Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour – Review

Some experiences require additional accessories, sold separately. Seriously!?

In 2020, when Sony launched the fifth iteration of the much-loved PlayStation console, we had a little surprise from Team ASOBI. You probably already know what I'm talking about: Astro Bot himself… who became, among gamers, not only the PlayStation mascot but also a symbol of quality when it comes to fun game design. What does this have to do with Nintendo? Well, from my point of view, there are two common elements:
Firstly, a small-but-significant controversy related to the originality of Astro Bot and, especially, its gameplay style, which many said was too similar to Super Mario Odyssey; And secondly, our topic today — Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour, compared by many gamers to Nintendo's Astro Bot. This comparison, unfortunately, doesn't flatter the red team… but rather, to some extent, overshadows it. Why? Because Sony raised the bar for interactive tech demos that showcase a tech product. And when it was Nintendo's turn to present its new gem… well, let's just say it didn't quite live up to expectations.
What are the reasons? We'll explore them below. But not before I tell you, as briefly as possible, what Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour is and whether or not it deserves your attention.

Welcome to the exhibition! Please show me your ticket

I apologise, but I didn't know I had to buy a ticket. Wasn't it supposed to be a free exhibition? Good question. I thought so too initially, when I saw the trailer. But since I've already stood in this long queue, I might as well not turn back and go in. Excuse me, how much did you say a ticket costs? I'll check right away… an adult ticket is €9.99. Cash or card? Card, please… thank you!

Now that we've managed to get into the exhibition, let's see if it was worth the money. As for the costs, we'll draw conclusions at the end. What is Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour, in short? It's right there in the title: the way to welcome the lucky ones who got their hands on the new Switch — or, in other words, Nintendo's way of welcoming you home. After you've broken the piggy bank and argued with your wife to convince her that Switch 2 is all you need in life to be happy, don't rush to put your card back in your wallet — because you still have some “debts”. Come on, I don't want to be mean, I'm just trying to be funny. After all, no one forces you to buy Welcome Tour, but we have to admit it sounds a bit strange. It's like buying an expensive, premium car… but to find out how it works or what it can do, you have to pay separately. Not the greatest experience, I would say.

Now, I'm not exactly sure what to call it: a game, a tech demo, or an experience? You choose what seems most appropriate. Perhaps it's a combination of all of them: because it has a bit of each, in a way. The story begins in a huge arena, where Nintendo, fictitiously, has “rented” the space to exhibit its new creation: the great and much-anticipated Switch 2. I don't just say “great” in comparison to the first model — but also because, literally, it's huge. You start the tour by choosing a tiny person who scurries like an ant through and over the Switch 2 hardware and its accessories. Like at a real event, you find all sorts of information, details, secrets, and even other visitors from whom you can learn extra things. At first glance, Welcome Tour looks very “clean”, even if the screen is bombarded with colours. On a 4K TV, the game looks impeccable. It doesn't have pretentious graphics or a visual style; rather, it seems made from stock assets from Freepik. But overall, it does its job well. The developers at Nintendo Cube and Nintendo EPD have managed to showcase the Switch 2 hardware and accessories. The optimisation is also “on point”, exactly as you'd expect from a title made specifically for that console. No comment. Well done.

What remains to be seen now is what exactly happens on this virtual tour and whether it manages to be fun and interesting enough to be worth the 50 lei I paid for the ticket.

Please touch the exhibits!?

In a classic museum, the guide and security staff will ensure you don't leave your fingerprints on objects or display cases. But fortunately, in Welcome Tour, you're encouraged to discover as much as possible and interact with everything you encounter. In total, there are 12 zones you can explore, starting from the left Joy-Con, the tablet, the right Joy-Con, and, last but not least, the entire set of official accessories available at the console's launch.

At first, you are on their surface, but as you advance and discover more and more information, you descend deeper — literally and figuratively. The good part is that there's no risk of electrocution and you can't break anything, so you can relax! The zones are numbered alphabetically, and to discover the next one, you have to complete one of the missions the game proposes… namely, to collect all the stamps! How does this work? Quite simple at first, but boring from a certain point, and, in the end, even frustrating. You have to approach all the interactive points in a zone, such as the directional buttons, the screenshot button, sometimes the logo (if present), etc. When you approach one of these points, an informational stand appears, unlocking a stamp with the name of that point. Depending on the size of the zone, there can be fewer or more of these. After you've obtained all the stamps from Zone A, you can access Zone B, and so on, up to letter L.

The stamp thing is just one of the activities, and perhaps the most boring. While it seems fun at first and awakens the “completionist” in you, after 3-4 zones it starts to get tiresome. Remember that without these stamps, you cannot advance. The good news is that you have other things to do. There are approximately 170 trivia tests and quizzes, 20 mini-games, and 14 tech demos. Of all of them, by far the most interesting and, probably for most, the main attraction, are those mini-games. Even if they look like they're straight out of a Miniclip collection from the early 2000s, a large part of them are actually fun.

