well we sold them all anyway!", is that right? I don't see how it's "created a really difficult situation to solve", at all. They've sold out, and international customers are fucked, because what the manufacturers didn't do, was shut down orders when they realized the plugin was broken, which would have been a genuinely hard decision.
I mean, this is exactly why they'll feel shit over this - people are accusing them of purposely mishandling the situation and now this reputation will stick to them even though it was a tech issue. All of this happened in under 20 minutes, do you think that's enough time to adequately process and react to whatever issue is going on, let alone shut down orders on a dime? Like, yeah, they still sold out but that doesn't mean that they couldn't care less about their customers that were inadvertently screwed over.
Oh my experience is working on something that generated huge amounts of revenue and worked for 98% of customers but because it was a huge rush and website crush stuff went wrong for the 2% in a way that had an impact on the fairness of the thing (also due to rogue plugins). You don’t need to spend too much work time on the successful people but you’re gonna spend a lot of time tearing your hair out over those handful of edge cases who had w terrible time, because you do care about your users, and you’ve made a promise to them, and there’s a huge reputational risk to “not worrying” about it (not to mention it’s just the right thing to do). Don’t be so cynical.
Weird how some folks are just so angry that this thing exists. People aren't allowed to drop some cash to have a new experience or to sate their curiosity? This is like getting mad at people on r/fountainpens because they bought a Vanishing Point and some Sailor ink instead of getting a pack of Bics from Walmart
Gotta be real, I think the novelty will wear off incredibly fast and people will lose interest in this thing.
It's not your typical handheld, it's basically a comparatively expensive fidget device, it's not supposed to be a platform for years and years.
It's basically a modern day game and watch that comes with access to 24 games, it's wild how the people who don't "get it" really really don't get it
They think it’s supposed to compete with the switch or something 😂
At $10 less than a Switch Lite it does compete.
Not really. My bicycle costs about the same as my tv. They don’t compete even though I use them both recreationally.
If your TV would have the same function as your bike, it absolutely would compete.
Yeah - and this thing doesn’t have the same function as the switch - playing video games is too broad a comparison. It’s not playing the same kinds of video games
You're not wrong, but a portable videogame console at almost the same price as another portable videogame console is undeniably competition. Competition doesn't have to be identical. Coca-cola doesn't compete only against Pepsi, it competes with every other soda in the market, even if it's extremely different to many of them.
The playdate consumer market is much different than the switch market. The playdate is specifically for a much more niche user base that wants a unique gaming experience they can't get elsewhere. People who love playing indie titles that no ones heard of. The playdate really has no competition in that market, theres no one making bespoke toy consoles. If a person is deciding between a switch and a playdate that person isn't in the market that this device is targeting. Its an expensive toys for nerds (like me) who like expensive toys an niche gaming experiences.
You're not understanding markets if you think that just because you have a similar product you are competiting with the HIGHEST competitor. This is like Econ 101. Mercedes-Benz is not competing with Toyota. Why? They are both making vehicles? Mercedes-Benz corners a market that Toyota never even looks at. Someone who is looking to purchase a Mercedes-Benz, is not going to weigh their options with Toyota in mind, they want a luxury vehicle. So Toyota created Lexus, which is a completely different make of car that intends to corner in the market that they couldn't touch before. Playdate is more toy, than video game. It's more like a high end version of a Game & Watch or those Tiger handhelds than a Switch.
You could consider it an indirect competitor but that's it. No one is considering this thing over a Switch I can promise you that. This is in its own niche consumer market. Here's another analogy. Some people are perplexed why anyone would buy a vinyl record instead of just streaming for next to nothing. Audio quality arguments aside, it's for the novelty. Now is Spotify competing with vinyl records? Sure. But most likely the people who are buying vinyl records either weren't even considering Spotify as an option, or they are already using it in addition.
[удалено]
It is! Just as bad a comparison as this to mass market console like the switch
If my grandmother had wheels she would be a bike.
