Technologies

We Now Know the Price for Nintendo’s Controversial Switch 3 Welcome Tour

Fans aren’t thrilled that the $450 console doesn’t simply include a free copy of the tutorial game.

We now know a price for the Switch 2 Welcome Tour, which acts as a user tutorial for the various new features of the Nintendo Switch 2. According to IGN, the game will cost $10. A representative for Nintendo did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The console’s specs were mostly unveiled during a Nintendo Treehouse event on April 3. That event also featured the announcement of a new game called Switch 2 Welcome Tour, which acts as a user tutorial for the various new features of the Switch 2. It quickly became controversial, with fans posting online that they thought the game should be free and included with the new console.

Per Nintendo, the game will feature «tech demos, minigames, and quizzes» for players to complete. The primary subject matter is the various new features on the Switch 2, like using the controller as a mouse and the upgraded HD Rumble feature. The game shows off some of the design elements of the Joy-Con controllers. For example, the upgraded HD Rumble feature puts the vibration motors «close to where your hands are holding the controllers» to intensify the vibrations. The minigames award medals, which are then used to access new parts of the game until the player has completed everything.

Read more: The 17 Best Nintendo Switch Games Right Now

Nintendo of America’s Vice President of Product and Player Experience, Bill Trinen, told IGN that there’s enough content in the Welcome Tour to justify the $10 price.

«I think it’s going to be a great product,» he said. It’s really for people that want more information about the system rather than necessarily a quick intro to everything it does. 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.’ «

Should a tutorial game cost money?

Fans have already been criticizing the gaming giant for the prices of its release titles. Mario Kart World is set to go on sale for $80 around the same time the Switch 2 is launched, making it one of the most expensive games Nintendo has ever released.

The fact that the tutorial game doesn’t come included with the console — as was the case with Astro’s Playroom on the PlayStation 5 — displeased many Nintendo fans, who had something to say about it.

«That’s definitely a…choice? Not sure I understand the idea of making it paid when it should be a built-in app in every system,» Reddit user Rudy69 said.

«The audacity to make a game that helps you learn about the Nintendo Switch 2 and make it PAID,» argued X user CanadianZar. «No one is buying this game. Hell… Astro’s Playroom walks all over this and IT WAS FREE.»

Other people expressed interest in learning about the new controls but don’t want to shell out for the tutorial. Instead, their plan is to wait for gaming YouTubers to post Let’s Play videos about the game and watch it from there.

Read more: I Played the Nintendo Switch 2: Is It Worth It?

Just because people complain doesn’t mean that the game won’t sell well. Per Guide Strats, Breath of the Wild had a huge number of complaints on social media. The game would go on to outsell its own console when it and the original Nintendo Switch launched together in March 2017.

The game is set to launch on June 5, the same day as the Nintendo Switch 2 console. Preorders for the console have been delayed due to the new tariffs imposed by the Trump administration, but the launch date is unchanged.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Friday, Dec. 26

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Dec. 26.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? Some of the clues are tough today — I thought maybe 1-Across was referring to the Grinch, or even Oscar the Grouch, but was I ever wrong! Read on for all the answers. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Furry and green, say
Answer: MOSSY

6A clue: State known for its potatoes
Answer: IDAHO

7A clue: Like a faithful friend
Answer: LOYAL

8A clue: Had a beverage
Answer: DRANK

9A clue: Pronoun frequently paired with «her»
Answer: SHE

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Not spicy, as salsa
Answer: MILD

2D clue: Reasons for wrinkled noses
Answer: ODORS

3D clue: Words from a doctor checking your tonsils
Answer: SAYAH

4D clue: Comedian Gillis
Answer: SHANE

5D clue: Part of an egg used to make hollandaise sauce
Answer: YOLK

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Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for Dec. 26, #459

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Dec. 26, No. 459.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections: Sports Edition is a tough one. That purple category once again has players looking for a different, but related, hidden word in four of the clues. If you’re struggling with today’s puzzle but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by The Times. It doesn’t appear in the NYT Games app, but it does in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Big Apple jock.

Green group hint: College football fun.

Blue group hint: On the road.

Purple group hint: Hunt down a word in other words.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: A New York athlete.

Green group: Bowl games.

Blue group: Associated with a team road trip.

Purple group: Ends in a movement verb.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is a New York athlete. The four answers are Islander, Net, Ranger and Yankee.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is bowl games. The four answers are Alamo, Gator, Liberty and Pinstripe.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is associated with a team road trip. The four answers are bus, flight, hotel and visiting locker room.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is ends in a movement verb. The four answers are foxtrot (trot), newsprint (sprint), terrace (race) and thunderbolt (bolt).

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for Dec. 26, #929

Here are some hints and the answers for the NYT Connections puzzle for Dec. 26 #929

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s NYT Connections puzzle is full of fun pop-culture references. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including the number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Golden state cliches.

Green group hint: Funny films.

Blue group hint: Rock on.

Purple group hint: Not white.