Nintendo Cardboard Edition - Nintendo Labo

[SkyPikachu]

Nintendo announced Nintendo Labo about 12 hours ago and thought it was worth it's own topic.

More details can be found here

Variety Kit $70 USD/$100 AUD

Robot Kit $80 USD/$120 AUD

This has obviously been designed for kids but I think the price is insane. $80 AUD gets you Zelda so you're paying $20-$40 for cardboard assuming you think the games worth $80 like Zelda. Honestly to me that's just way to pricey. Maybe the actual gameplay will be amazing but I don't see it being and I don't think the cart should be full price let alone the card be $20-$40.

I feel this will be a huge turn off to a lot of people.

Outside of pricing I think the concept is really cool but not something I'll jump at and find amazing. I've seen a lot of school teachers thinking it's cool however you can't expect every student to buy a switch. Also using cardboard seems like a very strange choice.

Nonetheless I'd love to demo it/try it but there's no way I'm forking out $100+ for it.

[Kong Wen]

You're not the target market for this, Slurm. $100 sounds about right for a big kit of family play-time. I can't think of many 4-year-olds who would get much value out of Zelda.

I think the proof of this pudding will be in the eating. We'll have to see how well it works when it gets out on the market, how well the cardboard holds up, etc.

[Jordan]

I don't care how well it sells. I think it's an abomination. I hate "do it yourself" projects to begin with. If I wanted to do them, I wouldn't be sitting on my ass playing video games. The funny thing is that I had a better opinion of Nintendo before they showed the Labo. It seemed like they were really starting to turn things around with the Switch. For once I felt like Nintendo actually had a console on their hands that would attract major third party support and get a bunch of good games all over the place. They still do, but now I'm worried that they're falling back into the trap of becoming complacent and cashing in on a bunch of gimmick nonsense. I don't see this thing getting long-term support with developers, including Nintendo, flocking to make games for it. Nintendo will throw out a few games with Labo functionality and then ditch the thing forever. It's a bunch of cardboard so they'll probably recycle it to make more Switch and 3DS boxes.

I know that kids may like this and certain people who enjoy crafting may enjoy this. I'm not in either demographic. I despise it.

[Kong Wen]

This is not being marketed at anyone who currently has a Switch. This is pretty clearly and firmly in the "expanding the audience" bucket. If they can keep selling Switches to people who like video games, and that's a solid foundation, then they're going to try to sell Switches to toddlers, grannies, mermaids, etc. with little side-projects like this one.

I will 100% guarantee you that we'll see some variation of Wii Fit coming to this system within the next couple of years.

[SkyPikachu]

This is not being marketed at anyone who currently has a Switch.

You're not the target market for this, Slurm. $100 sounds about right for a big kit of family play-time. I can't think of many 4-year-olds who would get much value out of Zelda.

If it’s not targeted at switch owners then it turns into a $550 AUD purchase that’s a big ask for parents. I just don’t see why they’d do that for a game made with cardboard when you could buy them so much more with $550.

I still think the concept is amazing. I hope it does well.

[The Shoemaker]

Not for us is the key point, definitely meant to expand the audience. If this takes off and sells a bunch of switch units then that can only mean more third party support. The important thing is Nintendo has already shown us they are dedicated to the core audience with their first year releases, and with titles like Pokemon and Metroid Prime on the way.

Another cool thing about the product is Nintendo is going to give out the plans to build everything for free, so if you want you can just get the software and your own materials to make the creations.

This is something I would have loved as a kid. I can imagine it being good for families on Christmas morning as well, spending a part of the day building the stuff. Kids will also really enjoy customizing these however they want.

It's a tad expensive, but I also think the switch is a tad expensive. If you look at kids toys, this is right around the expected price point, maaaaaybe $10-20 too high, no more than that. I'm sure things like these will be discounted as more come out though.

[kitroplious]

This is not being marketed at anyone who currently has a Switch.

Maybe potential for Kreegs and Jelly’s families, though we would probably have to wait a few years from now, and Nintendo Labo would probably stop by then.

[Kong Wen]

Professional Twitter-verified Switch publishers weighing in:

[Kiwi the Tortoise]

We're not the target audience.
Cats will love it though.

[Jordan]

mermaids

Nah. Cardboard can get ruined if it gets wet and they would need to waterproof the Switch, which they haven't done. The mermaid demographic remains elusive in the world of video games. Sega tried with Ecco the Dolphin, but they still haven't found decent ways to bring functionality to underwater consoles.

I just don't see this getting much support from Nintendo. It seems exactly like something where after the initial kit, they never do anything else with it again. Even for families with kids, I think the value is bad. I know that it's selling well on Amazon, but I think people are suckers to be honest. Once the shock of the initial reveal wears off and people start to realize how destructible cardboard is, I am less sure about the Labo's prospects.