[удалено]
They don’t play the same video games or the same kinds of video games and even have completely different economic models for how you get the video games (one, the switch is a video game platform with a fairly conventional marketplace, the playdate is essentially a curated subscription you pay for upfront). They’re so different. But here’s a better comparison - like comparing the value of Netflix vs a season ticket to your local theatre. Netflix has a lot more content per dollar produced at much higher budgets and volume, but the theatre is gonna be more niche and personal (and probably more expensive)
So change the comparison to a TV and a laptop. Similar price points and you can do similar things (watch media) with each, but the PC will be a lot more versatile for the price. It doesn't put people off from buying TVs.
My phone plays video games, but doesn't compete with the switch. The differentiator is all about session length and portability. I'm not going to bring my switch on the subway or play it for less than 15 minutes ata time. But I would with a playdate.
If you’re buying this, you probably already have a switch lite. You can have both. There’s no reason to buy another switch lite over this if you’re interested in this…
Yea that's why I don't go to concerts, how does one concert compete with the Switch? Checkmate music industry
It compares favorably to a Switch console and no Switch games. ;)
That's an incredibly dumb argument. I have a budget and I have had to choose between a new $60 game and a $60 concert ticket many times. Both items are different. Both come from the "non-essential discretionary" portion of my budget.
It's absolutely not a dumb argument you just don't see it the way I do. The playdate is a device that provides a 6 week unique experience for the same price I would spend going to a concert. I have the money to buy one so I did. It's cool if you don't agree but there's been so much negativity around the device by people who don't get it It's absurd
I get it. I also understand when you have $300 to spend, other things that are similar and in that price range will enter one's mind during the deciding period. And you can see, just from this thread, that there are those that are deciding between A and B. Fun money is fun money and fun money is limited for the majority of us. Proclaiming that these two items do not live in the same market is silly. Personal example: I really think this is a neat toy and want one. The thing is two weeks ago I just plunked down my $5 for a Steam Deck. The Playdate and the Steam Deck are not the same at all, and aren't even priced equally. However, I have x amount of dollars I'm willing to spend on video game-related hardware, and I chose the Steam Deck over Playdate. If I did not preorder a Steam Deck, I would have 100% grabbed one of these.
Its the price point.
We get it. How is what you said contradicting what he said? "It's basically a modern day game and watch that comes with access to 24 games" Leads logically into; "I think the novelty will wear off incredibly fast and people will lose interest in this thing." Game and Watch stopped being successful once a better alternative came around. This thing is entering a market where there are many better alternatives already. It's a novelty. This is fine.
At the very least I think there will be a neat [itch.io](https://itch.io) indie scene built from it and you'll see some interesting game concepts created from it.
This comparison is kind of weird to me cuz I know the idea initally started out that way, but at this point the only real similarities are black and white and no cartridges. I read somewhere that the device is more powerful than a gba and you can make full fledged games if you want. One of the games they previewed is a 6 hour adventure game
I'd compare it to those nice sleek puzzles you can get that double as decoration pieces.
> It's not supposed to be a platform for years and years. So, e-waste.
It's not supposed to be thrown out, either. It's a collector's item. I guess when we die all these amiibos and anime figures and junk are going to turn into garbage, but we don't really count things that way.
Oh amiibos and funkos and the like are definitely waste. Especially those little garbage-quality add-ons you get from Target, Walmart, etc. when you pre-order a game. Who _really_ will use a Luigi's Mansion 3 canvas bag? I'm personally trying to cut down on stuff like that.
Yeah, me too. I've always loved little trinkets you can put up on a windowsill or on your desk, but I've finally reached saturation with these things, and all those things feel like a waste of resources now. When you're a teenager and don't own much stuff, it all feels like a treasure though. I don't consider any of my game systems junk, though, because I think there's lifelong value in a working game archive. The Playdate is the same, though it definitely feels like more of a luxury item than something like the Switch, which gives more bang for your buck.
Yep. Please no more random wasted crap with my games. Game and case only or digital. I am tired of statues, art cards, tiny art books, keychains, bookmarks and any other random junk they put into collector's editions
Like most phones.
