Can Google’s Nexus Q media streamer play games? Sort of

Google’s freshly announced Nexus Q media streamer may be designed for music and movies, but developers have already used the device for something different: games.

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Philippe Hausler, a developer at software company Apportable, managed to get the Android game Swords and Soldiers running on the Nexus Q. But there’s one problem: The game isn’t actually playable.

For that you can blame the Nexus’s Q’s distinct lack of touch controls, which is an obvious limitation for a device with no touchscreen. The same goes for games such as Osmos, which Hausler wasn’t able to get running at all.

Still, it’s not hard to envision a time when developers will find a work-around these restrictions. After all, they managed this hack less than a day after getting a hold of the Nexus Q.

Notably, Apportable specializes in helping iOS developers port their apps to Android, so a hack like this is highly relevant to the company’s skill set.

The Nexus’s Q’s hackability is owed to, in large part, its miniUSB port, which is an open gateway to the device’s innards. We’re sure to see a lot of interesting projects with Google’s Tron-esque orb of a device.

Photo: Christina Kelly

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