Nintendo consoles haven’t been short of a few ‘interesting’ attachments or accessories, and now, after its announcement in the September 2025 Direct, you’ll be able to experience the Virtual Boy’s library on Switch hardware.
Yes, that’s right, the Virtual Boy is back and not just in digital game form either. Nintendo has actually opted to make a ‘new’ Virtual Boy for the Switch, allowing you to put a big box on your face to replicate the feel of the 1995 original.
The way the new accessory works is similar to that of those cheap phone ‘VR’ headsets, or akin to that of the Labo VR kit, needing you to slot either the Switch or Switch 2 console in the middle to get the full experience.
There are two versions of the new Virtual Boy add-on: a larger plastic model complete with tripod, or a cardboard version, making it even closer to that aforementioned Labo. No date for the physical accessories was revealed at the time of writing.
Since the Virtual Boy didn’t exactly set the world alight on its initial debut, there were only 22 games released. What’s great is that 14 of those 22 will be available on this revitalized Switch version, and can be accessed via Nintendo Switch Online.
Thankfully, we did get a launch of February 17, 2026 for when titles will be heading to the service, but not all are available on that initial date. Instead, they will release “over time,” so only expect a handful out of the gate in true Nintendo fashion.
Interestingly, the Direct stated that “you’ll need” the dedicated accessories in order to play Virtual Boy games, so if the library starts to launch on that February date, surely at least the Cardboard variant of the hardware can be purchased before then. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see when the company fancies letting us know when that will be!
Last Updated On: Sep 12, 2025 4:54 pm CEST