Nintendo Switch is getting a Virtual Boy accessory and Switch Online games
The physical Virtual Boy accessory will be required to play on Switch
Virtual Boy is the next Nintendo console coming to Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack, alongside a physical replica of the VR console that users will be able to plug their console into.
The dedicated Virtual Boy accessory will be required to play games, Nintendo said, and replicates the form of the original 1995 Virtual Boy by allowing users to insert their Switch or Switch 2 console.
A cardboard model will also be available, it said, and Virtual Boy will launch on Switch Online on February 17, 2026. 14 games will be released “over time”, including Mario’s Tennis, Galactic Pinball, Wario Land, and V Tetris.
The Virtual Boy for Nintendo Switch 2/Nintendo Switch accessory will cost $100 / £67. The cardboard model will be available for $25 / £17.
The Virtual Boy was an early virtual reality console released in 1995, and was famously one of Nintendo’s biggest commercial failures.
Partly due to its high price and unappealing red and black display, the console was discontinued less than a year after it launched. However, the console received some memorable games, notably VB Wario Land and Mario’s Tennis.
Virtual Boy games will require the Switch Online Expansion Pack add-on, which is also needed to play N64, Game Boy Advance and Sega games and costs $49.99 / £34.99 / €39.99 per year.
It also provides access to downloadable expansions for select Nintendo Switch games including the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe – Booster Course Pass, Animal Crossing: New Horizons – Happy Home Paradise and Splatoon 2: Octo Expansion.
Gallery: Virtual Boy for Switch
