Summary
- The Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour is much more fun and informative than expected.
- The mini-games seem basic but are surprisingly addictive.
- Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour may not match Astro’s Playroom, but it’s worth the $10 price.
The Nintendo Switch 2 has arrived, and it’s immediately obvious when you look at it that this is a new model. The Switch 2 is much larger than the original, and with its dark colors extending to the upgraded Joy-Cons, it has a stylish, premium look that makes the original Switch look like a toy in comparison.
The differences aren’t merely external, however. There’s a lot more going on under the hood, from a much more powerful processor to new magnetic Joy-Con connectors that are a welcome upgrade to the fiddly rails of the original Switch. A lot of the features, such as the upgraded rumble in the Joy-Cons, aren’t immediately obvious.
Nintendo is clearly proud of all the upgrades it’s made in the Switch 2 and has released a game that takes you through all the major changes to the hardware. Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour sees you exploring a giant virtual Switch 2, learning about the various parts and trying out new features via mini-games and tech demos. You’d expect a game of this kind to come bundled with the Switch 2, but Nintendo has decided to charge $10 instead. Skeptical as I was when the game was announced, having played it, I think it’s worth the price.
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Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour
Mini-Games Released June 5, 2025 Developer(s) Nintendo Publisher(s) Nintendo Number of Players Single-player Nintendo Switch 2 Release Date June 5, 2025
Explore a virtual exhibit that offers an inside look at the Nintendo Switch 2 system.
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Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour is a lot more fun than I expected
The mini games shouldn't be fun, but somehow still are
I’ll hold my hands up right now. When I saw the first previews of Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour, I thought it looked terrible. The brief clips showed the playable character reading information from a sign about how the magnets on the new Joy-Cons work. It didn’t exactly look thrilling, and I was pretty scathing about a clip showing how you get to shake a virtual maraca 20 times in one of the tech demos.
However, having put several hours into the game, it’s a lot better than I expected it to be. Don’t get me wrong, it’s hardly the greatest product that Nintendo has ever produced, but there’s a lot to like.
It’s an interesting mix of collecting stamps, taking quizzes, playing mini-games, and trying out tech demos. While that doesn’t sound like a whole lot of fun, Nintendo has managed to add a little of its traditional magic to it, so that it’s much better than it sounds. Even making your way across the Switch 2 screen is fun, as Nintendo has made it a virtual ice rink that you can skate your way across, often ending up on your butt.
The mini-games aren’t a patch on the type of games you find in titles such as Super Mario Party Jamboree, but many of them are a lot of fun. There’s a mini-game that’s meant to demonstrate the detail of 4K resolution that gets you to play the first level of Super Mario Bros in its original resolution on a 4K TV. It means you need to stand very close to your TV to see what’s happening, but it’s still as much fun playing Super Mario Bros. as it was playing it on the NES.
Even the mini-games that should be really dull, such as one in which you have to tilt the Switch 2 to a specific angle using the kickstand, are surprisingly addictive, thanks to the medals that you can win for beating the game with increasingly challenging scores. These medals in turn let you unlock other mini-games.
I was surprised by how much my kids like it
They've played it nearly as much as Mario Kart World
The first two Switch 2 games I played were Mario Kart World and Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour. I played both with my kids, and I thought that they would hate Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour and would want to turn it off and play more Mario Kart, but they’ve been even more into it than I have.
Every time we play, they ask if we can do a bit of Mario Kart and then a bit of Welcome Tour. For some reason, they absolutely loved the tech demo in which you shake the Joy-Cons to play maracas, with the improved rumble making it feel like you’re really shaking maracas full of beads. They didn’t want to stop playing it, which I did not expect.
They also got really excited when they discovered that they could explore inside one of the Joy-Cons, which was mostly just a giant circuit board, but still seemed to thrill them. I was certain that a glorified tech demo would be far too dry for kids to enjoy, but Nintendo seems to have pulled it off.
I've learned a lot about the Nintendo Switch 2
Who knew rumble could be so interesting?
Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour is ultimately intended to show off the new features of the Switch 2 that you might not be aware of just by using it. I wasn’t expecting to find the more informative portions of the game interesting, but I genuinely have.
The game then proceeds to reproduce the sound of collecting coins in Super Mario Bros. just using rumble, which is honestly really impressive.
There’s a lot to learn about the new HD Rumble 2 system, for example. You learn how traditional rumble uses a rotating weight, but the new system uses linear vibrations. What’s really impressive is that it goes on to explain how vibrating the casing of the Joy-Con can work in a similar way to the way a speaker vibrates a membrane. The game then proceeds to reproduce the sound of collecting coins in Super Mario Bros. just using rumble, which is honestly really impressive.
It’s clear that a lot more has gone into the Switch 2 than meets the eye, and Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour is intended to ensure that you come to appreciate every tiny improvement that has been made to the original model.
Astro's Playroom is still the gold standard
Sony's free game is much more fun to play
The unfortunate reality for Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour is that it will inevitably be compared to Astro’s Playroom. This is the game that comes pre-installed for free on every PS5 console and is intended to showcase the abilities of the DualSense controller.
Far from being a dry tech demo, however, Astro’s Playroom is a seriously fun platformer. It’s a genuinely good game in its own right, even if it’s only short, and it means that when you buy a PS5, you can start playing a great game as soon as you plug it in. With the Switch 2, you’ll need to buy or already own some games before you can start playing.
Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour just can’t compete with Astro’s Playroom in terms of how much fun it is, although the two games serve slightly different purposes.
Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour just can’t compete with Astro’s Playroom in terms of how much fun it is, although the two games serve slightly different purposes. Astro’s Playroom is a show-don’t-tell game that’s only intended to showcase the new controller, whereas Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour is meant to highlight every single new feature of the Switch 2, which is a much bigger job that a platform game couldn’t really do justice to.
Astro’s Playroom is predominantly a game that also showcases the tech, whereas Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour is very much a showcase first and a game second. It’s no real surprise which is the most fun.
You shouldn't have to pay, but Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour is worth the price
You get $10 worth of fun and information
The other major difference between Astro’s Playroom and Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour is that Astro’s Playroom is completely free. You buy the console, you get the game. With the Switch 2, you buy the console, and then you also have to buy the game if you want to play it.
The Switch 2 isn’t cheap. At $449, you can buy a PS5 Digital Edition for less than a Switch 2, so it sticks in the craw a little that you have to pay for Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour. For me, a tech demo for a device should come included with that device.The price of $10 is a strange choice, too. It’s hardly going to make Nintendo a fortune, as I don’t see Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour selling millions upon millions of copies. But it’s enough to be annoying to have to pay, and I’m sure Nintendo could have afforded to give it away for free.
Ultimately, however, Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour is much better than I expected. Whether you want to learn more about the Switch 2 or just want to play some surprisingly addictive mini-games, it’s worth paying the $10 that Nintendo shouldn’t be charging you in the first place.
