The Nintendo Labo Vehicle Kit Hits the Track in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
Put the (cardboard) pedal to the metal when the Vehicle Kit launches next month.
In June, the worlds of Mario Kart and Nintendo Labo combined when Nintendo gave families the ability to race vehicles in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe using the cardboard handlebars from the Nintendo Labo Variety Kit as their controller.
The Labo / Mario Kart connection will continue when the Nintendo Labo Vehicle Kit hits store shelves September 14. Players will be able to use the cardboard steering wheel, pedal, and key contained in the Nintendo Labo Vehicle Kit to control every in-game vehicle in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe across all of the game’s modes.
The Nintendo Labo Vehicle Kit will also contain a submarine control unit, a plane’s flight stick, and a second key for two-player gaming -- all of which players can build out of the cardboard included in the kit. Priced at $69.99, the Vehicle Kit will include its own Switch software that will let kids play a variety of games using the new cardboard controllers. Kids can also customize their controllers -- called Toy-Cons -- with stickers, markers, glitter, and other elements to make the items their own.
Nintendo introduced the first two Nintendo Labo kits -- the Variety Kit and the Robot Kit -- in April 2018. In addition to letting kids build cardboard controllers they can use to play games, the software in both kits includes a creative area called Toy-Con Garage. This is a playground of sorts that lets players program their own tools and games that use the cardboard controllers. Toy-Con Garage will also be included with the Vehicle Kit.
Nintendo said more games will be updated with Nintendo Labo support in the future.
Libe MG Ackerman is the former Editorial and Creative Director of SuperParent, and a longtime gaming, digital media and television executive for companies such as Nickelodeon, AOL and Ziff Davis. She can often be found playing Pokemon Go with her son in her Brooklyn neighborhood. Follow her on Twitter: @libeackerman.
