Honest Opinion - Nintendo Labo

 

It's the latest announcement from Nintendo for the Switch, turning your joy-cons into toy-cons. An idea that has everyone arguing already over whether this will be hot or flop. Officially, I'm on the fence about it, I like the idea but not sure how it'll play out once things are in the hands of the almighty consumer. But, if I had to put my foot down on one side or the other, I'd have to say I'm leaning more towards this being a flop. Why? Well, let's talk.

Let me start by saying that I'm not completely against this. I love the idea and what it represents. However, it's the specific form that this idea takes on which has me thinking it just might not go over so well. 

What do I love about it? It's teaching something by actually putting something in the hands of the player. Well, player and builder. It's teaching construction, and the principles of engineering and physics. The kits (there will be two available right off the bat) come with the game itself, and a series of cardboard punch-outs complete with instructions on how to assemble. So right off the bat, if you want to play either of these Labo kits, and play them properly might I add, you've got to put it together yourself. It's brilliant, it's not just trying to show off how things work and go together, magically transforming from pieces to an actual thing. It's pulling all of that out of the screen, into a physical form in front of you, to not only let you see but feel how that magic happens. 

 

That alone is going to be amazing. Whether this specific instance flops or not, it's going to open the door for a lot more DIY Construction games. Hell, it might even turn things around and start a wave of kids being even more encouraged to play a game, since they'll have to build it too and learn something along the way. Once they hold in their hands their finished kit, experiencing it first hand, it's a perfect gateway for them to want to build more, on their own. I'm personally waiting for the Facebook and Twitter posts from parents to go from "Why can't my son/daughter turn off their damn video games?" to "God I hate cardboard." It's going to happen, at least once, and it's gonna be beautiful.

 What makes me weary about the maybe success/failure of this project is the price tag. If you don't know the price tag yet, then bear with me a moment. As I said above, there's going to be two kits available. A Variety Kit, and a Robot Kit. The Robot Kit will allow you to construct a wearable backpack and VR visor, with places for the Switch screen (in the visor obviously) and the joy-cons. What is all this wearable equipment and peripherals made out of? As you can see in the above photos....it's cardboard.

Price is listed in Pounds, US $ price listed below

So...you get a game, and some cardboard. All for the price of $69.99 (Variety) or $79.99 (Robot). That's right, you'll pay more than a typical brand new game price, for a game and some cardboard. I...I just don't get it. For one, Nintendo has always (until now) had slightly lower prices for brand new games. When everything was launching for $60, their new games were dropping at $50 (with some select titles being $60).

Ultimately, I think the idea is great. Things have become so technological, the days of kids making houses and rocketships by drawing on and cutting out chunks from big boxes feel like they're so, so far away. I feel like Nintendo Labo will definitely bring that back with a twist. I'll be waiting for it to launch and see how it actually does in the real world, but me personally, I'm hesitant to fully jump on board yet. I still stand by my earlier feeling that this would be a hell of a lot more guaranteed success if 3D printing were more commonplace and mainstreamed.

Art provided by Mercedes Sherman, check out http://theswitcheffect.net/ and http://www.patreon.com/theswitcheffect

What are your thoughts? Let me know in the comments if you think Nintendo Labo will be hot or flop!