Nintendo announced it will be possible to try out Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream before buying it thanks to a demo known as the Welcome Version. It launched on the eShop. Initially, it was only available in Europe and Japan. However, it showed up a few hours later on the North American storefront as well.
The Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream demo is a slice taken from the beginning of the game. As such, it is possible to save and carry over your progress to the full title when it launches. However, that experience will be limited. While we will be able to have multiple characters living on an island at once when it launches, this Welcome Version only lets three folks move in.
There is also a promotional bonus for testing the title out. If someone “beats” the demo, they get a hamster costume to use in the full game. The Japanese announcement confirmed there will be six color options for that and shows how the styles look, and it noted that one of those six will be given out after finishing the trial out. As a reminder, the original Tomodachi Life also featured a similar costume that could be given to Miis for them to wear.
Here’s how those will look when worn by characters:
Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream will come to the Switch on April 16, 2026, and the demo is live worldwide now. It is also compatible with the Switch 2.