Despite wide rear compatibility with Nintendo’s previous consoles, this is not something that has high hopes. As we suspected, Nintendo has now confirmed that its Labo VR kit will not work on the newly announced Nintendo Switch 2.
Released in 2019, the Nintendo’s Labo: Toy-Con 04 VR kit was the first public experiment of modern VR, which includes cardboard holders and lenses, allowing the handheld console switch owner slots to play a variety of interesting mini-games.
Now, yesterday, after the company’s large Nintendo direct live stream included an announcement on the $450 Switch 2 handheld, the Labo VR says it won’t work on next-gen consoles.
“This game cannot be played because the Nintendo Switch 2 console cannot be inserted into the Toy-Con VR Goggles Accessory,” Nintendo checks the official Switch 2 Game Compatibility Guide.
It also means you can’t play Nintendo titles that support basic VR display on its high resolution (but larger), higher frame rate display. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Super Mario Odysseyand Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
That said, the company introduced Labo VR after the launch of the original Switch, announced in 2017, so it is possible that the Japanese gaming giants will have something else in place and move again in a slow, intentional way.
For now, there is only a small portion of hope. In 2024, Nintendo announced a patent for a VR add-on similar to the Labo VR. This is likely to be similar to a cardboard design that can be used as a slot for a Nintendo handheld. Certainly, all products have patents, but not all patents have products, so it could be just another case of marking Nintendo rather than creating a product.
There were also rumours that Nintendo had partnered with Google to create a standalone headset, but I’ve not heard anything since then. Instead, Google appears to be focusing on developing the Android XR operating system for the upcoming Samsung Project Moohan Mixed Reality Headset.
To dive a little deeper, check out why I don’t think Nintendo has yet made an actual VR headset. And no, virtual boy absolutely It is not counted.
