Nintendo’s Labo has been listed in Time Magazine as one of the outlet’s top inventions of 2018.

The outlet has listed 50 “groundbreaking” inventions chosen across a variety of categories from architecture and accessibility to toys and transportation. Each was listed according to originality, creativity, influence, ambition and effectiveness.

The Nintendo Labo, a set of DIY cardboard controllers-slash-toys for the Switch, was listed for helping younger gamers “create their own fun”.

Labo of love

“Usually with video games, all the fun happens on the players’ screens,” said Megan McCluskey in the Labo's entry. “Not so with Nintendo Labo, a set of kits allowing DIY-inclined gamers to construct their own cardboard controllers for the company’s grab-and-go Switch console.”

“While build-and-play toys that connect to electronics aren’t new, Labo is unique in the video-gaming world, where controllers are typically store-bought and rarely fun in their own right.”

Time also gave a space in its list to the Xbox Adaptive Controller, developed by Microsoft to help differently-abled players who may have trouble using more traditional gamepads.