One of our favourite coders, Ruckage has just finished porting one of his fantastic games, “Snake on Dope” to the Caanoo. It plays like a regular game of Snake but with a very trippy twist. The more pills your snake pops, the harder and harder it becomes to see, as the display wobbles and wiggles and changes colour. All very very cool.

Features include:

30 Levels
2 Game modes
8 great music tracks (Courtesy of Pat Ferguson)
Separate highscore for each map/mode
Several control methods
Adjustable game speed
A few secrets

Grab a copy here and shove it in your Caanoo.

Yes, dear reader. With almost no delays to speak of since its E3 announcement, the Caanoo is finding its way into the hands of open-source gamers across the globe. A few retailers are still waiting for their consoles from GPH, but Play-Asia have started sending theirs out. Members of the GP32X forums have posted first impressions as well as a number of reviews; go give them a read!

With a name as intriguing as Fish Fillets, how can you not be interested? ZX-81 has ported the homebrew game across to the Wiz.

Fish Fillets NG is strictly a puzzle game. The goal in every of the seventy levels is always the same: find a safe way out. The fish utter witty remarks about their surroundings, the various inhabitants of their underwater realm quarrel among themselves or comment on the efforts of your fish. The whole game is accompanied by quiet, comforting music.

From Sourceforge page.

Grab it here

SplinterGU from the Spanish scene has ported GP2Xpectrum across to the Caanoo, making it the first piece of software publicly available on the Caanoo Archive. You’ll be able to grab it from here.

This is Ginge. No, not that kid that got bullied a lot in your class at school, this is a genuine bonafide GP2x emulator, playable on the Wiz and Pandora. I know what you’re thinking – witchcraft, right? But Notaz seems to have pulled it off, and it’s looking pretty spectacular. It opens both the Wiz and the Pandora (and potentially the Caanoo) up to hundreds more games and applications. My mind is blown.

When I talk about the Caanoo, I would love to start by telling you how this console magically appeared at my door one day, direct from the shores of Korea. Unfortunately, I had to work for this unit, as it got held at a mail depot far away from me, and using only public transport and my own two feet, I spent the best part of a day going to collect it. Was it worth it? Read on.

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You may or may not be aware, but the Caanoo is the third portable game console from Korean makers Gamepark Holdings – or GPH for short – That is of course if you discount a couple of Korean-English translators they manufactured, which could also play games to some degree. The first console was the GP2X, which was actually a successor to a console that some members of GPH had created while working for another company named GamePark. Yes I know, its very confusing. But luckily, its irrelevant. All you need to know is that the GP2X ran homebrew games and applications developed by members of a 10,000+ person strong community. The GP2X did have its faults though, which GPH tried to correct with the touchscreened GP2X F200, but many were pleased when a successor was named – The Wiz. This console improved a hundredfold on the issues shown in the GP2X. It also had the most impressive OLED screen yet seen on a handheld game console.

The GPH Product Lifecycle

However, here we are around a year later and GPH has sent us the Caanoo, the sequel to the Wiz. It comprises of practically the same internals, but with a bit of a RAM boost. On the outside however, its a completely new machine.

Its easy to immediately see the Caanoo’s charms. Its a bit bigger than the Wiz, sure. But a lot less space has gone to waste than it’s older brother; There’s a significantly larger screen, the action and shoulder buttons are larger and placed a lot better, and there’s a USB port! Its also a lot more handsome, boasting smooth curved lines and a metallic blue-black paint job.

As for the Spec? Well, here’s the lowdown – courtesy of Bitbag:

The battery life is about 6-7 hours
CPU ARM9 533 MHz + 3D GPU
RAM 128 MB
Display 3.5” LCD 320*240 (Touchscreen)
External memory SD/SDHC (Max. 32 GB / sold separately)
Fun Factors Vibration Motor / G-Sensor
Dimension 146(w)x70(h)x18.5(d)mm
Weight 136g
OS – Linux
Video – MPEG4, Xvid, Divx, Avi
Audio – OGG, WAV, MP3
Photo – JPG, BMP, GIF, PNG
E-book – TXT
Network Wi-Fi (by USB adaptor, sold separately)
USB – Host function

* * *

However, the first thing you no doubt noticed was the nub. That very controversial analog stick.
When the Caanoo was announced, the community was divided. Since a lot of people used the Wiz to emulate classic systems such as SNES, Genesis, MAME, Neo Geo etc, they were used to a Dpad, to provide very precise direction controls. And sure, it was a valid concern – how could the Caanoo emulate properly when the controls are different to the original systems?

