Android-Based Gaming Console Coming In June, Backers Get Early Access March 28
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The world’s first Android-based gaming console, Ouya, started life as an overwhelmingly successful Kickstartercampaign. Since then, the Ouya team has been busy adding support for new content and new devices, like Ethernet and XMBC support. Last month, the Ouya team announced that they’ll begin shipping the first consoles to Kickstarter backers on March 28, with a full launch slated for June.
Now, Ouya is saying they’ll also be throwing a party on March 28 to help celebrate the release of the first Android-based consoles into the wild.
Only those who backed Ouya last summer will be allowed entrance into this swank West Coast shindig, however. According to IGN, The party will be held at the Bay Area offices of fuseproject, a company founded by Yves Behar, the designer of Ouya.
Ouya quickly tore through it’s Kickstarter campaign in July last year, earning $8.5 million by the time the buzzer sounded just a month later. Excitement for the product was so high that the team blew past their $950,000 goal, raising over $1 million in the first day alone.
“Parts are in the factory and assembly lines are buzzing. We’ll gradually ramp up production as we make sure things are working,” reads the official blog post which notes that “tens of thousands” of early adopters will be ready to play games right away.
When production goes into full force in June, Ouyas will be available in Best Buy, GameStop and Target stores. The company is also taking pre-orders on their Website, though Kickstarter backers will be receiving their consoles first, rightfully so.
Ouya has also signed up more than 500 games which will be available for the Android-based console. These games cover a wide variety of genres and will be developed by independent and well-known game makers alike. NAMCO and Square Enix, for instance, have committed to writing games for the console. So too has Adam Saltsman (of Canabalt fame) and the developers from Tripwire Interactive.
The Ouya console is indeed quite a bit different from any other console ever made, from its tiny size and open architecture (the startup encourages hacking) to it’s streaming content and game store.
For instance, one of the key aspects of Ouya is the amount of free and free-to-try games. Every game will be free-to-try; gamers only pay for games they already enjoy, which is much better than renting a game first, then buying it after.
Ouya has also partnered with content providers such as VEVO, iheartradio, TuneIn, Plex, and XBMC. Each of these services will be up and ready to roll when the new consoles arrive later this month.
Finally, Ouya’s size and price are what differentiate the Android-based console from any other. The new SonyPlayStation 4 or Xbox 720 (if that’s what it will be called) are likely to be much larger and much more expensive than the Ouya’s tiny, cup-shaped design.
It’s for these reasons and more that much of today’s gaming has moved from the console and television to mobile and the web. Ouya plans to bring these games back to the livingroom, and with an open platform, no licensing fees and a vibrant community, it very well could be able to.
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