Review of the Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour

Nintendo being weird but not unwelcome.

So, Nintendo, huh? They’re at it again—with that knack for surprise hits when it comes to their console pack-ins. Remember Super Mario Bros with the NES? Classics, right? And Tetris with the Game Boy? Exactly. The hits just keep rolling on. Now, they’re giving us something new: Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour. It’s a quirky little mix, like an oddball guidebook and a game packed into one. Kinda neat, kinda just out there.

Anyway, selling a new gaming console—especially when it plays like the older one—is all about those shiny new features. And Welcome Tour, well, it’s really pushing that angle. Picture a model console, and your task is to snag these stamps from various spots like the buttons, fans—you get the idea. Collect them all, and boom! You unlock the next part of it. Weirdly satisfying, right? Along the way, you get little nuggets of info, quizzes to test your new knowledge, and mini-games. Some new stuff is just super cool, like that HD Rumble. The mouse controls? Surprisingly smooth—tried it on my recliner arm, didn’t go great, but hey, it worked.

But—and it’s a big but—it’s a tad annoying, isn’t it? You can’t do every mini-game without a USB camera or that fancy new Pro Controller. Only a couple of sections need them, though. Most of the time, you can get through with just what’s in the box. Plus, there are these medals to earn in mini-games that unlock more fun stuff. Some are timed, too. Kind of a nice little challenge when you’ve had enough exploring the console innards.

What hit me most was how much was packed into the Welcome Tour. More than I thought. It’s like a hands-on crash course in Switch 2’s upgrades. Keeps pulling me back, honestly. Those mini-game do-overs and quizzes? Weirdly hooked. It’s a solid ride that, honestly, doesn’t wear out its welcome. But, and here’s the thing—couldn’t it have been one of those killer pack-in games from before? Just saying.

I mean, manuals are passé, right? This thing fills that space perfectly. After diving into the Welcome Tour, I’ve got a clearer picture of my shiny new Switch 2. Makes the wallet pain, uh, a little more bearable, I guess.