QuakeCon: Nvidia Shield Impressions

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to explore the show floor of QuakeCon. Aside from the maze of PCs, tournaments and game previews, I managed to get my hands on the Nvidia Shield and take it for a spin.

The device is a clunker. At 579 grams, it is the heaviest of the handhelds. For reference, the PS Vita weighs in at 260 grams and the Nintendo 3DS at 235 grams. As large as it may be, it is powerful. Every game I played looked immaculate and ran smoothly on the 720p touchscreen.

I played two PC games; Dishonored and The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim. Though they both looked absolutely gorgeous, reading text, especially the text that is small on a normal screen, was a pain. Fitting these games' great content onto a 5 inch screen definitely isn't the best way to experience them, but the Shield is offering an alternative for gamers who may want to take their PC games to the couch.

As for apps, I played Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode II. Getting used to the controls was a bit strange at first, but I quickly adapted. Once you get the controls down, it plays just like any other Sonic game. Nvidia made a smart move by showcasing Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode II and including it as a free, pre-downloaded game with the purchase of the device.

The main problem I had with the device were its triggers. While the bumpers were sound, I felt like my fingers were constantly sliding up from their placement on the convex triggers. Although it didn't cause any problems for me while I was playing the Android game, it was annoying while I played through the PC games.

I only had a total of 30 minute with the handheld, but stay tuned for the complete review of the Nvidia Shield.