The launch of a console leaves a lot of questions in the minds of gamers. For instance, “What can this thing do?” or “How does this aspect of it work exactly?” Well, Nintendo has aimed to answer questions like this and a whole lot more with Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour. While it definitely is home to some interesting ideas, is Welcome Tour THE hidden gem of the Switch 2 launch or something that is better left on the digital store shelves? Let’s get into it.
Gameplay
The controls and gameplay in the Welcome Tour are varied and have you doing a lot of different things with the Switch 2 hardware. However, first and foremost, you have to choose a small avatar to use to navigate the world. Set in what is essentially a huge exhibit featuring Nintendo’s new system, players are tasked with exploring and finding out more details about it. Controlling the avatar is super simple as you control it with the joystick and can run by holding B. The camera can be revolved around the avatar in intervals and be zoomed out by pressing down on the right stick. Nothing ground breaking here, but it does exactly what it sets out to do.
Modes
Spread throughout the overworld, there are a number of activities to do. These range from passive to more engaging depending on what you choose. By and large, here is what you’ll be doing in the game:
Stamp Rally
Each area represents a piece of Switch 2 tech from controllers, to the screen and more. Each area is also home to a number of small panels that indicate various parts of the hardware. Players are encouraged to seek these out to receive stamps. Once all of the stamp panels are found in an area, you are able to move on to the next section, all while learning a little bit about the system. It doesn’t take too long to do this, and it can be fun to track down and find these.
Tech Demos
A number of short demos showcasing the capabilities of the Switch 2 and its accessories are on offer throughout the experience. You’ll learn about the underlying tech via interesting showcases, which are for the most part, pretty cool. While these can be entertaining, they likely won’t keep you coming back over and over again. There may be times when you just simply don’t have access to what’s need for the tech demo. Perhaps you’re playing away from your 4K TV, or your TV doesn’t support 120 fps. There are limitations on what you can do based on what you have available. Most of these can be remedied by playing in handheld, but other aspects just won’t be possible. You’ll want to have the Joy Con 2 at the ready for most of these.
Mini-games
Several mini-games featuring the new Switch 2 tech is on offer in Welcome Tour. These will have players using the new mouse controls, HD Rumble 2 and more. Each area offers a handful of these and they range from fun to sometimes frustrating. This will vary depending on your preferences, of course, but I personally preferred the mini-games that were quick and easily showcased what was on offer. The UFO dodging mini-game was pretty fun and also got a laugh out of my wife when I showed her. A few others I enjoyed were Click Quick (clicking targets as quickly as you can with the mouse controls) and Balloon Hunt (essentially a first-person-shooter). Many of these are also pretty easy to jump into, even for folks that aren’t core gamers, which is a cool way to introduce the system to others.
Info & Quizzes
For those that are curious about the inner workings of the hardware, a variety of information panels and quizzes are available. Sure, a lot of this information can be found online elsewhere, but Nintendo crafted a fun way to learn about the ins and outs of the Switch 2. The quizzes themselves are usually not too difficult. Even if you miss a question, you’ll be guided to the information panel to re-read what you missed. The dialogue is well written and engaging, making for a good experience. This is also put in place when chatting with the NPCs sprinkled throughout the exhibit. Another cool addition here is a look at Nintendo hardware from the past and how these relate to the Switch 2. It was cool getting to see things like the Japan only N64 mouse and others make the cut here.
Medal System
As you explore the hardware and accessories, you’ll be obtaining medals. These are received after trying out the tech demos and mini-games. Many of these require a certain number of medals to unlock. This may seem a bit problematic for one reason - owners of this game may not own all of the accessories that are being showcased here. With that being the case, it is impossible to try out and, more importantly, obtain more medals…or is it? To counter this issue, Welcome Tour does have a “secret password” of sorts that you can utilize to gain medals. Basically when using this, you can receive medals for tech demos and mini games that you can’t access due to not having the proper hardware. For example, not having a 4K TV, the Switch 2 camera, and so on. It’s a smart way to fix this, but Nintendo obviously wants to encourage people to connect (and purchase) as many accessories as possible to get the most out of the game.
Some people seem to have a problem with this, saying things like, “You HAVE TO spend $XX to be able to play Welcome Tour.” If you want to experience ALL of the demos and mini-games, yeah, that’s not wrong. At the same time, I think this is kind of being blown out of proportion. The main point of Welcome Tour is to showcase the new hardware and accessories. This stuff isn’t cheap, however, if you’re just looking to COMPLETE the game 100%, the developers have still included a way to do this.
Other
With the exhibit being quite large, it can take quite a bit of time to traverse from one end to the other. To combat this, a quick travel system has been put in place through the menu. This can be accessed with the press of X. On top of the map, you can also use this check out your progress on specific areas, the number of medals you’ve obtained in mini-games and more. This hub is quite handy, especially the fast travel option.
Should This Be Free?
Comparisons to the free Astro’s Playroom on PlayStation 5 have been made by many online. I understand this. Heck, even when I showed Welcome Tour to my wife, she made the offhand comment, “Well, that’s cool that this is included with everyone’s Switch 2.” Err…Should this have been included with the purchase of Switch 2 hardware? As a way to showcase the system’s capabilities, yes. I really think so. On the other hand, Nintendo clearly feels that their asking price for the title is warranted and that is unlikely to change anytime soon. Sure, it might go on sale at some point, but I wouldn’t expect Nintendo to completely change their strategy for this one. I don’t feel ripped off with my purchase, however, you might feel differently.
Visuals, Audio & Performance
Welcome Tour isn’t a taxing game on the Switch 2, but it does give you a good idea about the capabilities of the system. The overall “exhibit” featuring the Switch 2 hardware looks great and is full of detail. To top this off, the game runs smoothly, too, rarely, if ever, suffering from any graphical hiccups. The music and sound effects are also fine, but aren’t going to blow you away. Everything here in terms of presentation is pretty good.
Conclusion
Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour offers a fun way to learn about all of the features of the Nintendo Switch 2 hardware and its accessories. Of course, all of this information is readily available online, however, the presentation in Welcome Tour makes things more digestible and fun. This isn’t really a game, per se, but there are some short experiences that you can try out by yourself or with a friend. But this still begs the question - is this a killer title that you NEED to have on your Switch 2? No. If you want a fun way to find out about the ins and outs of the system and the ability to try out a few fun (but shallow) mini-games and tech demos, this title is might be for you. Even with that said, Welcome Tour doesn’t have the staying power to keep you coming back once you finish all that it has to offer.
But, let’s turn things over to you. Did you pick up Welcome Tour? Do you feel it should have been a pack in with the system? Sound off with any and all comments down below. We’d love to hear from you.
by Danny Bivens
Final Score: 6.0
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