When Nintendo first announced Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour as a Switch 2 launch title, I was intrigued. The game is basically a playable instruction manual, offering players a "tour" of the Switch 2 hardware through mini-game exhibits, tech demo showcases, and quizzes that test one's knowledge of the new system. It's a bizarre idea, but if anyone could pull it off, it would be Nintendo. Then I discovered that instead of being a free pack-in game with the Nintendo Switch 2, Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour would be a $10 premium title, and my interest in it plummeted. Still, as one of only a handful of Switch 2-exclusive launch titles, I went into Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour with an open mind. Unfortunately, it didn't even meet my low expectations.
Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour takes place on giant versions of Switch 2 hardware. Players walk across massive Joy-Con 2 controllers, the system's touch screen, and various accessories, learning all about their functionality. Its basic concept brings to mind Astro's Playroom, which used 3D platformer gameplay to show off the unique features of the PlayStation 5 and its DualSense controller. But whereas Sony made a wildly entertaining, completely free tech demo full of personality and gorgeous visuals, Nintendo opted to make a mind-numbingly dull experience and decided to charge $10 for it.
Nintendo Switch 2 Console Review: A Big Upgrade Without the Must-Play Games to Match
The Nintendo Switch 2 is a significant leap forward compared to the original console, but besides one game, its launch lineup is underwhelming.
Most Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour mini-games are shallower than the microgames from the WarioWare series. Most of them are over in well under a minute, and then it's off to the next thing. Players are able to unlock increasingly more complex variants of the various mini-games in Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour, but that doesn't necessarily make them more fun. For example, one of the first mini-games players encounter in Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour has them dodging falling spike balls as a UFO, all controlled with the Joy-Con 2's mouse functionality. After earning enough medals, players unlock a new version of the game where they also have to collect stars. Most of the other mini-games evolve in a similar fashion, and while they may get slightly harder, they're all so basic and uninspired that it never adds any serious enjoyment to the proceedings.
Many of the Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour mini-games revolve around the Joy-Con 2's mouse functionality, but there are some that mix things up a bit. There's a touchscreen mini-game, and another where players have to mimic the angle of the Switch 2 on-screen by adjusting their console's stand. A couple of the mini-games actually require players to have extra accessories, which is a baffling choice. One of the only driving forces of Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour is checking off all its lists, but that's impossible to do unless one decided to spring for an extra controller with the GL/GR buttons and a camera.
Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour Blocks Content Behind Optional Accessories
One of the mini-games in Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour requires players to have the Switch 2 Pro Controller or the Charging Grip, while the other requires a camera. The good news is that the Switch 2 can technically work with other USB-C cameras. The bad news is that the camera mini-game is difficult to get working right. I spent upwards of 20 minutes fiddling with the official Switch 2 Camera trying to get its associated mini-game to start before it finally started working. In the Pro Controller mini-game, which is all about pushing the buttons that it says to, it claimed that I was holding in the buttons that I wasn't even touching.
Some Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour content also requires a 4K TV or monitor.
Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour mini-games can occasionally be amusing when they work right, but most of them are bland. The tech demos, on the other hand, are a little more interesting. Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour constantly reminds players that these tech demos are not games, but they are the most creative ways that the game shows off the Switch 2's features. One of my favorites is one where the Joy-Con 2 controllers are held upside down to mimic motorcycle handlebars, with players able to turn the throttle like they would on a real bike. The HD Rumble 2 technology shines here, and shows that it has huge potential if devs take advantage of it.
When players are done checking out the HD Rumble 2 tech demos and have dipped their toes in all the mini-games, Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour still has quizzes to complete. Yes, Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour has homework. Players can visit Quiz booths dotted around the game world to read up on Switch 2 facts and then take a quiz over what they've learned. There are some interesting tidbits here and there, but a lot of the quizzes are, quite frankly, boring. I started to ignore them before too long, and it made the pacing of the experience much better.
The ultimate goal of Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour is to walk around the hardware replicas and find "stamps," which are little kiosks that highlight various parts on the console and its accessories. Finding enough stamps lets players continue to the next area, where they can find more stamps, and so on and so forth. Hunting down the stamps isn't challenging or particularly engaging, so it does nothing to make Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour more fun.
Should You Buy Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour?
What really pushes Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour from being a boring trip through the Switch 2 to an outright bad game is the feeling that I paid $10 to essentially play an advertisement for the console's accessories. When exploring the Joy-Con 2 Wheel Area, I found an NPC that said, "I want to play with the Joy-Con 2 wheel so bad... I hope my kids ask for it. Then I'll get to use it too!" This, combined with the fact that two mini-games are blocked behind Switch 2 accessories, left a bad taste in my mouth.
All of that would have been much easier to stomach if Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour was a free game. Instead, it's a premium title, so it's asking players to pay for something that requires expensive, optional accessories for the already-expensive Switch 2 console, and functions as an ad for more of them. It's borderline offensive.
It took about three hours to find all the stamps in Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour, but that included 20 minutes wrestling with the camera.
Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour is not an enjoyable experience in the least, but it does have a few redeeming qualities. The giant-sized versions of Switch 2 hardware looks cool, and there is more to do than expected. Someone that wants to get 100% will have to buy a couple of accessories and spend a decent chunk of time mastering the mini-games and taking all the quizzes. It's not exactly my idea of fun, but I suppose it's something to do while waiting for more exciting Switch 2 exclusives to land on the platform.
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 61 /100 Critics Rec: 25%
- Released
- June 5, 2025
- ESRB
- E For Everyone
- Developer(s)
- Nintendo
- Publisher(s)
- Nintendo
- Number of Players
- Single-player
- Nintendo Switch 2 Release Date
- June 5, 2025
WHERE TO PLAY
Get an inside look at the Nintendo Switch 2 system
You know, when you stop to think about it, there are a lot of interesting technologies and clever designs that go into video game systems.
So, let's consider Nintendo Switch 2!
- Genre(s)
- Mini-Games
- Giant Switch 2 hardware looks cool
- Some neat tech demos and the occasionally amusing mini-game
- Effectively a tech demo that costs $10
- Vast majority of mini-games are shallow and uninspired
- Mini-games blocked behind accessories
- It's basically a bland instruction manual that you play