Nintendo’s Virtual Boy for Switch is a wonderful way to experience a buried relic, but I’m not keen on its need for both a subscription and a purchase

It feels weird to buy a peripheral in order to play games you don’t own. I’m generally very positive about the Nintendo Classics offered through the Nintendo Switch Online membership (and the classic Mega Drive games). I know I’ll lose access if I stop subscribing, but it feels like a reasonable fee to get these on top of other benefits. But, just like I have never bought DLC for a game I don’t own, I find the idea of needing to buy a peripheral to play the newly added Virtual Boy games a little hard to swallow.

We’ve written about the Virtual Boy before on Eurogamer, thanks to Alex feeling rather keen to throw his money away one night, so I won’t bog this article down with more on the console other than to say it’s such a bizarre creation that it feels rather exciting to get to play it today via the Switch consoles. A kind of portable you can only really play while sitting at a desk that offers a red and black 3D gaming experience via its in-built display, it’s not something I ever imagined playing in my own home, yet here we are – and that’s neat.

The aforementioned peripheral, then, is needed to create the 3D screen view that the original console offered – there’s no way to play these games without the peripheral, which I understand but at the same time wouldn’t see the harm in Nintendo offering 2D versions for those with more of a casual interest. An excellent fully modelled Virtual Boy replica (sans controllers) can be bought for £67, and if you’d rather not spend that much you can opt for a cardboard device of an original design for £17. Would I pay £67 for some plastic that becomes completely useless the moment I no longer subscribe to Switch Online + Expansion Pack? I don’t think I would.

Would I fairly happily hand over £80 for the peripheral and all the games? That’s a sweeter deal, and one I feel the hardcore audience interested in this out-there slice of Nintendo history would much prefer. Ultimately, for a retro collection like this an option to own every game on a single Switch cart would be the best scenario, and no doubt some would be willing to stump up the extra cost that would incur. Given Nintendo is planning to release two Virtual Boy games that were never on the original hardware, there’s a real collector’s angle to this project that doesn’t feel fully realised via the way it’s being distributed at the moment.

This is a bizarre thing to say on a website that reviews video games (calm down those of you at the back in the comments), but the quality of the games on offer for the Virtual Boy doesn’t really matter. This is as much a piece of history as it is a form of entertainment, so had every game here been a complete stinker I’d have still argued that they are worth experiencing – but gladly there are some that deserve to be played for more than curiosity’s sake.

Virtual Boy Wario Land comes with the reputation of being the best game on the system, and based on the seven games available right now I can’t disagree. It’s a tight side-scrolling platformer with the classic Nintendo feel that makes good use of the depth offered by the 3D visuals. While I reckon it would work fine in 2D (honestly, most of these games would be absolutely playable), the effects, as basic as they are, still manage to add a surprising amount of visual flair. It’s got a banging soundtrack, too, which for some reason I wasn’t expecting.

Of the other six available games, I’ve spent most time with Galactic Pinball, but I’m not sure if this is because it’s a great game or if I just find the stationary pinball table easier on my eyes. I say “most time” but I should note here that the ‘console’ encourages you to take breaks pretty often, and I recommend it. I played Red Alarm (a wireframe graphics 3D futuristic aircraft shooter that is decent if rather odd to experience in the year 2026) for about 30 minutes, and returning to the real world was akin to when Neo got unplugged in The Matrix, but he also had a crooked neck because he had been forced into a completely ridiculous body position.

It’s really only Wario and Pinball that I’ve had the drive to dive back into, knowing that I’d come out the other side a little worse for wear. As I said, this whole Virtual Boy project for Switch is worth it for the time capsule experience (even more so in the UK where the console didn’t hit stores), and no matter my issues with the way it’s been released it’s still a lot cheaper than buying a second-hand system and the games. The games yet to release seem more appealing to me, including Mario Clash, Mario’s Tennis, Jack Bros, and the never released F-Zero racer Zero Racers, but we’ve got to wait a little for those to land.

All in all, I’m glad Nintendo has brought the Virtual Boy to Switch and Switch 2, but it’s not without its problems. From technical and practical points of view, the machine is uncomfortable, I had some problems seeing the whole display which forced me to reduce the game view size (although other people who tested it haven’t had such issues), and I’m not in love with how you slot the Switch into the hard plastic peripheral – nothing bad has happened yet, but it feels like scratches could happen pretty easily.

I think you know if the cost of the Virtual Boy experience on Switch is something you’re happy to pay. I kind of love the whole thing despite itself, which isn’t so much giving the system and its lineup and free pass, but an acknowledgement of Nintendo’s willingness to try something different. And I still can’t help but feel happy this exists at all.