Nintendo has once again announced that they’ll be selling us an overpriced, piece of cardboard that we’ll have to bend into place to use. This time, it’s in the form of “Toy-Con” VR goggle kits: https://labo.nintendo.com/kits/vr-kit/
As you could imagine, it’s (unironically) similar to the Google ‘Cardboard’ “VR” glasses and uses the Switch’s 720p resolution screen to present an image in stereoscopic 3D. As someone who’s tried many variations of cell-phone-based VR games on screens with a much higher resolution, I can confidently say to keep your “VR” expectations in check.
The kits will ship on April 12th, but Nintendo wasn’t very clear about the pricing. It’s $40 for a “Starter Kit”, but it’s also $80 for a “VR Kit”, $70 for a “Variety Kit”, $60 for a “Robot Kit” and $70 for a “Vehicle Kit’. There’s also a “Customization Set” that will be sold for $10. There’s also something about elephants.
All of this seems quite expensive for a stack of recycled cardboard not very durable console add-on, that’s twice the price of fully-featured cellphone VR accessories that come with a controller (and, you know, let you use your hi-res cellphone screen). Who knows, maybe Nintendo has found a creative way to interact in 3D with a low-res screen? I just hope someone makes a Virtual Boy out of a piece of cardboard and hacks it with a good emulator…
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