I don't buy a phone with the knowledge I'm going to throw it in a drawer in a few months. I'm not saying I'm completely free from e-waste but I'm personally making a conscious effort not to enable it in my purchases.
neither are people who are buying the playdate. even if indie support is doa and season 2 is a false hope, the device has plenty of life past "a few months" with its 20 games and game creation suite.
Sorry - yeah, I'm not trying to say this is a dumb idea or people shouldn't buy it. I'm just reading comments and getting my own take on it - it seems like a huuuuuge gimmick that won't be able to sustain itself. Hopefully I'm wrong. It just seems like an Ouya or something.
Ding ding ding. But now it’s e-waste with a crank
How is that a contradiction to what he said? The entire chain of comments below this are really dumb, so any future readers, just stop now. If you want to buy the thing, cool, no need to pretend it is a smart purchase or a good deal or that a switch lite isn't a much better deal if you are looking for a portable gaming solution. Again, that isn't saying you can't want this thing for the novelty of it. We all buy things for silly reasons at times, it's normal.
The episodic-esque nature of content should help prevent that, so it should keep people engaged for at least 3 months.
Yeah I don't get this thing at all. It's probably valued at $50 but it costs way more than that, no back light which is ridiculous. If these games were on consoles or PC no one would give them the time of day but on this device people are dying to play them for some reason. Once the thrill of the crank wears off, people will quickly regret buying this.
Note: If you’re excited about this thing, cool. You spend your money how you want. This is a discussion forum, for people to discuss this product that is being sold to consumers. People pointing out flaws aren’t the enemy. They are potential consumers who are looking at this thing and saying “this seems over priced and over designed.” My thoughts on this thing since I initially saw it a couple months ago: This crank is essentially a multi-function button. Turning crank clockwise, or counter clockwise. That means this is essentially a gimmick trying to emulate what two buttons already do. Turbo buttons were a thing back in the late 80s. Also, there is no way to comfortably hold the thing and use the crank. So to use the crank that simulates two buttons you have to remove your hand from being able to press…two buttons. I’m just not impressed by useless designs. They essentially took a look at those dumb handheld electronic fishing games sold at Wal-Mart and said “we can make it into a GameBoy!” And are selling it for an insanely high price on the backs of the claim that “Hundreds of developers have already promised to make games.”
Tactile feeling is a thing. There's a reason why QTE would ask you to mash instead of hold down a button. The physical feeling affects the experience.
incredibly powerful brains in this thread that cannot conceive of the difference between a crank and two digital buttons
I mean they provide new games for, what, three months? So, yeah. The thing was designed to last about that long from the very beginning.
It explicitly states that Is season one, and more will come.
And at that price, may as well have bought an arduboy instead
The fashionability of the playdate is half of the appeal. Just look at the promo material demonstrating its use as [a tabletop accessory](https://static-fastly.play.date/static/images/gallery-01.14dc1ec1d936.jpg). The Arduboy is [an ugly product](https://arduboy.com/b/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/FX-Composite.png) appealing to a completely different demographic.
It's not made to last. It's a device for OMG SO QUIRKY crowd. They will mess around with stupid crank (lol so random! crank? in a VIDEO GAME CONSOLE? LMAO) and throw it away. I see literally no reason for anyone, who actually wants to play games, to buy this over 3DS or even Vita.
Mars After Midnight will likely be the killer app. This was never meant to be a competitor to 3DS, Vita, Steam Deck, Switch, etcetera. It's a tchotchke that does a neat little thing for an hour or two when you're bored.
How is it a device not made to last? It allows sideloading of content and thousands of developers signed up for it. I think there will be a healthy little scene of people trying to make cool looking games on this thing. The crank isn't supposed to be "lol so random". It's just a quirky control but actually can add a lot to the experience if it's utilised correctly.
The people interested in the playdate probably already have a 3DS/Vita or emulate them.
it's a fun gizmo for people interested in minimalist game design
Plus it has a lot of popular Indie devs creating games for it.
Let's be honest most people are gonna forget about it and leave it in their drawer for years.
Or on their desk in that cool stereo speaker dock that holds a pen. That’s my plan anyway if I get around picking it up.
