Sony’s Project Q is the wrong handheld for the wrong time
The DualSense is my favorite current-generation default controller. I am a huge fan of handheld gaming. By rights, Sony’s just-announced Project Q, a handheld console that appears to have all the same features as the DualSense, should be right at the top of my hardware wishlist. And yet I feel no warmth towards that little machine at all.
That’s because Project Q is not actually a handheld console. It’s the latest and worst in a long line of “kinda handhelds,” a trend that I feel pretty lukewarm towards that started with the Nintendo Switch. These are “handheld consoles” that primarily or exclusively exist to play home console games. They’re neat. I love my Nintendo Switch. I’m sure I would love my Steam Deck if I owned one. But they don’t fill the same space as real handhelds in my mind. And Project Q is the worst offender yet.
Project Q is a streaming-only handheld. Out of the box, it will use the PS5’s remote play feature to stream games. In case you haven’t caught on to the problem yet, it’s this: the Project Q is being developed not as a console but as an accessory for the PS5. And it’s not even an especially useful accessory.
Because PS5 remote play requires a constant internet connection, its away-from-home applications are pretty limited. Sure, you could bust it out at the coffee shop for some quick Returnal sessions, but if you’re looking for something to leave in your bag and grab whenever you’ve got some downtime in your day, you’re probably out of luck. You will also look like a massive dork using it anywhere outside of your own home because of its garish and gamerly DualSense handles (I like them, but they do not scream “things I want other people to see me using”). Beyond that, there’s also the apparent
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