Nintendo LABO Toy-Con 01: Variety Kit

Genre: Accessory / Minigame Collection / Misc.

Players: 1

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Review:

Nintendo LABO is one of those uniquely Nintendo products that often seem to come out of left field and give players something strange and wonderful and often not quite completely thought-out. In this case, each of the four Nintendo LABO kits provides players with one or multiple objects that they can create using cardboard pieces included in the package, along with software that incorporates that cardboard into various games, usually by incorporating the Joy-Con controllers in various ways.

For the first of these LABO kits, the Nintendo LABO Toy-Con 01: Variety Kit, players are given a plethora of different items to create, along with various games and activities to use them in. Players should be aware of a few things before getting the game, however. Firstly, while eShopperReviews tends to focus mostly on digital releases, Nintendo LABO is strictly a physical-only release. Secondly, because a part of the experience is constructing the cardboard objects included in the kit, you’re not likely to find much resale value in Nintendo LABO – once you open this game up and start making stuff, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a buyer wanting it used. Likewise, you should be wary of buying a Nintendo LABO kit used, for much the same reason.

Also, be aware that the Nintendo LABO Toy-Con 01: Variety Kit absolutely requires at least one pair of Joy-Con controllers to use, and the items you’ll be making will often be designed to incorporate a regular Nintendo Switch – those with a Switch Lite will still be able to use this package if they have a pair of Joy-Con controllers, but some of the things you’ll be making are designed to house a regular Nintendo Switch, and you won’t be making use of those features with a Switch Lite.

Finally, a few warnings for those looking to get this game for a young kid. Nintendo LABO is a very kid-friendly game, but making these various constructions is something that will require a fair amount of time and patience, decent reading skills, and the ability to follow directions. Specifically, whoever is building these constructions needs to be sure not to break the pieces, not to fold the wrong part or do things in the wrong order, and not to mess with stuff like the stickers unless they are specifically told where to put them (the stickers aren’t just for show – they serve an important function). What’s more, popping out the bits of cardboard can create a lot of mess. If any of these things sounds like it may pose a problem for your child, this may be something that will require some supervision on your part.

As mentioned before, this game comes with pieces of cardboard designed specifically for use with the game, with cutouts for each of the projects, and those cutouts having lines to be creased in the appropriate places. I suppose in theory it may be possible to use cardboard to produce replacement parts, but you likely won’t end up with something that has quite the same quality as what’s included. However, while the cardboard here is decent quality and fairly sturdy, it’s nothing revolutionary – it’s just cardboard. In addition to the cardboard, the game also comes with a plastic bag full of other components you’ll need for construction – rubber bands, a length of string, reflective stickers, and a few other odds and ends. While the cardboard pieces could theoretically be replaced with your own hand-crafted duplicates, some of these parts are unique, so you’ll want to be sure not to lose them.

The game itself is separated into three sections, “Make”, “Play”, and “Discover”, with each of these sections further sub-divided into sections focused on individual components.

In “Make”, players are given step-by-step instructions for how to build all of the main components in the box, complete with a full 3D representation of the process in action that players can play at multiple speeds, rewind, or even spin the example around to see it at different angles. This was actually a really excellent guide, although I did find myself sometimes mixing up the button for rewinding and the button to exit, causing a bit of mild frustration every time I did. Overall though, these instructions are fairly fool-proof, and should make it easy for a young child to complete all of the DIY projects contained within the box so long as they’re patient and can follow instructions properly, and the written directions include lots of cute little comments like “Your mastery of creasing will shine brownly through the cardboard”. However, be aware that these instructions are only written, not voiced – the only sound you’ll be listening to are the cartoony sound effects signifying cardboard being creased and popped together, and music that sounds like… well, like bad porn music, really. It’s fine, though it can get a bit annoying after listening to it long enough.

