The Playdate, also known as the only handheld device that actually fits my tiny hands, is nearly perfect. It’s a little yellow machine with a black and white screen and a crank on the side, and it’s the home of wonderful, wacky video games. The Playdate Catalog has over 100 games, and there are hundreds more on sites like itch.io, created by new developers and established indies like Bennett Foddy, Lucas Pope, and Keita Takahashi. Two years after Playdate launched, business is booming. Panic, the company behind the device, says it has sold more than 70,000 units.
One thing missing from the Playdate is the Stereo Dock, a device Panic announced back in 2021 and has been “coming soon” ever since. The Stereo Dock is a charging station, Bluetooth speaker, pen holder, and Playdate stand that all come together to look like a cute little tube TV. The Dock connects to the Playdate magnetically and charges wirelessly.
at least, it will do these things When it does come out. Playdate project lead Greg Maletic told Engadget that Panic is still developing the Stereo Dock, which has been stalled due to unexpected issues in its factory pipeline. There should be an official update in the coming months. Maletic put it this way:
“We apologize to anyone who has been patiently waiting for the Stereo Dock Playdate; this was a trickier project than we expected and we had a few false starts. We thought having our factory do this would save some time on the project Stereo Dock software, but we understand that in some cases you don’t always need it. Stereo Dock is very active and we have physical prototypes to prove it! We expect an official update later this year so you can buy one .”
This is not the first time Playdate has been delayed. Panic had to delay the launch of the handheld device in November 2021 due to serious battery issues that forced the company to switch suppliers at the last minute. Playdate will begin shipping in April 2022, about four months later than originally planned. Most reviewers agree that it’s worth the wait.
It’s been two years since Playdate launched, and we’ve just published a re-review that explores the platform’s evolution and how this quirky yellow square has become the center of innovation in game development. Read it right here.
