Ouya ready to ship to Kickstarter backers March 28, hits stores in June

What promises to be a year filled with video game hardware will officially start on March 28, when Ouya will ship its Android 4.0-powered home game console to over 60,000 backers who helped the upstart system raise nearly $8.6 million on Kickstarter. The team announced in an update that "parts are in the factory and assembly lines are buzzing."

Of course, about 1,200 of those backers already have their hands on Ouya developer consoles that were already packed up and shipped out earlier this year. Those who missed out on the crowdfunding frenzy can still preorder the system for $99 ahead of a planned consumer launch this June, which will see the box in major retailers like Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop, and Target.

What games will those early adopters be able to play? One unofficial Ouya fan forum has compiled a list of about 500 games in development for the system, many of which look like they'll be ready for prime time soon. List compiler Eddie Kay estimates that about 25 percent of the list is made up of games being made specifically for Ouya, rather than simply ports from existing Android projects.

Among the better-known Ouya games coming from other platforms are Android ports like Mutant Mudds, Dead Trigger, and Shadowgun and major PC/console titles like The Cave, Double Fine Adventure, Hawken, and Final Fantasy III. Today Ouya also announced new deals for Ouya-exclusive titles from the likes of Airtight Games (Quantum Conundrum), Minority Media (Papo & Yo), and Tripwire Interactive (The Ball).

It's probably a good thing for Ouya that it's hitting the market before the flood of new gaming hardware later in the year. Besides planned console follow-ups from the likes of Sony and Microsoft, the new system will also likely see competition this year from Valve's planned "Steam Box" console, not to mention Nvidia's Project Shield and other tinkerer-friendly hardware like the Oculus Rift VR headset. Put it all together and you have what's shaping up to be the busiest period for video game hardware since the mid-'90s.