The Switch is one of the most versatile pieces of hardwhere ever made—not just in the sense of it being a flexible handheld and console hybrid, or even in the sense of its spontaneous co-op, but in the sense of the sheer opportunities for creativity the hardware enables. From the IR camera to the HD rumble to the joycons, the system and its form factor are tailored to enable all sorts of creative applications—just look at the upcoming Labo for instance.
But that’s not where it will end, either. According to a report by Bloomberg, Nintendo is teaming up with San Francisco-based Scrum Ventures to look for startups working on new applications for the Switch. This is actually the kind of thing that already happened with the Wii back in the day, but Nintendo didn’t officially support it back then—now, it looks like they want to foster and endorse people coming up with good, novel uses for the Switch and what it can do.
The program will be run by Scrum, and will look for startups, teams within larger companies, and university researchers developing new tools for the Switch. These could include components, sensors, chips or other add-ons. While Nintendo (and Scrum) will provide developers assistance to bring products to the market, neither will actually invest directly in any of the companies they work with, which means they get to retain their independence.
What might come of this? That remains to be seen. But hopefully, something as delightfully creative as the Labo.
