Jan 27, 2026
3 min read
Get ready to return to the haunting magic of the Red and Black games and some Virtual Boy games that were never released.
Nintendo's Virtual Boy deserves your respect.At the very least, this seems to be Nintendo's latest missive as it prepares to bring its best-selling console back from the grave as a Switch 2 accessory.Also, Nintendo's $100 Virtual Boy game may be the best way to experience the first releases of eye-straining 3D games, thanks to several exclusive features and previously unreleased games.
If you didn't already know, Nintendo's fake 3D console from 1995 gave gamers the ability to see through a pair of rack-mounted glasses.Instead of using the 30-year-old device's new single LED strip and rotating mirrors, it asks for a slot in Switch 2 to serve as its stereoscopic screens.Maybe
Nintendo is bringing back several games that were only available on Virtual Boy, such as Galaxy Pinball, Golf, and 3D Tetris.There are other oddities in store, such as Teleroboxer, a sort of Mike Tyson Punch Out!A style game, but instead of punching Mirror Joe, you're punching a robot (which seems to be the trend with robots these days).
The console will also ship with Japan-only titles, such as The Mansion of Innsmouth, an original 3D adventure game.It also features unknown genres such as Red Alarm and Wario Land.
Nintendo promises we'll get more games throughout 2026, including Mario Tennis, Space Invaders Virtual Collection, Virtual Bowling, Vertical Force and V-Tetris.A big plus for this console is that Nintendo plans to release several "unreleased" games, including Zero Racers and D-Hopper.These titles were previewed in early video game magazines and showcased at trade shows, but never saw the light of day, mainly due to the Virtual Boy game crashing and burning.
The Virtual Boy will have additional features because it is a real-life simulation.As with other games in the Nintendo Classics collection, you can pause the game to reset a point, change the control system, or replay a few shots if you messed up your hardest golf shot.Nintendo says there will be more special features, including the ability to change the color of the screen from red to yellow, green and white.You must remove the built-in red filter in the Virtual Boy peripheral to get these color changes
As one of the few people who actually enjoys the as-yet-unrealized concept of pseudo-3D gaming on this blue sphere floating in space, I'm hoping that the Virtual Boy peripheral can introduce me to more of what this type of media has to offer. I've played an emulation of the Virtual Boy in VR, and the experience was much more immersive than many gamers today realize. It's true that goggles using a tripod can strain your eyes and neck, and the novelty ofthey may disappear quickly for some people. For others, this is a mode to see the untapped potential of 3D displays.