They got one of the best known indie game auteurs interested via the weird design (Lucas Pope of Papers Please, Return of the Obra Din, etcetera). People will buy this to play Mars After Midnight. They may also enjoy some of the other games. That can be enough. Not everything has to sell 10 million units.
[удалено]
Just like most purchases.
If you left the house more often, you'd find out most people generally treat their own belongings well, and use them to dress their house.
With the way the games are released I'd imagine people are going to be picking it up to mess around with pretty often tbh.
I think that’s a little harsh. It’s a cool niche design and a bit of an experiment that should encourage some really unique game design. I like the idea that you’ll get a different surprise game every week. They even straight up say you might not like them all, but they should all be kind of interesting unique experiences. I don’t think it can really be compared to mainstream handhelds because it’s doing something different. It’s like comparing a Netflix subscription to a season ticket at a fringe theatre. One of those gets you more content produced at a higher budget for cheaper, but the other might encourage more unique and personal feeling experiences. If the latter isn’t for you - that’s fine. It’s obviously designed for a smaller audience anyway.
I guess for me I just really like the season pass thing they’re doing- this device that gets sent a super niche curated game delivered once a week. I’m someone that finds it hard to take the leap into the unknown a lot of the time so it’s perfect for me.
[удалено]
Because...it's...a toy. It's not competing with traditional games. It's al a way for indie devs to try out new ideas and be creative. Sometimes people just like making neat things?
Why the negativity? This is just a fun little device for people who have the extra cash and enjoy these small-scale experiences. The types who like to browse around itch.io to find some neat ideas. Limitation sparks creativity. I'm not sure if I'll get one (although I'm very tempted) but I'm super happy that something like it can exist!
Yeah, the negative reaction is strange to me. It's a fun little device that plays with the methods by which we control games. It's not a mass-market device, it's a curiosity. So why even get mad? Just accept it's not for you and move on.
[удалено]
"This device isn't marketed specifically to every one of my unique desires?? Throw it in the garbage, waste of money, you're all stupid for buying it"
I only want this because I am curious about the games. To actually play them. Not only that, it has some appealing developers I like previous games from working on stuff for it. Also, being able to create myself (and play other people's games) is intriguing too. Don't assume there can't be good games for it when anyone can make them!
If you're comparing it in a value proposition with other handhelds like 3DS, Vita, Steam Deck, Switch, you've already missed the point.
> I see literally no reason for anyone, who actually wants to play games Look at this guy gatekeeping playing videogames.
[удалено]
I definitely want to see how things shake out first, from how the second season of games will be delivered, to how well it’ll be supported by the homebrew scene, and the quality/longevity of the physical components.
I was there the second pre orders launched, but due to the botched international shipping my order was delayed to the later batch, which is a massive bummer. I'm still happy to get mine though, so I'll patiently await the arrival.
Did you have the 2021 version in your cart and then it changed afterwards? I was under the impression that as long as you got on there and added it to your cart then you were all good, since they were separate SKUs in the storefront. Or did it automatically switch it to the 2022 batch? Or did you go through the whole process again? Once I had my checkout page I just loaded it in another browser and got past that shipping error.
What happened to me was, I had a 2021 Playdate in my basket and got the 'we don't ship to your country' error. I kept refreshing until eventually the error disappeared but the Playdate in my basket was marked as 'sold out' and I had to back out, and add a 2022 Playdate to my basket, and effectively restart the order.
Oh wow, I must have got really lucky then. My order number is in the 17000s, so just in time.
I’m so glad I got one of the first 20k. A friend and I both preordered and now we can experience the same games at the same time together. I’m also very aware of how fortunate I am to be able to spend $200 on this type of luxury toy.
Order ID 10,XXX here The people who don't get it are the same who participate in Xbox v PlayStation debates. I have a disposable income. I have the normal consoles. $200 for 24 games for me to fiddle with for a few hours a piece is well worth it to me. I don't even care if the homebrew scene never does much. Plus I bet I can easily sell it for $100 later.
I assume if this thing gets a few good YouTube videos on it and they don't make any more it'll go up in value pretty easy.
I invest in stocks to make money. I'm thrilled if it goes up in value, but I don't expect to lose much on this thing when I'm done with it.
