Video game company Panic is coming out with a new handheld gaming console called the Playdate and it has a feature unlike any we've seen before.
The bright yellow old-school device looks a little like a shrunken Game Boy, with simple buttons and a black-and-white screen (which is actually a modern screen with high resolution), but the standout element is the little crank on the side of the device. Panic explains that some games will use the crank, which is actually a controller, alongside the buttons and D-pad, while others won't need it at all.
Playdate games will also have an unusual release schedule. Games will be sold in seasons, with a new game being pushed to the device every week for 12 weeks. Panic doesn't want to ruin the surprise, but we do know the title of one game: Crankin's Time Travel Adventure. As the name suggests, the game, by Katamari Damacy designer Keita Takahashi, will use the crank. Watch a demo below.
Sign-up for the device is open now, with Panic warning that stocks "will be very limited." The Playdate costs $149, including season one's roster of 12 weekly games, and will ship in early 2020.