Well actually, quite easily. I’ve been playing around with the Caanoo now for about a week, and I think its safe to say that only the most puritanical of classic gamers would find issue with the analog stick here. I’ve only been able to test it with MAME and Neo Geo emulators, since they are they only emulator software available at the moment, until GPH releases the Software Development Kit (SDK) in early August. However for all the games I’ve tested, the analog stick seems to be a fine replacement for the Dpad of the Wiz. The only caveat I can see is for those who enjoy Fighters. Although great for most genres, you won’t get the same level of accuracy for pulling off combos as with a Dpad. That’s not to say that its impossible to play them, only that its going to take a bit of practice to get used to.

There’s not a whole lot to say about the action buttons. They’re well placed and large enough for every type of thumb. There’s an additional two buttons next to the analog stick, which is intended for playing vertical games on MAME, or homebrew. Its a nice touch, and I’m glad GPH thought to do this.
There is technically an extra button missing when compared to the Wiz. Now that the volume control is a slider, the volume controls can’t be used for any additional functions, such as accessing the menus, demonstrated in some Wiz emulators. Happily, the analog stick clicks inwards, which means its also a button to be used in whichever way a dev chooses.

The screen is an interesting subject. As I mentioned previously, the Wiz had an OLED screen, which did look fantastic for a lot of games, especially arcade titles. However, GPH chose to use an LCD screen for the Caanoo. This is probably to keep the cost down, because an OLED screen of the Caanoo’s size would have raised the manufacturing price significantly, and those costs would have had to be passed down to the customer.
The LCD screen used however is no slouch. Its very clear and bright, and outside visibility is pretty high (I am in England, so results will vary). There’s no ghosting that I can see, and no tearing either, which was a problem with the Wiz’s screen.
The touch screen responsiveness is good, and there’s a lot more of it to touch than it’s predecessor.

Overall, the hardware seems very solid. The console doesn’t rattle or creak in my hands (the Wiz did slightly), and there are no loose or wobbly parts. It really does seem that GPH has tried very hard to create a console that is just as polished as anything Sony or Nintendo would make, and I think they have succeeded above anyone’s expectations. This is certainly the best console that GPH has made as a company.

* * *

The console can be purchased with a game pack, which consists of three commercial games (Rhythmos, Propis and Ashura Cross), a MAME and Neo Geo emulator, with around 15 of what I hoped to be licensed games each (including Metal Slug and Outrun), and a few stand alone licensed full arcade games. Of the commercial games,

Rhythmos

Rhythmos was my favourite. Its a musical rhythm based game which you can either play with the touch screen, in the same vein as Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan/Elite Beat Agents or with the stick and buttons, in the style of Dance Dance Revolution. I was disappointed to note that the game only comes with 4 or 5 Korean songs but apparently song packs are on the way via FunGP

As for the other games, Propis is a slick puzzle game. It gives off a very professional commercial level vibe, but the experience is marred slightly by some bad English translation in the story mode.

Ashura Cross

Ashura Cross is a fighter game with some very detailed artwork. It genuinely looks really nice, and again very professional. I think this game could be very fun when played over the internet, utilizing the Caanoo’s WiFi capabilities (with a dongle, unfortunately), and I think that was the main aim of the game designers.

As for the other games, its a motley crew of arcade titles, enough to satisfy every taste. My personal favourite was a platformer called Snow Bros, which I’d never heard of before, but drew me in for hours on end.

