I recently turned 23 and my younger sibling bought me a Nintendo Labo VR kit for my switch, so I spent most of today putting that together and messing around with it and figured I might as well make a post out of it.
First of all, I was surprised by how intensive the building process really is. A lot of these builds are actually really complex, involving multiple folded parts that all nest into each other in particular ways, and the result is often a surprisingly weighty-feeling peripheral for being made out of literally folded cardboard. That's another thing, actually, there's a crazy amount of physical feedback here in comparison to more traditional VR which just uses rumble controllers or what have you. These peripherals feel solid in your hands and have moving buttons and parts that really sell the action being performed. The blaster is a particular standout, which uses loose internal parts and rubber bands to allow the player to actually cock it like a shotgun, placing one piece at the end of its rubber bands' tension, and then pull the trigger to release that part, which slides forward and strikes another part at the end of the barrel with a satisfying thud every time you shoot. It feels fantastic and really helps you get into the headspace of the rail shooter minigames that piece is paired with.
The VR functionality is also a lot more solid than I would expect from sticking a Switch into a cardboard headset; I own a cheap cardboard headset that can be used with a smart phone (which I exclusively use for porn) and it's nowhere near this functional. I guess that can be chalked up to superior gyro functionality in the Switch. Regardless it's surprisingly responsive, although the resolution is pretty low and the screen noticeably blurs when moving the viewpoint. None of this does much to hinder playing the games, though.
And as for those games, they range pretty widely in terms of complexity and quality. There are a handful that can be played with just the headset by itself, none of which are much to write home about aside from just the sheer fact of being in VR. There's a painfully simple platforming minigame, shooting hoops, piloting around a cute little UFO in third person, all of which is to simplistic to be very diverting once the novelty wears off. Once you start making the peripherals, however, things get a lot more interesting as they allow for interesting and unique gimmicks in terms of control and interaction with the virtual environment. Once again, the blaster is the standout, featuring a really solidly put together rail shooter where your explosive shots have a really satisfying arc, as well as actually taking time to reach the target, requiring you to lead shots strategically. Once you get in the zone you'll find a really enjoyable rhythm of firing, pumping in another shot, and acquiring the next target while trying to search out all the little bastards hiding off to the side and on top of buildings. It shouldn't come as a shock that the rail shooter is the most fun you'll find in a VR package, since it's a genre uniquely suited to the format, but the combination of the appealing visual design, just enough complexity to the mechanics, and the fun, satisfying physical feedback of the ToyCon Blaster really does make it a standout that I'd recommend to anyone.
First of all, I was surprised by how intensive the building process really is. A lot of these builds are actually really complex, involving multiple folded parts that all nest into each other in particular ways, and the result is often a surprisingly weighty-feeling peripheral for being made out of literally folded cardboard. That's another thing, actually, there's a crazy amount of physical feedback here in comparison to more traditional VR which just uses rumble controllers or what have you. These peripherals feel solid in your hands and have moving buttons and parts that really sell the action being performed. The blaster is a particular standout, which uses loose internal parts and rubber bands to allow the player to actually cock it like a shotgun, placing one piece at the end of its rubber bands' tension, and then pull the trigger to release that part, which slides forward and strikes another part at the end of the barrel with a satisfying thud every time you shoot. It feels fantastic and really helps you get into the headspace of the rail shooter minigames that piece is paired with.
The VR functionality is also a lot more solid than I would expect from sticking a Switch into a cardboard headset; I own a cheap cardboard headset that can be used with a smart phone (which I exclusively use for porn) and it's nowhere near this functional. I guess that can be chalked up to superior gyro functionality in the Switch. Regardless it's surprisingly responsive, although the resolution is pretty low and the screen noticeably blurs when moving the viewpoint. None of this does much to hinder playing the games, though.
And as for those games, they range pretty widely in terms of complexity and quality. There are a handful that can be played with just the headset by itself, none of which are much to write home about aside from just the sheer fact of being in VR. There's a painfully simple platforming minigame, shooting hoops, piloting around a cute little UFO in third person, all of which is to simplistic to be very diverting once the novelty wears off. Once you start making the peripherals, however, things get a lot more interesting as they allow for interesting and unique gimmicks in terms of control and interaction with the virtual environment. Once again, the blaster is the standout, featuring a really solidly put together rail shooter where your explosive shots have a really satisfying arc, as well as actually taking time to reach the target, requiring you to lead shots strategically. Once you get in the zone you'll find a really enjoyable rhythm of firing, pumping in another shot, and acquiring the next target while trying to search out all the little bastards hiding off to the side and on top of buildings. It shouldn't come as a shock that the rail shooter is the most fun you'll find in a VR package, since it's a genre uniquely suited to the format, but the combination of the appealing visual design, just enough complexity to the mechanics, and the fun, satisfying physical feedback of the ToyCon Blaster really does make it a standout that I'd recommend to anyone.
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