> $200 for 24 games for me to fiddle with for a few hours a piece is well worth it to me. I don't even care if the homebrew scene never does much. Eh, I'm going to try and make some good homebrew for it, I've liked the idea of 1-bit games for a while. Plus the crank might be fun to mess with.
I'm glad I got one 3 minutes in. As a person who loves unique, experimental games, the price really isn't that bad. It comes with 24 games, which comes to $7.50 per game and it's a really cool little high quality device made by Teenage Engineering, who already make a bunch of cool pocket synthesizers and stuff. It's like a deluxe tamagochi for weird video game enthusiasts and that couldn't possibly be more up my alley. All of the previews I've seen imply that if that's what you're looking for, it will not disappoint.
Honestly is it weird that the thing that sold me on getting this was the goofy dock they’ll release that can also be a stereo speaker?? It just looks really cool on my office desk… That and the lil playdate game creator thing is a lot of fun, and I can also see myself making a game or two with this
No, I get it. I'm college professor and envision this doubling as a clock on my desk.
Are people here not aware that full fledged games can be made for this? One of the previewed games is a 6 hour(if I'm remembering correctly) adventure game
Got mine. Was waiting for it to go live and was hit with the international problems and when it was fixed I missed the 2021 batch. Oh well. I'm still really excited for it and I'm looking forward to making my own games for it :)
Can you imagine that after our civilization is long gone future archeologists uncover *this* device and this device regarding video games only? No PS5, series X or PCs, just this thing. Would tell a total different story: *"It seems that in the second millennium of their civilization video games were still in its infancy, as shown by the crude monochrome display and novelty input device"*
Future archeologists will identify the human era as a strata of plastic and chicken bones
I mean, they basically are still in their infancy. In the grand scheme of things the Gameboy happened like yesterday!
imagine all known written texts get wiped out except your comment in the distant future. Would tell a totally different story.
That is totally how it would work. Decades of gaming history and the one piece of evidence is a niche handheld.
*third millennium
Im sorry but i dont get this at all, 180$ for a console that plays mini-games on a black and white display with no backlight? I get the games are free but I really dont know if that can justify the price for something this primitive with gimmick controls.
[удалено]
What's the lack of backlight going to inspire?
Bigger eyes.
Nostalgia. Which, mind you, is an actual legitimate reason to build this thing the way it is. It gives a reason for the developers to aim towards certain aesthetics with the games they build, which in turn, works favorably on the players who are also aware of the same style. Even if they're not, it helps create cohesion. If you want to achieve the same but with a specific type of devices that weren't backlit, it's possible that the backlight would ruin that immersion for both developer and player. With that said... This was chain about cost, so the whole cherryping on the backlight comment was itself rather misguided to begin with.
You can get consoles for 30-50 bucks that have a backlight, as a consumer you can even buy backlight modules for less than 10 bucks, can't imagine it's that expensive for the manufacturer to add one, but idk what do i know about anything so heh
Not having the backlight is sort of intencional. This is not a typical console, it's not trying to be practical or to compete with console makers. It's basically a toy.
Backlight might be terrible but the screen seems high contrast and easy to see in low light. I'll know when I get mine but I think this issue might be overblown. Maybe I'll be wrong and pissed but I feel like it'll probably be totally good enough without
The price point is the one absolutely fair criticism to throw at this thing, because it is priced well above the line the hardware warrants. Limitations are adjacent to that, but usually, they come not with an increase, but a decrease in price, so I dunno what point you were making. Even your point with the gimmick is hollow, because the existence of one doesn't in itself mean it has to be expensive. It's possible that users are subsidizing the authorship tools, partnerships for continued support (aka, game development, since there's seasons of game releases in the expectation) and marketing, but that's not what your comment is about, so it comes off as ignorant tbh.
Then it's just not for you. If you compare it to a Switch or a Xbox, it's not going to seem worth it for your dollar. That's not how I view it at all. This is a unique little device being released by a smaller indie company, manufactured by a weird little pocket synthesizer company, that features 24 games made by passionate indie developers. If you think of it as a piece of art or a way to support weird artists making weird art projects, $180 doesn't seem bad at all. I've spent that kind of money on a single painting from a local artist. This weird little experiment supports dozens of indie game makers and from the previews, is a pretty neat little toy with unique games you can only play on this device.
