Skip to main content

Filed under:

The Playdate has been out since April 2022 — here’s how it’s going

In a time when video game consoles are becoming more powerful and more connected than ever and AAA games are massive, bloated endeavors, Untitled Goose Game publisher Panic decided to go back to basics with the now $199 Playdate: a minuscule yellow handheld about the size of a Post-it note with a non-backlit black-and-white screen and a fishing pole-style crank on one side in addition to a D-pad and three face buttons.

Its design looks like it could’ve easily fit into Nintendo’s or Sega’s hardware stable in the early aughts, with games that similarly reflect some of the most fun, experimental games of the day.

That’s fitting: early developers for the system are responsible for some of the most unique and indelible gaming experiences from that time, like Katamari Damacy and the ever-maddening QWOP. Its games are delivered in seasons (the first one’s free), but users can also sideload community-made games if they want to.

  • Jay Peters

    Jan 20, 2022

    Jay Peters

    You can now make a Playdate game right in your browser

    Playdate Pulp is in public beta.
    Playdate Pulp is in public beta.
    Image: Playdate

    Panic, the maker of the quirky Playdate handheld, has released a public beta of its Playdate Pulp in-browser game builder. The company describes it as “a friendly tool for making tiny but visually and narratively rich games for Playdate,” in its developer documentation.

    In the Pulp editor, you’ll be able to do things like make pixel graphics, build levels, write music, and even create custom fonts. As you’re working on your game, you can test it right in your browser, and when you’re ready, you can export your game as a .pdx file (a clever reference to Panic’s Portland roots) so you can load it onto a Playdate handheld. You don’t have to write any code to make a game in Pulp, but if you do want to try your hand at some coding, you can use the PulpScript scripting language.

    Read Article >
  • Jay Peters

    Nov 11, 2021

    Jay Peters

    Panic’s Playdate handheld delayed to early 2022

    Photo by Sam Byford / The Verge

    Panic has delayed the first shipments of its Playdate handheld, which is kind of like a Game Boy but with a crank, to early 2022. The company said that initial units shipped with batteries that didn’t work as expected, forcing it to send the units back to Malaysia to get new batteries.

    Panic also said that it has been affected by the global chip shortage in a significant way. Additional supply of the Playdate’s current CPU won’t be available for two years, according to Panic. To get around that, Playdate units coming later in 2022 will have a revised main board that uses a more readily available CPU.

    Read Article >
  • Chaim Gartenberg

    Aug 23, 2021

    Chaim Gartenberg

    See how the Playdate’s crank cranks in new teardown

    Photo: iFixit

    The Playdate is one of the most interesting pieces of new gaming hardware in years, with a fun, colorful design that evokes old handhelds like the Game Boy and a unique crank for interacting with games.

    And thanks to the good folks at iFixit (to whom Panic sent a Playdate specifically for disassembly purposes), we’ve now gotten a good look inside at the upcoming handheld — and how that crank actually works.

    Read Article >
  • Andrew Webster

    Jul 22, 2021

    Andrew Webster

    Playdate hands-on: a Game Boy from a different dimension

    Playdate
    Photo: Panic

    If things go as expected, four new dedicated video game handhelds will launch this year. And each is primed to offer something different. The next Switch has a brighter, more vibrant OLED screen; Valve’s Steam Deck is a gaming PC in your hands; and Analogue’s Pocket handheld recreates the original Game Boy hardware while adding modern upgrades like a better LCD display and the option to connect to an HDTV.

    And then there’s the Playdate from Panic. Whereas the aforementioned handhelds are almost uniformly technological upgrades, the Playdate offers something much weirder. It looks kind of like a Game Boy that comes from an alien world. There are familiar elements, like a D-pad and face buttons, but many of its games are controlled by a crank that slots into the side. And those games are only available in black and white, and they’ll eventually be released as part of weekly mystery drops.

    Read Article >
  • Cameron Faulkner

    Jul 22, 2021

    Cameron Faulkner

    Here’s when and how you can preorder the Playdate handheld

    Photo by Sam Byford / The Verge

    Playdate, the quirky new handheld with a black-and-white screen and a crank on its side created by Panic and co-designed with Teenage Engineering, will be available for preorder starting Thursday, July 29th at 1PM ET / 10AM PT. You’ll be able to secure a unit through the site play.date for $179. It’ll start shipping later this year in select countries, though the company still doesn’t have a concrete release date for the portable device. You can also preorder the Playdate Cover accessory that can protect the device for $29. If you preorder, you’ll be charged immediately, but Panic says you can cancel at any time for a full refund.

    Panic co-founder Cabel Sasser shared last month in a video update that “the sooner you order, the sooner you’ll get one, but we’re not going to close the door on you.” So, even if you’re a bit late to ordering, at least you won’t have to panic to get Panic’s Playdate. According to Panic, the first 20,000 or so units will ship toward the end of 2021, and orders after that will ship in 2022.