A large part of the joy of this game is piecing things together and seeing how everything connects and builds as you progress, sorta’ comparable to putting together a puzzle except you have instructions for how to do it. So if you’re looking at this game and thinking about the ordeal you have to go through to build the stuff before you can play with it, you’re probably approaching Nintendo LABO with the wrong mindset.

In “Play”, players can make use of the objects they’ve created to play one of multiple minigames (which I’ll go into in a moment). Finally, in “Explore”, players are given insight into how all of this works, as well as being given a utility to create their own LABO projects (again, I’ll get to this a bit later).

For what’s included in the box, you have the following construction projects and their associated minigames:

Joy-Con Holder – This is a little box for your Joy-Con. Which… is completely unnecessary and pointless, but acts as a simple project to get players acquainted with how to use Nintendo LABO. This item has no associated minigame.

R.C. Car – This looks more like some sort of insect with spindly legs, but at least in theory this is a piece that you can insert a pair of Joy-Con controllers into and use the Nintendo Switch touchscreen to move forward, turn right, or turn left, using the HD rumble’s vibrations to shake the thing in the direction you want It’s a clever concept, though in practice it doesn’t always respond how you want, and a large part of this will undoubtedly come down to the sort of surface you’re using, with even a mostly-flat surface like a laminated wood floor causing the thing to have some issues turning. The “game” this construction comes with is just the simulated remote control on the Nintendo Switch touchscreen, though this construction does come with a few additional constructions, including a second “R.C. Car” that can be controlled at the same time with an extra pair of Joy-Cons using a 2-player mode, as well as little sign standees that the car can be made to follow using an automated mode, and a purely aesthetic attachment that makes it look like your Nintendo Switch has an antenna.

Fishing Rod – This is actually a combination fishing rod and a Nintendo Switch holder it attaches to (with the idea that players place the Nintendo Switch in the holder to make it seem like you’re interacting directly with the Nintendo Switch.). This was actually a pretty cool construction with a design that’s more detailed and elaborate than it needed to be, but I have to say that the spinning reel feels a bit flimsy, and occasionally seemed to catch as I tried to move it. This construction comes with a fishing minigame that perhaps counter-intuitively has you watching from a side view as you lower your hook. I found this minigame a bit frustrating, as it’s not really made clear what causes the line to break and the controls for actually nabbing a fish seem inconsistent. There’s also an aquarium area where you can view the fish you’ve caught. I should note that this construction also works with a minigame in the game Fishing Star World Tour, which I felt utilized the device much better.

House – This is a small model house of sorts with different plugs you can place in either side of the house or beneath it, with individual plugs allowing you to interact with the creature within the house in different ways, and combinations of plugs opening up different small minigames. This is a cool little interactive toy of sorts, but out of all of the finished projects this is the one whose minigame feels the least substantial. Basically, you’ll activate all of the different plugs to see what they do, have a moment of “huh, that’s cute”, and then move on, with very little in the way of replay value. Oddly enough, this module has some of the best graphics in this package, with some excellent lighting effects, some well-rendered objects, and good water effects.

Motorbike – This is a pair of handlebars you press against your stomach to simulate riding a real motorbike, and of all of the included minigames, the two that come with this are the ones that feel most like actual games, with one being a series of race tracks you drive on to compete with other computer-controlled racers and get the best time, and the other one being a stadium you compete in with computer-controlled racers to pop as many balloons as you can within a time limit. While racing using the Motorbike Toy-Con is a bit unwieldy, it is nevertheless still very fun once you get the hang of it. However, I will point out that the “buttons” on the bike feel flimsy, and the “brake lever” on the bike straight-up is flimsy, being the one thing out of all the LABO kits that actually started to wear down noticeably as I tested it. This section of the game also includes additional minibike and IR scanner constructions you can make (both largely aesthetic covers for a Joy-Con), with the idea that you can use them in conjunction with a custom level designer for the racing minigame, and a custom stadium creator for the stadium mode (where you use the right Joy-Con’s infrared camera to scan objects into the center of the stadium). This construction also works with Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Moto Rush GT.

