A new version of the Android-based console, Ouya 2.0, will follow next fall.
Developers of the Ouya have already begun work on the next iteration of their hardware, starting with a redesign of their controller. The company has already started “quietly replacing” the original after poor customer response, according to Polygon. Changes include adding more texture to the thumbsticks, making sure action buttons won’t stick when depressed and tightening the triggers.
“The feel of the controller today is actually probably a lot better then in June,” said company founder Julie Uhrman. “Our goal is to build a great controller. We wanted to build something that was ergonomic, that had great weight, that had a great feel, that offered developers a different way to develop games by including a touch pad in the design … We’re constantly going to work and iterate on the controller.”
The only problem, by Uhrman’s own admission, is that purchasers won’t know if their Ouya has a new or old version of the controller until they buy it. So, if you see a new display full of Ouya’s now on sale at your local Target you won’t know what controller you get until you check out and open the box at home. When asked about this, Uhrman responded that it’s something all console manufacturers do, they just don’t talk about it. Ouya has already started producing the newer model with older versions of the controller no longer being made.
Due around this time next year is a new iteration of the Ouya hardware, appropriately named Ouya 2.0. The device is still in planning stages and firm details aren’t available just yet. Uhrman couldn’t say just yet if the new Ouya will exist alongside the old one or replace that hardware outright. Ouya did announce earlier this year plans plans to annually release new versions of the console, similar to the mobile phone market.
Update: Ouya has been replacing defective controllers for customers, and Uhrman recommended people who have problems with existing controllers call the company.
Source: Polygon via GamePolitics.com
