5 ms·

> It's so janky. People who've had a chance to use one generally disagree. > Looks painful to hold, People who've had a chance to use one generally disagree.

> It's so janky. People who've had a chance to use one generally disagree. > Looks painful to hold, People who've had a chance to use one generally disagree. > the games look like crappy flash games in monochrome The graphics look like low-res 2D monochrome graphics. If that's not your cup of tea, that's fine. > the crank is just going to break off. [citation needed] > What am I missing? You're assuming the absolute worst about a product you've never seen, held, or used yourself.

elliottkember 5y ago
Sadly this seems to be very common here nowadays. HN is not really a place of encouragement. I think it sounds like fun.
- caconym_ 5y ago
  The internet will tell you that eating at a Michelin star restaurant is a waste of money because you could just go to McDonald's. Personally, I think both have their place.
- temp_account001 5y ago
  There are some very novel, occasionally brilliant things on HN. This just doesn't happen to be one of them, IMO. Fun at $50, extremely overpriced at nearly $200 considering the competition. No real innovation. A crank that rips off Sands of Times's primary mechanic, except you have to take your hands off the already tiny thing to crank a tinier crank? Cool, I guess...? To each their own.
  - elliottkember 5y ago
    Thanks for letting us all know, in no uncertain terms, how you feel about this thing that you don't want to buy. It's very important that we all hear about how you don't like this thing you haven't tried.
b0tzzzzzzman 5y ago
Wonderful statements...
deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
temp_account001 5y ago
I'm assuming the worst about a product I've never seen, perhaps, but only because I've used plenty of other products at a similar price point that seem MUCH better: Switch, Vita, various Android phones -- all mature technologies using much better hardware designed with proper adult ergonomics and with huge game libraries. And then for not much more you're into Xbox Series S and Oculus Quest 2 territory. Or for much less, you can get the $60 NES Classic/Sega Genesis Mini/Atari Flashback X with actual proven, authentically historic games for some real nostalgia. Or make your own MAME/Dolphin/etc. cabinet in any form factor you want. I got a Carmen San Diego portable console as an xmas stocking stuffer last year, and THAT thing was awesome, featuring surprisingly retro but functional controls, a beautiful screen, a silly Mac Classic lookalike case, and the full fidelity of the old game. It also cost $20, not $200. Any of those would offer more gameplay and a tremendously better value. This thing would've been cool at $50, because it's probably built better than the $20 no-name Chinese consoles (https://www.alibaba.com/trade/search?fsb=y&IndexArea=product_en&CatId=&SearchText=portable+game https://www.alibaba.com/trade/search?fsb=y&IndexArea=product...). But it definitely reminds me of them, especially with its catalog of super generic games that seem like Wii/Mario Party-style mini games... that you have to wait weeks for. At least those no-name Chinese ripoffs come with dozens to hundreds of games to start with. This whole thing just screams "marketing gimmick" all around, like so many junky Kickstarter gadgets that come and go to much fanfare (Ouya comes to mind). Why the hell does it cost so much? It's like someone put together an Arduino tech demo and slapped a designer case on it and marked it up 10x. shrug Again, maybe I'm just not the target market. I'm just struggling to understand who is. Someone else explained it: the makers of these things are apparently famous designers in some circles (music synths, boutique apps). Good for them, I guess, but for a regular ol' gamer like me, no thanks... for portable gaming, I'm much more excited about the Steam Deck or even Stadia/GeForce Now/xCloud on Android + a gamepad adapter.
- caconym_ 5y ago
  I say this to make a point, not to be rude: I am bored by your enumeration of ways to play games that offer "better value" than the Playdate. You are describing platforms that are already open to me, and games that I have already played. If the Playdate can deliver to me something novel and genuinely fun and engaging, that's the value. Will it? That remains to be seen, but it's what Panic is selling.

elliottkember 5y ago

Sadly this seems to be very common here nowadays. HN is not really a place of encouragement. I think it sounds like fun.

caconym_ 5y ago
The internet will tell you that eating at a Michelin star restaurant is a waste of money because you could just go to McDonald's. Personally, I think both have their place.
temp_account001 5y ago
There are some very novel, occasionally brilliant things on HN. This just doesn't happen to be one of them, IMO. Fun at $50, extremely overpriced at nearly $200 considering the competition. No real innovation. A crank that rips off Sands of Times's primary mechanic, except you have to take your hands off the already tiny thing to crank a tinier crank? Cool, I guess...? To each their own.
- elliottkember 5y ago
  Thanks for letting us all know, in no uncertain terms, how you feel about this thing that you don't want to buy. It's very important that we all hear about how you don't like this thing you haven't tried.

b0tzzzzzzman 5y ago

Wonderful statements...

deleted 5y ago

[deleted]

temp_account001 5y ago

I'm assuming the worst about a product I've never seen, perhaps, but only because I've used plenty of other products at a similar price point that seem MUCH better: Switch, Vita, various Android phones -- all mature technologies using much better hardware designed with proper adult ergonomics and with huge game libraries. And then for not much more you're into Xbox Series S and Oculus Quest 2 territory. Or for much less, you can get the $60 NES Classic/Sega Genesis Mini/Atari Flashback X with actual proven, authentically historic games for some real nostalgia. Or make your own MAME/Dolphin/etc. cabinet in any form factor you want. I got a Carmen San Diego portable console as an xmas stocking stuffer last year, and THAT thing was awesome, featuring surprisingly retro but functional controls, a beautiful screen, a silly Mac Classic lookalike case, and the full fidelity of the old game. It also cost $20, not $200. Any of those would offer more gameplay and a tremendously better value. This thing would've been cool at $50, because it's probably built better than the $20 no-name Chinese consoles (https://www.alibaba.com/trade/search?fsb=y&IndexArea=product_en&CatId=&SearchText=portable+game https://www.alibaba.com/trade/search?fsb=y&IndexArea=product...). But it definitely reminds me of them, especially with its catalog of super generic games that seem like Wii/Mario Party-style mini games... that you have to wait weeks for. At least those no-name Chinese ripoffs come with dozens to hundreds of games to start with. This whole thing just screams "marketing gimmick" all around, like so many junky Kickstarter gadgets that come and go to much fanfare (Ouya comes to mind). Why the hell does it cost so much? It's like someone put together an Arduino tech demo and slapped a designer case on it and marked it up 10x. shrug Again, maybe I'm just not the target market. I'm just struggling to understand who is. Someone else explained it: the makers of these things are apparently famous designers in some circles (music synths, boutique apps). Good for them, I guess, but for a regular ol' gamer like me, no thanks... for portable gaming, I'm much more excited about the Steam Deck or even Stadia/GeForce Now/xCloud on Android + a gamepad adapter.

caconym_ 5y ago
I say this to make a point, not to be rude: I am bored by your enumeration of ways to play games that offer "better value" than the Playdate. You are describing platforms that are already open to me, and games that I have already played. If the Playdate can deliver to me something novel and genuinely fun and engaging, that's the value. Will it? That remains to be seen, but it's what Panic is selling.