Nintendo Labo: Nintendo’s Philosophy in a Cardboard Box
Don’t know what Nintendo Labo is all about?
Watch here: First Look at Nintendo Labo
While Microsoft and Sony compete for the most realistic graphics and beefiest CPUs, Nintendo allows specs to take a backseat in order to challenge design. This kind of philosophy, that values ingenuity above all, is thanks to Gunpei Yokoi, one of Nintendo’s first game designers. Gunpei championed “lateral thinking with withered technology”. He believed that a company is better off using affordable, trustworthy (withered) technology, and using it in a new (lateral) way. We saw this philosophy with the introduction of the D-pad, the zap gun, 3D graphics, motion controls, and now: cardboard.
Nintendo’s newest creation, Labo, is the very essence of withered technology used in a creative way. Microsoft and Sony have scoured the market with 4k gaming consoles, and Nintendo has made it clear that 4k is not their battle. While VR introduces the user to the virtual world, Labo brings gaming to the physical world. Cardboard is one of the cheapest methods to create props, and possibly thanks to today’s maker-space world, Nintendo has taken that to heart. What better way to provide a variety of game props than through a DIY kit?
Of course, this isn’t to say that Labo won’t have its shortfalls: cardboard is breakable, especially to children, and kits are guaranteed to be as straightforward as Ikea guides, but there is always tape, glue, and extra cardboard lying around. Plus, what can’t a few googly-eyes fix?
Drawbacks aside, Nintendo Labo hints at new ways players can physically interact with their games. The online maker community will no doubt customize their games in unique, surprising ways. If the Nindie creators are allowed to interact with Labo in the future, this opens the door to a flood of creativity from independent creators. It can invite both players and makers to interact thoughtfully with their technology. Even the process of creation can have a positive impact on young children still learning ways to interact with their surroundings.
Nintendo of Europe’s president, Satoru Shibata, gave a statement: “Our goal is to put smiles on the faces of everyone Nintendo touches. Nintendo Labo invites anyone with a creative mind and a playful heart to make, play and discover in new ways with Nintendo Switch. I personally hope to see many people enjoying making kits with their family members, with big smiles on their faces.”
A creative mind and a playful heart is exactly what Gunpei Yokoi wanted to reach. If Yokoi was here to witness the Nintendo Labo today, he’d be smiling as he tinkered away with a cardboard set of his own.