    Read Article >
  • Sam Byford

    Jun 8, 2021

    Sam Byford

    Playdate preorders begin next month, and here are the first games

    Panic has announced that the Playdate, its $179 handheld console with a crank and a black-and-white screen, will be available to preorder in July with shipping starting later in the year. The company doesn’t have a specific date lined up just yet, but says it’ll provide at least a week’s notice before orders open.

    Panic is doing its best to avoid a PS5/RTX 3080-type stock situation by implementing its own ordering system. “The sooner you order, the sooner you’ll get one, but we’re not going to close the door on you,” says co-founder Cabel Sasser in a video update.

    Read Article >
  • Jay Peters

    Jun 4, 2021

    Jay Peters

    The tiny Playdate handheld gets a price bump but double the games

    Photo by Sam Byford / The Verge

    Panic is finally sharing some more information about its delayed Playdate, the tiny yellow handheld with a crank. The quirky little gadget is going up in price, launching at $179 instead of $149, but its first “season” of games that will be rolled out to the Playdate over time is being doubled from 12 to 24. The device will also have 4GB of storage instead of 2GB.

    The company is also announcing a Playdate Update video set for June 8th at 12PM ET where it will share news, a look at games coming to the device, and information on preorders. The company says that preorders won’t go up immediately following the update, so don’t worry if you can’t catch the show live. You’ll be able to watch the 15-minute Playdate Update on Panic’s YouTube channel.

    Read Article >
  • Jay Peters

    Mar 24, 2021

    Jay Peters

    Panic’s Playdate handheld will be ready for streamers when it launches sometime this year

    Image: @playdate

    We’re still waiting on a release date for the Playdate, a tiny handheld with a crank made by Untitled Goose Game publisher Panic, but Panic just showed off a new feature for the device on the official Playdate Twitter account: you’ll be able to plug the Playdate in to your computer and mirror its screen.

    As Playdate says in its tweet, there are a lot of potential use-cases for this, including better accessibility and making it easier to stream your Playdate gameplay. And pressing the virtual buttons in the Playdate app will pass them back to your Playdate device, giving you another way to play your games. (It doesn’t look like there’s a virtual crank, but maybe that’s something Panic hasn’t shown off yet.)

    Read Article >
  • Playdate, the tiny handheld with a crank, is delayed to early 2021

    Playdate

    You’ll have to wait a bit longer for Panic’s odd little handheld: In an update published today, the company announced that Playdate will slip from its original 2020 window and now ship in early 2021.

    The device is the software developer’s first piece of physical hardware, a handheld with a unique crank alongside traditional buttons for controlling the device. Teenage Engineering co-designed the Playdate and it bears many of the company’s minimalistic touches in a bright, playful yellow.

    Read Article >
  • Nick Statt

    Aug 12, 2020

    Nick Statt

    Check out some wonderful Playdate game demos, including a low-fi Doom

    playdate
    Photo by Sam Byford / The Verge

    Playdate, the tiny yellow handheld game console from software developer and indie game publisher Panic, is still in the works without a firm release date. But Panic had quite a few new updates to share on Wednesday regarding its growing third-party developer program, including some really interesting-looking indie games being made to run on the Game Boy-inspired gadget.

    One of these titles, from game developer Nic Magnier of Keen Games, is the original Doom, which Magnier inexplicably got running on the monochrome 2.7-inch display. You can even turn the Playdate’s signature physical hand crank, which is an optional control input, to fire the iconic Doom chaingun.

    Read Article >
  • Sam Byford

    Jun 1, 2019

    Sam Byford

    Our first look at Playdate, the world’s cutest game console

    playdate
    Photo by Sam Byford / The Verge

    Panic, the venerable Mac and iOS software firm, made a major splash the other week with the announcement of its first hardware device. The Playdate is a bright yellow handheld gaming console with a monochrome screen; it was co-designed by Swedish hardware wizards Teenage Engineering and features exclusive releases from renowned developers like Zach Gage, Bennett Foddy, and Keita Takahashi.

    I just met with Takahashi at BitSummit, the ever-growing annual indie game festival in Kyoto, and got the chance to play his game Crankin’s Time Travel Adventure on his own Playdate unit. The hardware isn’t finished from a technical perspective — Takahashi’s model is marked “evaluation only” on the back and needed multiple hard resets during our meeting. But from a design perspective, it’s as delightful as I’d hoped.

    Read Article >
  • Andrew Webster

    May 22, 2019

    Andrew Webster

    Playdate is an adorable handheld with games from the creators of Qwop, Katamari, and more

    Playdate

    Panic made its name through high-end Mac software, but more recently, the company moved into gaming, publishing indie hit Firewatch and the upcoming Untitled Goose Game. Now, the developer is expanding its work in games and moving in a very unexpected direction. Today, Panic unveiled Playdate, a tiny, yellow Game Boy-like device with a black-and-white screen, a few chunky buttons, and... a hand crank for controlling quirky games developed by indie stars like Keita Takahashi and Zach Gage.

    The company says that it wanted to create “something truly different in the world of video games.” From the looks of the Playdate, it managed to do just that. “The yellow color immediately made Playdate feel approachable, friendly, and impossible to resist,” says Panic co-founder Cabel Sasser.

    Read Article >