For example, on 5 June, when the Switch 2 launched, Vlad came over to my place to pick up his console. Before we did the unboxing available on YouTube, I suggested we play on my Switch, so he could see how it runs in docked, 4K mode. After a session of Mario Kart World, we quickly jumped into Welcome Tour. It wasn't quick at all, as we probably spent an hour just to get two gold medals in the first mini-game in Zone A, where you're a UFO and have to dodge all sorts of meteorites to survive for about 20 seconds. Spoiler! We didn't manage to keep the ship alive for more than 15 seconds, but we laughed a lot. It was also our first interaction with the new mouse mode, and we were both surprised at how well it works. There are all sorts of other mini-games you discover in Welcome Tour, but not all of them can be accessed immediately; you have to earn a certain number of medals and then come back. For that, there's only one solution: GRIND!

Aside from mini-games and stamps, there are also the tech demos. These are interactive, but in a different way. For example, you see a ball moving across the screen and you have to guess if it's moving at 30 fps or 60 fps. In another tech demo, you go through the first level of Super Mario Bros., but you see the entire map spread across the width of the TV. Each of these demos aims to show you how cool the new console is and how well it showcases the accessories from the Switch 2 collection.

What remains to be mentioned are some lost objects, which you find scattered through each zone and have to return to the reception in Zone A. But, last but not least, the quizzes. What kind of museum or exhibition would it be if we didn't learn information about the exhibits!? If you like these kinds of cultural activities, well, you're in the right place. Welcome Tour is full of counters where you can unlock these tests. The good part is that you first have access to the informative material and only then are you put to the test. The tests are simple and no longer than 5-6 questions. It takes longer to go through the informative slides. For a tech geek like me, I'd say I enjoyed this part more than the mini-games. It was actually interesting to learn details about how the Switch 2 works, what materials it was built from, the logic of the parts, and how it was assembled.

The tour has ended. Did you enjoy it?

Now that we've covered the main information and I've told you what you can do in Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour, I propose we go through a few final aspects — or conclusions, if you will.

For a nerd like me, who watches people on YouTube maintaining and bringing retro consoles back to life (especially portables), Welcome Tour is like a good dessert, with lots of chocolate. The problem is that sometimes you get tired of it and, especially if it's expensive… you feel like changing the menu. What the poet wants to say is that Nintendo had good intentions, and those who handled the development did a great job. It looks good, it's full of useful and interesting information, especially for hardware fans. It's generally fun enough, a very decent experience… worth trying at least once. At the same time, I can't overlook a few aspects, starting with the game's price. I know that €9.99 isn't a fortune, but for many gamers, the fact that it's not free will certainly be a psychological barrier: why isn't it free!? I would have liked the Welcome Tour experience to be at least free for those with a Nintendo Online subscription. That way, many more gamers would have accessed it.

A second aspect, which I also mentioned at the beginning of the review, is the comparison with Astro Bot. Not only did PlayStation offer it for free, but the game itself is a story, a fairy tale through which we were welcomed to experience the fifth iteration of the console. Welcome Tour, by contrast, is less a story and more a technical experience sometimes lacking soul. Sorry, Nintendo, but Sony has “spoiled” the tech demo market.

A third aspect would be related to the user experience in Welcome Tour. I preferred to play it in docked mode, but it didn't really suit me. Why do I say that? Because, depending on the tech demo or mini-game, I had to either use the Pro Controller 2, or take out the console and put it in tablet mode, or use the Joy-Cons' mouse mode. I know that each mini-game aims to showcase a certain play mode or even accessory, but… it's annoying.

The last aspect I want to bring up is related, to some extent, to the one mentioned previously. To have a complete Welcome Tour experience, you need almost all the accessories, except for those mini-steering wheels. All zones can be explored if you've collected the stamps, but it's a shame that you can't enjoy the tech demos and mini-games that require a camera, a Pro Controller 2, or even a 4K TV. Those who haven't bought these accessories cannot complete all the objectives in the game and, consequently, cannot enjoy a complete experience. This, from my point of view, is a big minus and suggests to me that, intentionally or not, Nintendo has chosen its users not only through the €9.99 fee to access the game but also by conditioning them to pay for some extra toys that you could normally do without.

All these aspects weighed in on the final decision and, obviously, influenced the score that Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour will receive. I am a big Nintendo fan and I really like how the new Switch is shaping up, but I cannot give it a score higher than 7.5/10. Despite the negative aspects, Welcome Tour is not a bad experience at all and is worth trying if you are a hardware geek, want to find out how your new acquisition works and its secrets, and, especially, if you have all the available accessories, especially the Switch Camera and Pro Controller 2.

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Played on: Nintendo Switch 2
Release date: 05 June 2025
Developer:  Nintendo Cube, Nintendo EPD
Publisher: Nintendo, CD Media S.E.