Since its reveal, I’ve been looking forward to the Playdate, and they’re not out in the wild. 

The “Group One” shipment of Playdate consoles was initially meant to ship last year, but a battery issue caused a delay. But the day has now arrived where those who managed to snap a Group One shipment will be getting their hands on a Playdate very soon. You might already be unpacking yours by the time you’re reading this. If you’re in that Group One batch (check your purchase email, it was the first 20k), you’ll be looking for a postage email to confirm yours has shipped. 

Panic says they’ll have information regarding an ETA on when those units should begin shipping sometime in the near future if you’re in Group Two like I am.

Press Start was the only site in Australia I could find that has managed to get their hands on a review unit, and they spoke very highly about the Playdate, where Shannon said the following: 

“What I will say though is that if you can get your hand on one of these devices, even for a few weeks for a friend as such, you’re going to be in for a good time, and not for the fact that a lot of these games couldn’t be played on another console, but just because it really does feel like a perfect blend of retro gaming with modern games, without the constant need to play online or update your games. It’s a really fun time.”

If you’re reading some reviews and seeing the positive buzz, I suggest getting a pre-order. However, you’ll be in for a bit of a wait as all of 2022 is booked out. 

Playdate has also released a Playdate Update which contains information regarding the Playdate Software Development Kit, the web-based game-making tool Playdate Pul, the Playdate capture software Playdate Mirror, and other things, including an upcoming Playdate app. 

Check out the video below.