UI
Android Console Redux
The GameStick is as easy to set up as a TV dongle can be. Like the Chromecast, it plugs into both the television and its Micro USB charger, with an optional extender for hard-to-reach HDMI ports. It boots automatically, if slowly, and turning on the controller starts a painless pairing process.
In theory, you can use up to four controllers with the GameStick. For $39.99, you can buy an extra gamepad; while GameStick says it will connect to other Android devices, other wireless controllers won’t connect to the GameStick. To use anything wired, you’ll need to buy a separate $49.99 dock that adds wireless charging for the controller, three USB ports, and more storage. About a dozen of the launch-window games, including Canabalt and Super Grid Run, have a multiplayer option, but it’s hard to recommend getting an extra controller that costs half as much as the console so you can play them.
The GameStick is pretty serious about being a gaming-only device”
Once the GameStick is up and running, its simple gray UI strips out any hint of Android for large, TV-friendly labels. Four tabs give you access to settings, your account information, a pair of media players, and the games catalog, an arrangement that’s generally very visually consistent and easy to navigate. As basic as the interface is, there are still some strange and annoying quirks. The analog sticks were oversensitive, often flipping past the option I wanted. The screen sometimes went confusingly black for several seconds while loading a game or installing an update, and an apparent bug occasionally made it impossible for me to buy games until I restarted. These weren’t fatal flaws, but they happened often enough that I was never sure whether the interface would respond to my instructions.
There’s a media section, but it holds only two apps: the GameStick’s own software and the XBMC-based Tofu player, both of which read files from either a microUSB card or the dock. Facebook and Twitter integration is coming after launch. These things will be there in times of greatest need, but otherwise you can pretty well ignore them. The GameStick is pretty serious about being a gaming-only device.
Over on the Games tab, you’ll see pages of popular or featured titles, a list of everything you have installed, and a single section containing every game on the console. There aren’t any other genre divisions or sorting options, which wasn’t a problem for the small pre-launch library I could access. As the store grows, though, it would be nice to be able to at least scratch an itch for platformers or racing games without going through the whole catalog.
We weren’t thrilled with Ouya’s freemium model, and apparently GameStick wasn’t either — except for Shadowgun and one other game, everything costs between $2 and $6, including some things that are free on the Google Play store. And once you decide to make a purchase, the UI will do everything in its power to stop you. Before buying anything, you’ll need to top up a digital wallet, then type your password with the controller every single time you make a purchase. If you hand the controller over to your kid, that means they won’t be able to go on a spending spree, but as an adult, using your analog stick on a virtual keyboard over and over is just annoying.
Article source: http://www.theverge.com/2013/11/1/5046580/gamestick-review