Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour Review: A Tedious Tech Demo

With the release of any new video game console, there generally comes a means of testing out the hardware. The PlayStation 5, for example, came withAstro’s Playroom, while the Nintendo Wii hadWii Sports, which in itself turned into a huge phenomenon. You could even go all the way back to the Nintendo Entertainment System and the Game Boy, with games such asMario Bros.,Duck HuntandTetris.

Regardless, these were experiences packed into the product that would give you a better example of what the console was capable of. For the Nintendo Switch 2, Nintendo has elected to charge the players to educate them on their new console, creating a heated discussion about whether something such as this should come with a price tag. Does Nintendo do enough to justifyWelcome Touror is it a step too far?

Featured Image Super Mario Party Jamboree Switch 2

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TheNintendo Switch 2 Welcome Touris very much a tech demo of all the various different functions the console has to offer. Quite a bit of it is tied to the mouse functionality the Joy-Cons now function as, requiring you to play this on a desk or a capable surface.

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This is essentially a collection of mini-games with little to no depth. As we said, it’s meant primarily to show off what the console can do, so these are things such as a miniature golf mini-game with the mouse or feeling the intensity of the vibration. A few of the mini-games do have more than one level tied to them, but for the most part, you’ll likely get your fill from the first activity.

Then there are quizzes. Why these are in the game itself is baffling, because there’s nothing like paying for a tech demo only for it to give you homework. The main goal of all of these is to inform the player of the different ways the hardware is utilized and then test you to make sure you are paying attention in class. Most of them are fairly simplistic quizzes, and will essentially tell you which answer you have gotten wrong, but this is something we deviated away from early on.

This is essentially a collection of mini-games with little to no depth.

Whimsy with Little Depth

All of this is tightly wrapped together in a presentation that’s surprisingly charming. You are plopped in a world where the Nintendo Switch 2 and all of its accessories are essentially part of a theme park, and the more games you interact with, the more rewards you will obtain. These are generally medals that will unlock different and more challenging alterations of the mini-games.

At the core of it, though, it’s all about interacting with the “Stamps” which are just indicators that show off the different buttons and features the Switch 2 and its accessories have to offer. This amounts to things such as the face buttons on the Joy-Cons or the LAN connector on the dock. It becomes a scavenger hunt to just locate these stands in front of key components and stamp them on your card.

This is where the “game” becomes tedious, as going around the map and simply looking for an invisible stand to pop up to progress to the next area is not fun or informative, at least most of the time. When you actually go into some of the tech, unraveling some of the innards of something like the Joy-Cons, then it’s a little more interesting, but even so, it’s not exactly something that will keep you hooked.

Then there are the mini-games. We mentioned they lacked depth, but they also lack creativity. Now, while a number of the mini-games can be fun, such as Speed Golf and even Speed Maze, none of them are fleshed out in any meaningful way. On top of that, most of them don’t offer much value, with them simply showcasing how much a Joy-Con can be a mouse, as if we haven’t used one before, or how you can interact with the touchscreen.

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Closing Comments:

TheNintendo Switch 2 Welcome Touris a whimsical tech demo that’s full of little mini-games. The problem is that despite being a relatively sizable tech demo going over each of the unique features of the Nintendo Switch 2, it’s something that should have been packed into the console itself. It does showcase the various features Switch 2 has to offer, but it’s more of a glorified manual than a fully-fledged experience. That’s not to say it’s completely without its merits, as some of the mini-games are decent and the overall aesthetic is pleasing. It’s disappointing the quizzes and informative aspects of the game feel tacked on, ultimately feeling more like homework that fails to keep your attention. In the end, TheWelcome Touris more of a tedious adventure, that while showcasing the features of the console, fails to leave any lasting impression.