不起眼的 Playdate 已成为游戏界最划算的交易之一

The Playdate, Panic’s tiny yellow handheld that launched in 2022 , has slowly but surely become a great deal — which is a good thing, because everything else in gaming has only gotten more expensive . Despite being a weird device with a black-and-white screen and a crank jutting out the side, the Playdate has managed to cultivate a strong and constantly growing library of games.随着掌机游戏第三季的推出，这笔交易只会变得更好。 Playdate 的“季节”基本上是在短时间内发布的精选游戏合集。第三季总共有八款游戏，其中两款在四个星期内每周推出。 The whole thing costs $39, and the season is off to a pretty good start with two games that are indicative of what the overall Playdate experience is like.其中一款名为《Soggy Froggy》，是一款给青蛙洗澡的街机游戏。小家伙坐在火上的大锅里，你的工作就是让水保持在合适的温度，让他保持温暖和舒适。什么都不做，水就会很快升温，但转动曲柄，你就可以冷却东西。如果水太热，可怜的小青蛙就会被煮死。我们的目标是让他尽可能长时间地活着，使之成为一款既可爱又病态的追逐高分的游戏。 I can’t stop playing.另一个新版本是一款名为《Gloom Gate》的地下城角色扮演游戏。在这里，目标是穿越一座庞大的城堡，击败各种怪物并收集装备和经验值以变得更强。不过，这款游戏最值得注意的是它的 3D 图形，这感觉在动力不足的 Playdate 上是不可能实现的。在每场战斗中，你都会与敌人一起进入一个小竞技场，你必须躲避、招架和攻击，同时密切关注你的体力，体力会随着你采取的每一个行动而耗尽。 It’s kind of like a stripped-down version of Dark Souls (there are even campfires to rest at), but it also really reminds me of Epic’s long-lost mobile series Infinity Blade , which was similarly a technical showcase centered around surprisingly deep combat.第三季的完整阵容尚未公布，但它还将包括一个文字游戏、两个玩家在同一台掌上电脑上玩捉迷藏，以及经典的 Mac 风格的点击冒险游戏（我真的很支持这种趋势）。 It seems like there’s going to be quite a bit of variety, and that really captures what the first few years of the Playdate have been like so far. Between its seasons and the Catalog store, as well as the ability to sideload games from platforms like Itch.io , the handheld has built up a very strong lineup that covers just about every genre you can think of: daily puzzle games , demonic pinball , Monument Valley -style adventures , even an MMO .开发者从该设备中获得的收益以及 Panic 管理该平台的熟练程度都令人印象深刻。每次我去商店看看，似乎都有一些新的、有趣的东西值得尝试。 Playdate 并没有完全免受世界日益昂贵的影响。去年，由于生产成本增加，价格上涨了 30 美元。但与其他所有产品相比，目前 229 美元的价格感觉就像九牛一毛，尤其是当 Playdate 的大多数新游戏只花费几美元时。相比之下，《侠盗猎车手 VI》的特别版——需要明确的是，它甚至不包括游戏——售价为 399.99 美元。显然，Playdate 并不是新 PlayStation 或 Switch 的一对一替代品。 You can’t play the latest big-name releases — you’re going to miss out on a very busy November, for instance — and outside of a few titles, it’s a mostly solitary experience. But even still, in an era of rising costs and formulaic games, the Playdate remains a breath of fresh air, a comparatively affordable platform that’s home to games that are inventive and surprising.随着时间的推移，这个平台似乎只会变得越来越好。