A few months back, Nintendo announced as part of its Direct that it is bringing back the Virtual Boy. This is being surfaced in conjunction with the Virtual Boy – Nintendo Classics titles that will be added to the Switch Online subscription service. More recently, the company has listed the device on its US site.
For the unfamiliar, the original Virtual Boy was first launched back in 1995, promoted as the first stereoscopic 3D system. And the Switch Online service has something similar to PlayStation Plus, where retro titles are gradually made available to subscribers. But the two together and it should be obvious why the three-decade old hardware is getting a refresh.
Of course, to make use of this, you’ll need either a Switch or a Switch 2, as the name of the service suggests. And to interface with the Virtual Boy specifically, you’ll need either Joy-Con or Joy-Con 2 controllers as well. All that being said, the Virtual Boy – Nintendo Classics library of the Switch Online will only go live on 17 February.
Only For Paying Nintendo Switch Online Subscribers
The same technically also applies to the Virtual Boy hardware as well. Despite being listed, its page mentions the same 17 February release date. This is accompanied by a US$99.99 price tag (~RM392). There’s also a disclaimer that “this item is only for paid Nintendo Switch Online members”.
All that being said, it remains to be seen if this is something that will be making its way here. For one, it’s not listed on the Malaysian site. But on the flip side, we do now have our own eShop and localised Switch Online sub. Either way, we’ll let you know once we learn more.
(Source: Nintendo)
