If you internet junkies haven’t heard about Ouya (pronounced as OOO-yah), then you have a lot of catching up to do. As soon as in launched in July on Kickstarter, Ouya was all that the technology sites were talking about. For those who don’t know, Kickstarter is a platform for anyone seeking funding for any sort of project that they wanted to start up. After a month-long journey of seeking funds, they raised just a little over $8.5 million from 63,416 backers.
For just $99, consumers can get their hand on this Android-powered console. The developers’ goal was to essentially take the free-to-play model into gamers’ hands, and bring it to their TV screens. Has that peaked your attention yet? It’s the first ever open-source console where “It’s easy to root (and rooting won’t void your warranty). Everything opens with standard screws. Hardware hackers can create their own peripherals, and connect via USB or Bluetooth.” These are the specifications: a Tegra 3 quad-core processor, Android 4.0, 1 GB of RAM, 8 GB of flash storage, HDMI, 802.11n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0, and a wireless hardware controller!
So far, we only know a little bit about developer support. Mojang, the creator of Minecraft has said that they were interested, but nothing has been set in stone yet. We do know that these games have been announced:
“Shadowrun Online , Final Fantasy III , Yummy Circus , Tropical Treasures 2 Deluxe , Super Retro Squad , Invaders Pretty Sure From Space Round 2 , Gunblitz , Saturday Morning RPG and a prequel to the zombie apocalypse game Human Element. The publisher of Hawken supports Ouya but hasn’t announced any games. Namco Bandai says it’s in talks to bring games to Ouya, but also hasn’t given specifics.”
Taken from Jared Newman’s article Ouya Game Console: What We Know (and Don’t Know) So Far
Those who have Ouya will also have access to TwitchTV, a video game broadcasting and chat community; OnLive, a game service with hundreds of games from over 80 publishers; VEVO, a music video and entertainment platform; XBMC, an open source media player and entertainment hub; and a streaming radio courtesy of ClearChannel’s iHeartRadio (however this is exclusive for Americans only at the moment).
If you are kicking yourself in the butt for not supporting their Kickstarter campaign, then do not fret! You can still pre-order this baby on their official website. I am excited for March 2013, the expected release date, and will definitely write a review!