Joystiq

GameStick Android console is the size of a USB stick

Jordan Mallory — Thu, 03 Jan 2013 18:00:00 EST

PlayJam, a company that currently operates a social/casual games network for smart/connected TVs called The PlayJam Network, has spent the last 12 months developing "GameStick," a dongle-sized Android gaming console that plugs directly into a television's HDMI port. The device currently exists in several different functional prototype forms, but bringing it to market will require the aid of an ongoing Kickstarter campaign, which has recently surpassed its fundraising goal of $100,000.

The GameStick itself runs on Android (Jelly Bean, specifically), outputs at 1080p and will cost $79 when it officially launches in April. The console is powered by an Amlogic 8726-MX mobile processor generally used in Chinese Android tablets, and is supported by one gig of DDR3 RAM and eight gigs of Flash storage.

Games are obtained wirelessly through the Internet, naturally, and PlayJam is said to be working with "more than 250 developers" to get titles made for and ported to the system. Beyond that, designers interested in developing for the thing can pledge $500 for access to a prototype unit and the system's SDK one month before the console's commercial debut.

GameStick Android console is the size of a USB stick originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 03 Jan 2013 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ouya dev consoles start shipping December 28

Jordan Mallory — Sat, 01 Dec 2012 16:30:00 EST

Production appear to be progressing according to schedule over at Ouya, which has just announced that the development kits for its self-titled debut game console will ship out to qualifying Kickstarter supporters on December 28, just as planned.

While every Ouya console that ever ships can be used for software development, these pre-retail units have some unknown differentiating feature, according to Ouya's official site, which calls them "rare drops."

The Android-powered console's SDK (or "ODK," as Ouya is calling it) is currently being tested and will become available "when the dev consoles ship to gamemakers." Ownership of an Ouya dev kit is not required to access the ODK, however, as it'll be freely and publicly available online. Conversely, an Ouya dev kit is required to see the console's custom Jelly Bean GUI in its current state.

Ouya dev consoles start shipping December 28 originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 01 Dec 2012 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ouya offers guidelines for potential developers, now runs Jelly Bean

David Hinkle — Wed, 31 Oct 2012 21:00:00 EST

It's been a while since we've heard anything on Ouya, the little Android game box that earned a whopping $8.5 million through its Kickstarter campaign. Today, the hardware's development team have ended its information drought with fresh details on the platform. According to the latest project update, Ouya developers can get started on making games for the system right now.

Since Ouya runs on Tegra 3, potential devs can pick up a Tegra 3 Android tablet and get cracking. But in addition to that, there are other things to keep in mind, like how Ouya controllers will have a single-input touch pad or how Ouya won't support push notifications at launch.

In a separate post, the Ouya team revealed changes made to the upcoming hardware. The console is now powered on the current Jelly Bean OS as opposed to the previously announced, and way older, Ice Cream Sandwich platfrom. Ouya is beyond the design phase at the moment and moving toward production, with the first run of circuit boards already fused together (as seen above).

Ouya is on track to meet its deadline for development kits in December and is currently in one of several planned testing phases where both the controller and console are being put through its paces.

Ouya offers guidelines for potential developers, now runs Jelly Bean originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 31 Oct 2012 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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