Piano – This is an actual working piano that players can create, with the notes not only being reproduced in the accompanying minigame, but with the Joy-Cons even capable of using the HD rumble to reproduce the notes in the piano itself. The piano comes with multiple little plugs you can insert into the piano to make for different effects, and in addition to a regular piano “minigame”, there’s also a “recording studio” where you can record and play back your works, and this construction can also be used with the game Deemo. However, I have to say that while this is a marvelous feat of engineering, it’s not very practical for actually using as a piano, as the keys are overly large, making it impossible to play it in the same way.

There are also a few little extra pieces for more minor uses, such as to demonstrate features discussed in the Explore mode.

I should note that in pretty much all of these constructions, you’ll find a lot that’s impressive and that makes ingenious use of the features of the Joy-Cons, but you’ll also find some degree of disappointment at how shallow and gimmicky a lot of this is. These constructions really make amazing use of the Joy-Cons’ motion-sensing capabilities, infrared camera, and HD Rumble in ways that you wouldn’t necessarily consider or even think possible, but it feels like every one of these minigames could do with more content to expand upon what’s included here.

Probably the best of the lot is the motorbike’s minigame, which includes nine tracks plus the ability to custom-create three of your own (in a track creator I would absolutely love to see in a Mario Kart game), but with only one setting, opponents that aren’t especially tough, and a lack of multiplayer, there’s little to keep you here.

Also, while I’ve already pointed out how some of these constructions can be used with Fishing Star World Tour, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Moto Rush GT, and Deemo, none of these uses are quite as big a selling point as you may hope – in Fishing Star it’s only used for a minigame that isn’t quite as good as the main gameplay, the use of the motorbike in the racing games is decent but feels gimmicky, and the use of the Piano in Deemo is hampered by the overly-large keys of the piano.

That is not to say that there isn’t fun to be had in any of this – both making these things and playing around with the various minigames is certainly fun, it’s just a finite sort of fun where you’ll likely toy around with it a bit, see what you can do, and then very likely set it down again and never go back to it.

For the more ambitious creative types, there is of course the Explore mode that’s included with each of the Nintendo LABO games, which not only acts as a fascinating tour through the different features of the Joy-Cons (simplified so that kids can understand them), but also gives players access to a “Garage” tool that enables them to design their own interactive applications using a drag-and-drop interface. Don’t get too excited, though – you’re not going to be getting any sort of extensive game design kit here, as there’s not any way to alter the graphical interface beyond the buttons and light-up panels you’ll be using, so you won’t be producing anything as visually impressive as the minigames included with this package. However, for those looking to jerry-rig their own tools using the Joy-Cons, or get a very, very basic grasp of how programming languages work (including interface features that represent “IF/THEN”, “AND”, and “NOT”). I should note that while most of Nintendo LABO is extremely kid-friendly, this final section may be confusing to even more seasoned game players, despite that it is very, very simplified compared to actual programming languages.

All told, it’s hard to recommend Nintendo LABO Toy-Con 01: Variety Kit as a game, as all of the videogame elements here are fairly shallow. It’s also hard to recommend it as an accessory, as the few videogames it can be used with make for more of a gimmicky experience than a true enhancement to the gameplay. However, as a unique experience and as a toy, it’s still well worth giving a try, as long as you keep your expectations in check. There’s nothing else quite like Nintendo LABO, but it’s not some new revolution in videogames, so much as it is a fun way to spend a few afternoons and some cool stuff to try out.

tl;dr – Nintendo LABO Toy-Con 01: Variety Kit is a really unique hybrid of a Minigame Collection, a series of Accessories you create yourself using the included pieces of custom-made cardboard, and a Misc. tool you can use to explore the features of the Nintendo Joy-Con controllers. Don’t buy this expecting deep gameplay, and its utility as a controller is somewhat negligible, but it is nevertheless a fun and unique experience that’s like nothing else out there, and well worth giving a try.

Grade: B

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