Nintendo Labo Review: Through the eyes of a child

Instead of writing this review myself, I let the 9 and 12 year old experts do it.

As a grown-up in his mid 30s, I am just about as far as you can get from Nintendo's target market for Labo. This is, for all intents and purposes, and exercise in imagination with your Nintendo Switch as the assistant.

So instead of getting bogged down in the technical aspects of how this all works, which is the way someone like me appreciates Nintendo's latest creation, I asked my kids to share their thoughts. They are, after all, the ones who have been playing with these kits every waking moment since the kits arrived almost a week ago.

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Very much worth the work you put into it.

Cailet - Age 12

When I first opened this big box, way bigger than the Nintendo Switch, it looked like a lot of work. You have to put together dozens of little cardboard pieces, and while it was very fun it was a little lengthy. The Robot Kit took us over four hours to make but it was not difficult. The Nintendo Switch Labo game walks you though how to build everything. I feel like the build instructions were not too complex and went into detail. I liked how the Labo instructions showed animated pictures of different parts explaining further to be very clear.

The instructions were divided into eight big parts explaining what each part was and how it worked. I appreciate being able to look at different angles on the Nintendo switch to look at the different parts. Being able to look around and see the parts was really helpful. I also like the captions at the top and the silly sound it made. My brother and I found it quite interesting and were both really proud at the end, because it works really well and is something we made together. That feeling is a very positive feeling that helps you feel accomplished and inspires you to continue with more projects like it. My brother really liked this part too:

If you get a Labo project, don't expect it to be really easy but it is still fun! The build process in Labo can be simple or hard. For example, an easy one would be like making a box to make the backpack you wear. A harder step would be like tying string onto the power pistons so they move up and down. Every movement by your arms or legs would move the power pistons which would move the robot on TV. It's so cool!

Like he said, the giant robot game is very entertaining as well. The feeling of using the thing you created is really cool. The cables from the box on your back attach to your arms and legs, and when you walk around in the game the robot walks around on the screen. Overall the game reminded me of VR because you are moving around a lot. You punch buildings and fight spaceships to get a high score. I like how the game changed according to how you put the pieces on. For example when the headset is up its third person and when its down its first person, which makes a big difference in how you fight. The game will also tell you when a string is loose and it tells you and you can pause to fix it. We shared the robot with everyone, and the cables can be adjusted if you are taller or shorter.

I really like Labo. The big robot kit is my favorite, but the Variety kit is a lot of fun too. It makes a lot of smaller things so I can play music on a piano and ride a small motorcycle. These games don't have a bunch of levels like the robot kit but still do cool things you play for a little while and then do something else. I can't wait to show Nintendo Labo to my friends.

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