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Ouya Game Console Retail Launch Delayed Until June 25

PC Mag is one of several outlets reporting that the Kickstarter-funded Ouya Android game console has been delayed by a few weeks; the new target date for launch is June 25. Says the article "The delay does not affect early backers, who are still on track to receive their devices by month's end. Helping to meet that demand will be $15 million in funding, led by Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers." Also at CNET.

10 of 121 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Durrr Ouya by alen · · Score: 4, Insightful

    the games aren't PS4 quality like shadowgun, but the console is $99 and the games are only a few $$$ each. does it really matter that you can't see the individual droplets of blood flying off dead people? who cares?

  2. Re:Durrr Ouya by partyguerrilla · · Score: 5, Funny

    does it really matter that you can't see the individual droplets of blood flying off dead people?

    Of course it matters, what kind of gamer are you?

  3. iFixit: 9/10 stars by SternisheFan · · Score: 2
    iFixit gives the Ouya console and controller high marks... http://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/Ouya+Teardown/14224/1

    For $99, how can it go wrong?

    1. Re:iFixit: 9/10 stars by BitingChaos · · Score: 2

      OnLive actually works surprisingly well... It's a shame that it hasn't been a success. The same technology will be used by Sony in the PS4. If it works there, maybe more people will take a look at OnLive, again (if they're still in business).

    2. Re:iFixit: 9/10 stars by DdJ · · Score: 2

      That is "surprisingly well" -- I expected it to be a waste for everything.

  4. Re:Ouno! by SternisheFan · · Score: 5, Informative

    I have high hopes for this one. But the more delays, the less confidence I have.

    They've had a problem with the controller buttons getting stuck and had to make the holes larger. From the idea to a worldwide launch in 9 months, not too shabby.

    From JoyStiq.com: The Ouya isn't going to make its planned June 4 launch. The diminutive Android console will now launch on June 25. Ouya CEO Julie Uhrman tells Joystiq that the decision was made in order to meet high demand at retail.

    "We've had incredibly positive reactions from our retail partners, and so in order to meet their greater than expected demand, we decided to shift the launch date by a couple of weeks – three weeks – which will allow us to create more units and, basically, have more units on store shelves in June."

    Uhrman also addressed one of Ouya's stickier issues, notably that the controller's buttons can get stuck underneath its faceplate. The problem has already been fixed, she says, and is being implemented in production. The solution: larger button holes. "I don't know what the exact millimeter is, but we've increased the size just a little bit, so now the buttons don't stick under it. We made that change very early so all the units are being produced with those larger button holes." The corrected controllers will ship alongside Ouya's retail launch units.

    http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/09/ouya-launch-delayed-to-june-25-controller-defect-being-fixed/

  5. Sigh! by lord_mike · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Well, I guess I'll be crossing another item off my fathers day gift list! Bummer! :-( I hope this thing works out. I'm looking forward to buying one. I think that this will be a big deal. The hardcore gamers pooh pooh it, but the device isn't meant for you. There is a market for a device like this that is incredibly flexible and versatile. It goes beyond gaming. It can run all sorts of software, such as media software and emulators, and allow you to really take control of your TV experience and do whatever you want with it. That is what I think the Ouya's core appeal is--it's creative potential for users. It's fun, inexpensive, and full of potential. What's not to like?

  6. Re:Ouno! by SternisheFan · · Score: 2

    I expect that this thing's going to be hacked like crazy after a few months time. When I see that it can be modded so I can run an android apk I'll surely buy one. All my Atari 2600, 5200, C64, MAME, SNES, NES, Genesis, N64 and PS1 game roms playing on my tv with a decent controller will be worth the $100. Even if I never hook it up to the internet, to have a plug and play type rom player that's got enough cpu power to run these without slow performance, that's really all I'd want. Anything else it'll do would be just icing on the cake.

  7. Re:Console? by flimflammer · · Score: 4, Insightful

    That's like saying the Wii doesn't meet the definition of a console.

  8. Relying on third-party games by tepples · · Score: 2

    There is no in-house Ouya equivalent of Shigeru Miyamoto

    When the PlayStation 2 first launched, the only first-party game was FantaVision, a cross between Klax and Missile Command that a reviewer on tetrisconcept.com called "a steaming pile of tech demo and nothing more." The PS2 had to rely on third-party games at launch, but it still won the fifth generation in sales. Does Apple develop its own games for the App Store or Mac App Store? It's been a long time since Brick Out on the Apple II Plus.

    shocking incompetence at even creating their own private app store and reskinning Android for the Ouya

    Incompetence in what way, specifically?

    Or that a key element of their Big Plan to "return gaming to the TV" is to be a conduit for low-effort tablet/phone game ports which will never play well on a big screen with a real controller.

    Never? A lot of these phone and tablet games already have to use an on-screen gamepad to implement gamepad-style controls on a flat sheet of glass, and players end up missing buttons with their thumbs because they can't feel the buttons' edges. Pixeline and the Jungle Treasure, for example, would play a lot better on an Ouya than it does on my Nexus 7. There's also a community of hobbyists still creating games for the NES (yes, the NES), and someone's creating an emulator wrapper analogous to Wii Virtual Console to let NES game developers sell their NES games in the Ouya Store.