Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour „tech demo” game will cost $10

Today, IGN has shared an interview with Nintendo of America’s Vice President of Product and Player Experience, Bill Trinen, confirming that the now infamous “tech demo” game Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour will cost players $9.99. This news arrives as fans are continuing to rage online about the cost of Mario Kart World, which set a new standard for triple A video games at $80. Though, notably, this interview did happen prior to Nintendo’s decision on Friday to delay U.S. pre-orders of the new console as they re-evaluate the effect of the country’s tariffs.

Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour will cost players about $10

During Wednesday’s Nintendo Switch 2 Direct, it seems that nearly everyone watched the trailer for Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour and imagined it would be the console’s free pack-in game. Much like how the Nintendo Wii came with Wii Sports, or the PlayStation 5 came with Astro’s Playroom. These games are known for being a great way to get accustomed to the console, especially in the Wii’s case given its revolutionary motion controls and unorthodox controllers. But at the end of the trailer, the narration said the word “paid” and the whole world went, “huh?”

Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour turns the player into a micro-sized human, wandering around the hardware of the new console. Throughout the 3D space, the player can approach various informational boards to learn about the Nintendo Switch 2 and how its hardware works. Think of it almost like an interactive museum. The trailer showcased various mini games, sometimes referred to as “tech demos” that show the player how certain Switch 2’s mechanics work. Get accustomed to the Joy-Con’s new mouse functionality or test out the controller’s speaker and microphone, for example.

In the interview with IGN, on the day of the Nintendo Direct, Trinen explained: “For some people, I think there are people who are particularly interested in the tech and the specs of the system and things like that, for them I think it’s going to be a great product. It’s really for people that want more information about the system rather than necessarily a quick intro to everything it does.” It sounds like Welcome Tour may not be designed for the casual fan. This could explain why Nintendo thought it wouldn’t work well as a pack-in title. Maybe not enough people would even bother with it?

Trinen continued: “And for that reason and just the amount of care and work that the team put into it, I think it was decided that ‘Yeah, this feels like $9.99 is not an exorbitant price. It feels like a good value for what you’re getting out of the product.’” Trinen also suggested that there might be more to the game than people are able to see in the Nintendo Direct or even on the show floor for the in-person events. He suggested tuning into the Treehouse live streams where gameplay would be featured. If this is the case, perhaps they should have changed their presentation accordingly. It’s not great marketing or communication when a trailer causes everyone to have a major misconception about a game.

So maybe this is not the game for me. I’m willing to accept that. I’m certainly not willing to pay $10 for what I’ve seen so far. But had this been something that arrived for free with every Nintendo Switch 2, I certainly would have spent some time exploring it, finding fun facts, and testing out the mini games. Here in the U.S., we aren’t even sure that the price of the console will remain consistent, so maybe there’s a chance Nintendo will change course on Welcome Tour as well. But I wouldn’t keep my hopes up.

Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour

June 5, 2025

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