And for what future games we can expect? Well, it won’t be very long after Caanoo release at all before developers begin porting their games across. This means the Caanoo will have access to most of the Wiz’s back catalog. Also, heaps of emulators mean you can play the games from whichever era you remember most fondly. Excuse me while I shamelessly steal the following images from my Wiz review, but they demonstrate perfectly the potential of the Caanoo.

From L to R: Ruckman, Trap 75, Quake 2, Supertux, Snake on Dope

From L to R: Sonic & Knuckles, Super Mario Bros 3, Alex Kidd, Pokemon Blue & Skool Daze

As for brand new games and content, GPH will be opening up their FunGP app-store-esque website soon, where developers can list their creations for free or for a small payment. This is great for the user, because it will be a catalogue of easy to find Caanoo software, and it will be great for developers, as it will be a way to make some money from their hard work (if they so choose to, but I imagine the bulk of games and software will be free)

* * *

Media functions are also much improved over the Wiz. For instance, the music player now supports album art, and when you’re listening to music, you can also mess around in the menu, look at some pictures on your memory card or read an ebook. On the subject of ebooks, the app now supports automatic page scrolling, as well as text sizing and backgrounds. Its a very welcome addition, and brings the ebook application in line with the rest of the Caanoo’s impressive media functions. The Video plater is also very impressive, and plays a variety of formats. I recorded a short video demonstrating the media functions, as I did with the Wiz. The colours look a bit washed out, because the tripod was holding the camera at an odd angle.

* * *

To conclude, if you are interested in a portable console to run emulators and play homebrew/open source games, this is definitely the one. At only $150, the Caanoo is an absolute bargain, and is the most powerful console that GPH has ever built and carries some really unexpected, but welcome features, such as Vibration feedback and G-Sensor. Most, if not all of the issues presented in previous generations have melted away, leaving this svelte pocketable beauty. Even with the Game Pack, there’s enough content to keep you going for months, but when you consider that GPH is about to launch it’s FunGP app and game store, and that developers will be porting across their Wiz games, its an absolute bargain.

If you have any further questions, feel free to ask them on the GP32x forums.

* * *

The Caanoo can be purchased from the following retailers:

USA: www.dingoo-digital-usa.com

UK: www.gameseek.co.uk

Europe: www.gp2x.de

Spain: www.hardcore-gamer.net

Canada: www.gamersection.ca

Anywhere else: www.playasia.com

Spanish distributor Hardcore Gamer has revealed pictures of a bunch of new accessories that GPH is manufacturing, and will be available soon. Among those are the official Caanoo wifi stick, an Ext to USB adaptor for the Wiz, and the fabled TV out cable, compatible with both.

Up until now, there’s been nowhere based in the USA to pre-order your Caanoo from. Well fret not, because your search is over! Dingoo-Digital-USA are taking preorders for the Caanoo, and will be sending them out as soon as they get stock!

The iPhone is a fantastic device, I used to own one myself before I went the Android route. The best thing about it by far is the sheer amount of applications and casual games on the device. But that’s all they are; casual games. There’s no way to replicate the feeling of buttons and controls on a touch screen, and this hugely limits the potential of the device, considering the power under the hood. This is where the Caanoo comes into its own; I’ll go into specifics in my review, which is coming very soon, but the Caanoo has some awesome controls, perfect for classic games and homebrew. The iPhone and the iPod Touch are very media-focussed, especially the iPod Touch, for which media is a major selling point. However, the Caanoo packs a much improved media experience over the Wiz. I was especially impressed by the video and music players, but again, there will be more about that in the review.

The FunGP website will be open soon. The site gives homebrew developers a place to offer their games and applications for whatever price they choose. Much like… you guessed it, the Apple App Store! Of course the huge benefit of FunGP is that, unlike the App Store, anyone can feel free to upload their creations without worrying about Apple’s ridiculous approval process. To use an awful cliche, the possibilities are endless.

I’m not claiming that any device is better, just that they are different. Completely different. If you’re looking for a phone with loads of apps and casual games, purchase an iPhone, if you are after a great web browsing device, choose an iPad. But if you’re after an open source handheld console with great media capabilities and huge potential for games and applications, the Caanoo is a fantastic choice.