Gadgetory

Nintendo lab Oh part science project part Lego part IKEA it's a crazy new thing that Nintendo is launching for the Nintendo switch that allows you to make these accessories that connect with it and I got to play with this a few months ago with my son what's it like to actually set up and use there are two kits one is $70 and there's a variety kit they let you make five different things one is $80 and just lets you make a robot backpack I got both of them at CNET and we built them and here's how they work first of all they all start with lots of cardboard sheets a big part of labo is the make mode where you construct everything out of almost entirely cardboard it's astonishing how Nintendo's clear instructions and dozens of perfectly perforated sheets of cardboard become a variety of really clever switch accessories it takes time though I built the variety kits creations with my kids and I took on the separately packaged robot backpack by myself the robot kit is a single four to five hour project according to the Nintendo that took me even longer kids under 10 should definitely work on it with a parent the variety kit has projects varying in length a few extra pieces like plastic Rawat's strings and rubber bands help make mechanisms work all the creations are powered by the joy con controllers for motion vibration game controls and every other smart function inside each giant box you'll also get a game card that has all the lab ou software on it a big part of lab o is how it uses an infrared camera and one joy con remote to read reflective stickers that turn them into actions but you have to be careful with placing the stickers just right the piano works like the robot in that there are a little reflective stickers on these keys that you jam in here and then inside the infrared camera on the joy con controller is reading those in the dark and converting them to sounds you pop them in and you have a piano toy Con House and other part of the variety pack basically works like piano it's got a dark space inside he uses the infrared camera you pop it in and it reads the inside and depending on what you put in again these reflective sticker coded things into it the camera reads them and turns them into little actions and you can combine them so you could do maybe this and tap it out or you could pop that out put in the crank and twist that or put it on the bottom and keep playing around with it all sorts of weird combinations and play with this virtual pet and I have no idea what it does but my kid loves it fishing is a complete little game that I haven't even set up yet here but I got to use a Nintendo's event the motorcycle handlebars that you build have a variety of racetracks that also allow you to build your own tracks and then there's a little RC car which is fun to play with and is basically like a little bonus pack in it's unclear how much more is left to explore after one week but there was still extra things I haven't unlocked and the robot kit meanwhile has various modes including time challenges but it's mostly like a home version of Pacific Rim meets starfox where you control your own robot mech to knock things down in various levels there's also a way to estimate your calorie burn it's crazily effective and it's a strangely good workout but the backpack needs a lot of adjustment on grown-up shoulders like mine there's another whole mode called discover that teaches you how the parts of lab work and advises on extra Easter eggs and customizations you can try that I haven't even unlocked yet and if you want to go even deeper there's a toy con garage mode that enables a whole type of programming language that can remap joique on controller inputs to do different things like make one controller vibrate if the others ir camera sees a target it could end up being a place where fan groups cook up all sorts of ideas and there's some extra projects hidden here but it's going to be something that younger kids are gonna find a little harder to learn if you want to do more you could always color in design lab Oh which I didn't do but I'm sure lots of people will just keep in mind intento warns not to get the cardboard too wet or it'll warp if you have $70 and a Nintendo switch the toy con one variety kit is a great Explorer pack for parents and kids or lovers of weird accessories the robot kit well that's more of a specialist item I also worried about the cardboard breaking down or ripping so far it's been sturdy but I'm sure it's going to happen the app has advice on repairing and reinforcing the toy cons but I don't know how easy it'll be to order new cardboard or spare parts hopefully not too difficult lab Oh feels like a major step forward for Nintendo as a toy company but it's not necessarily something I'd recommend anyone buying a switch just again however if you have young kids it's a pretty fantastic add-on experience for switch owners