Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour – Helpful or a $10 Scam?

It’s meant as an interactive “tour” of the Nintendo Switch 2 that takes you through the Switch 2, delivering information, trivia, and minigames along the way. Nintendo’s official site advertises that you can “look, touch, and feel your way through the different exhibits” and “discover hidden facts, take quizzes, and enjoy playful minigames.” It looks like a clever way to introduce the system, but it costs $10 to download.

It Costs $10? That’s Crazy!

It is crazy, indeed. However, a review by Logan Plant on IGN described the experience as fun and engaging, stating that it is full of content and “has just enough of that Nintendo charm to make it work.” It also says that “it’s clear Nintendo is very proud of the new technology it’s embracing this generation, and the Welcome Tour shows it off in a way that’s accessible to all audiences.” Even so, Plant concludes by saying, “I walked away feeling more strongly that it should have been included with the console. It’s a charming, light experience that grants fascinating context to the hardware it’s designed around, and it’d be great if all Switch 2 owners could check it out.”

Is the Welcome Tour Worth the Cost?

I’ve called the Welcome Tour a glorified tutorial in the past, and the IGN review hasn’t changed that opinion. If anything, the review has made me frustrated that Nintendo decided to charge money for the tour. Given that the Nintendo Switch 2 already costs $450 ($500 if you get the bundle with the Mario Kart World download), most gamers probably won’t want to spend even more money just for a tour. If Nintendo provided the Welcome Tour for free, gamers would probably be excited about it, but instead, it’s hard not to think Nintendo’s being greedy.