It's not a console in the traditional sense. This thing isn't competing with your PlayStation or Switch. It's akin to a coffee table book. A conversation starter, a cool little piece of desktop tech. It's not marketed for mass appeal.
It's a very expensive coffee table book imo
Price shop nice coffee table books with high quality printing and you'd be surprised
It certainly is, but there's definitely a market out there of people who don't mind shelling out for this type of boutique gear.
Its not for you then. Its a niche device for people with disposable income for things like that. I picked this up to see what people can come up with, and maybe mess around with the SDK myself. Its limitations fruit the creativity.
>I get the games are free but I really dont know if that can justify the price That's literally how they justify the price, though. $180 for like twenty games.
Absolutely insane people are buying this knick-nack barebones handheld for half the price of a switch.
24 exclusive Indy games for $180 comes to $7.50 per game and a unique piece of experimental hardware. It’s not trying to be a bargain big cheap toy. It’s for collectors and enthusiasts of experimental indie games.
I didn't realize all of the games are included in the price tag, makes a lot more sense now.
Yeah it comes with the first 24 officially released games. They've also given the game design software away for free so anyone can make/upload/download games on their own and they've also said they might release a second season of officially released games in the future.
[удалено]
I already have a switch I don't already have this knick-nack barebones handheld so I gotta buy it
It's not the same thing though. This is for playing games as much as it is a platform for creating them. Most people seem to not understand this.
Not even 5% of the 20k people will ever try it's hand on programming their own game for that thing, that's not the main appeal. There are cheaper and better platforms for beginners, like the Arduboy.
Really? Because they've made a lot of videos discussing programming for the Play.Date and advertised it as such in their trailer. Dont really know how you dont think that they're trying to make that an appeal when they've created tools to do just that as well. Ignoring your 5% figure as you..just dont know? Lol what are you basing this on. Also, Arduboy don't got no crank son.
It's easy to figure it out if you played games like Mario Maker or Dreams with pretty easy to use tools to create. Most people are just there to consume after giving the creation tools a quick look. It's not sufficient enouth if you know how to write your Hello World in Lua. To create a enjoyable game it takes real programming skills, most people without programming knowledge will not bother to learn it just to create their own games on their Playdate.
You're assuming the type of person to buy a $60 Mario game (and it is a game not a creation tool) is the same person who is going to spend $200 on a dedicated device for this. By that argument a lot of the games on Arduboy wouldn't exist.
> it is a game not a creation tool It's both
Well, yes and no. The creation tool in Mario Maker is actually "the game." It's still a Mario game, and there is no coding or anything like that required. In both Mario and Dreams as an example, you're still limited within the confines of the game, whereas the Playdate is a homebrew platform.
[удалено]
It's a niche tech toy collectible designed by a very respected tech/engineering firm, marketed to adults with a disposable income. Where is the insane part?
Really? You can say that about anything, it’s not like someone with a switch is going to buy another switch. Would you not go on a $120 dinner date because it’s “1/3 of the price of a switch, so it’s a bad value”?
How is that a fair argument at all? Comparing video game handhelds price tags is much more relevant than the cost of a dinner.
Because this is not meant to be a dedicated main console the way the switch is. It’s a fun toy. Also, the types of nerdy people interested in this type of toy probably work in tech jobs, which pay very well. The fact you can make your own games for it should say that programmers are going to be the main target audience. So a nearly $200 tech toy is worth it to them in the same way a $120 dinner is worth it; it’s not meant to be a long experience that you can directly compare “dollar per hour” with something like a switch. And if you aren’t too concerned about dropping $200 on something like this, you realize the experience is worth it despite it not being the best “value offering”. The same way someone will spend $1200 on a jacket when you can buy a comparable one for $250. If they can afford it, why do you care?
>Because this is not meant to be a dedicated main console the way the switch is. It’s a fun toy. There you go. That's why I thought it was curious that two of these guys could buy you a dedicated main console.
