Mom gave me a set of Sifteo cubes for my birthday. I took them out for a trial run that weekend, but haven’t sat down with them to develop until today. (Potentially) awesome gift?
Here’s the lowdown:
- For about $150, you get 3 cubes, a charging/storage box, and a wifi adapter usb dongle.
- To play with your cubes, you must have a base computer to run the Siftrunner app. This app hosts the games that communicates (via the usb dongle) to your cubes.
- In the Siftrunner app, you can switch games, purchase new ones (using their credits), and pair/disconnect 1-6 cubes. Currently only 19 games on the marketplace.
- The cube inputs/sensors include: 1 main button (on the screen), an accelerometer, a 129x129px display, NFC sensors along the edges (detects contact between cubes)
Pros:
- Lots of potential. Input methods are diverse.
- Build quality: The cubes feel solid, screens are bright, button is buttony
- I like the charging box. Great idea. Nice that the dongle hides inside when not in use.
Cons:
- Don’t like having to have a computer host without the ability to use it as an additional input/output device (Although it outputs an app’s sounds- which is odd.)
- Wish an ipad or tablet could host.
- Already bored with the games. With only 19 games and no near plans for a paid marketplace, hard to justify developing new games. (forum posts mention developers should use a paypal donate button. Seriously?)
- Their “Creativity Kit” is very very limited. It allows you to make a list of “Put 3 words in the right order” puzzles.
- Pricey for potential
Final word
By themselves, I think Sifteo cubes are kind of lackluster. To be honest, I even feel a little cheated for my mom’s sake. Sifteo used the media to drum up a noise for the holiday push before their games and infrastructure was even ready for prime time. I saw them at a GDGT event back in November 2011, and they didn’t have any games running at the time. Now I see that they still have ways to go. Until they get a better infrastructure for developers (a payment method), I can’t truly see it as a viable game system/platform or even endorse it for my friends.