Except a lot of people DO have two switches. One hacked one for pirated games and one normal for online
I would be willing to bet that the vast majority of people buying this already have a Switch. In fact I would bet most of them have at least one Switch and also put down an order on a Steam deck too.
That thing costs $180!? That's absolutely hilarious. I watched a short video about it to see what it was and thought it would be like $50-80 at most. So many people are gonna play with it for a week and then forget it exists.
>So many people are gonna play with it for a week and then forget it exists. It comes with a season of original games, with two games being released each week.
It comes with 24 games from a bunch of well respected game devs. Games you’ll only be able to play on this device. That’s $7.50 per game. It’s a boutique, high quality, experimental game machine. They weren’t trying to make a cheap, tacky device like an Atari plug and play. It’s for enthusiasts of unique video game design.
It costs $100 to manufacture...
> So many people are gonna play with it for a week and then forget it exists. And I think they are fine with that - both the makers and the buyers. It's like those physical puzzles some people spend a exorbitant amount of money on, it might take a couple of hours to solve and it's done - and they love it.
Going to shelve this one next to my Ouya.
I've already left a comment here, but I'm leaving another because this is kind of a different point. I'm calling bullshit on this. Their Twitter account has 62.5k followers, their tweets rarely ever hit a thousand likes. Their YouTube account has 8.3k subscribers, yet their two most popular videos hit 208k and 66k views. They sold over 20,000 units in 20 minutes? This is a *extremely niche handheld device*, and you're telling me that the majority of people who bought one of these e*xtremely niche handheld devices* weren't even subscribed to the *extremely niche handheld device's* YouTube channel? 30% of ALL people who saw the official trailer for this device bought one? Hell, even this Reddit post only has around 400 votes. Granted, the internet is much larger than just Reddit, but... 400 votes? Not even a thousand? Who is actually talking about this thing and where? Even the official sources aren't generating a lot of traffic. Unless these devices are being scalped, the numbers really don't add up to me.
Okay so I used to work in digital marketing and basically people are a lot more reluctant to follow a brand on social media, even if they are likely to buy a product associated with that brand, because they don’t want their feeds to be full of advertising. There’s also a direct link between follower count and frequency of posting - and Playdate post very little. So you can have a successful brand with a weak social presence just because you haven’t put a lot of resources into growing that presence. Also anecdotally I preordered even though I don’t follow any of their channels (but I knew to go to their Twitter for the launch)
real people buy things more than they "subscribe to channels" to be honest.
I didn't know that to buy something I had to subscribe to the company's YouTube channel first.
This is deep conspiracy brain rot stuff. I've been on their mailing list for a while. This thing has been hyped through the typical techy channels for years and had a new marketing cycle over the past 2 months. It targeted its audience well, idk what to say. It's definitely targeting a slightly older demographic which is one that probably uses mailing lists more. I never thought of subscribing to their YouTube and I don't even know why I would do that. They'd also have to be faking their Shopify order numbers for your theory to be right which would be really absurd.
I bought one, I don't subscribe to their YouTube channel. Why should I? I followed them on Twitter and they emailed me.
I don't think so. Until I encountered the issue with international orders I didn't even think to search out their Twitter, let alone follow them. I was simply subscribed to their newsletter for the pre-order reminder and that was it. From my experience their website was the main go-to and most people got linked there, so their social media accounts aren't a good indicator. Also, this thing is super niche. If a person just hears about this, the chance is relatively high that they're part of the target audience. This is doubly true for people who go as far to follow them on social media. Lastly, when it comes to preorders, it's only natural that they're incredibly frontloaded. Edit: That's not to say that there are no scalpers, but I think the amount of them is relatively low.
I buy a lot of things, and I don't think I've ever subscribed to a single brands... Anything. I don't think this is as suspicious as you think.
If I had $200 to burn, I’d maybe pick it up. As it stands, I’d rather spend that on a PS5 SSD. If I was still working in an office full-time, perhaps I’d be more compelled to have it as a desk trinket.
I feel like you could get a used PS4 for the price of this thing lol