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This weekend, Team Nintendo Life are giving their respective Nintendo consoles a good workout with all manner of virtual gems. We've got plenty of Neo Geo action; some 'Nindies' for good measure; the occasional shooter; and lots and lots of a certain game involving Inklings (can you guess which one?). As always, be sure to leave a vote or three in the poll and add a comment sharing your gaming to do list for the coming couple of days...

Alex Olney, video producer

To be honest I've not got any specific plans for gaming in mind for this weekend. I'm stuck on my own for the most of it so I might just melt into some Splatoon 2 or perhaps some Kirby Star Allies. Having said that I've just looked at my shelves and seen the copy of Theme Hospital I recovered from my parents' house the other week. Hmmm...

Dave Frear, retro reviewer

In recent times the tenth day of March has been given a name in reference to how it reads in abbreviated form. I am of course talking about Tenmar Day, named after the wall and forest from the first Elder Scrolls game. Perhaps because Skyrim is now available on Switch, Nintendo has chosen to celebrate the occasion by (temporarily) reducing the price of Super Mario Run by 50%. 

I played the free portion of the game back when it first came out and although I found it OK-ish, I didn’t think the rest was really worth the asking price, but this seems more reasonable. Having taken advantage of the offer earlier in the week, I’ll now be giving the game a go between other things this weekend. I’ll probably just blast through the levels before trying to do them well, but it looks like it could be some good simple fun. Or I’ll get annoyed if I keep losing my connection and opt to play Sonic the Sketchhog instead.

Dom Reseigh-Lincoln, editor

Having just reviewed it for this very site, it should come as no surprise to know I'll be jumping back into Attack On Titan 2 this weekend for some much-needed giant slaying action. Even as someone with a passing interest in anime, it's already sold me on its ridiculous premise and over-the-top Titan battles.

And, because we all know I can't go a day without playing a shooter, I'll be jumping into some DOOM action as well. There's still a strong community of players supporting the Nintendo Switch version, so I'm looking forward to dusting off my rusty Super Shotgun and unleashing some virtual hell online.

Dave Letcavage, contributing writer

I can’t say with any degree of certainty that this will happen. Plans can change at a moment’s notice – we all know that. But I’m stating it here and now, to increase the chances of it sticking, that this weekend I will dust off my Nintendo 64 and venture into worlds filled with primitive polygons. It’s been too long since I’ve surrounded myself in those comforting vistas of fog. It used to be that my wife and I would burn rubber with N64 racers at least a couple times a month. 

But lately we’ve been driving the opposite direction (you know, toward modern games), and it’s time to U-turn it around. When it comes to vehicular fun, Rush 2, Snowboard Kids, and maybe the Vigilante 8 games sound compelling. Otherwise, with baseball season so close, it’s probably apt to hit a few dingers in one of the Griffey or All Star Baseball games. Yeah... I like the sound of that. I’ll probably do Switch stuff, too. Who am I kidding? There’s just so much to play when it comes to indies!

Glen Fox, guides editor

I finally got started on DOOM this week, and it’s one hell of a game! I’ve been acting like a child at Christmas all week about it, desperately waiting for the end of the day so I can dive back in. There’s just so much to love: scouring each level for secrets, trying to pull off the various challenges, and those gory kills man. They’re as satisfying to pull off as a trick in Mario Kart 8! I never thought I’d say this but I can’t wait to spend this weekend… in hell!

Jon Cousins, Japan correspondent

I'm actually still pretty addicted to Flinthook - zipping around the levels and looting space pirate ships is still really fun! Apart from that, this weekend I will be mostly playing Floor Kids. It was always on my radar but I never got round to getting it when it was released. I love the hand-drawn art style, I'm a bit of a secret hip-hop fan and it is on sale at the moment so I'm going to bust out some breakdancing moves without injuring myself.

Richard Atkinson, contributing writer

I'm on babysitting duties this weekend, which means only one thing: I play what my five-year-old nephew wants to play without any questions or reasoning. Thankfully though, this uncle spent a lot of time introducing him to the delights of Nintendo in his even-younger years. Undoubtedly, the likes of Super Smash Bros., New Super Mario Bros. U and Mario Kart 8 are going to get a good look in. Let's hope my power-slide game is strong otherwise my bargaining methods of letting him stay up past his bedtime, and the unhealthy distribution of chocolate rewards if he bags first place, is going to get out of hand once again.

Ryan Craddock, news reporter

A pretty standard choice, perhaps, but I’m really hoping to get properly stuck into Splatoon 2 again this weekend. I’m stuck in a super-busy time in my life at the moment, leaving a desperately saddening lack of free gaming time, but the beautiful neon inks and warbling squid voices have been calling me from a distance. I’ve also gotten into the habit of moving on from each new game release a little too quickly over recent months, so returning to Inkopolis for a long evening or two is definitely going right to the top of my to-do-list. It’ll be great to get back into the swing of things in time for the upcoming expansion, too!

Gonçalo Lopes, contributing writer

Steredenn: Binary Stars has taken over my life! Every run, a new experience, every day a single run to test my mettle against other Switch owners. I have seen (so far) the Tardis, the Arcadia and a Dyson Sphere among the game’s absolutely stunning backgrounds. Still need to unlock that final ‘Red Baron’ ship, so I better hop to it. Elsewhere I hope to find how hardcore Castle Of Heart truly is with a few rounds of the more casual Kirby Kissing Other Folks new adventure. Rounding things up, I woke up today and when I was on the mirror, I shouted ‘I’m bad!’ Guess president Ronnie won’t be saving himself...

Tony Stephenson, social media manager

For me this weekend, it is going to be mostly ARMS. The reason, I am running a community event on Saturday which will be featuring an ARMS tournament. Also Kirby Star Allies will be available to play so will be my first chance to experience the full game. In honesty, I'm not a Kirby fan but happy to be swayed.

After the event, I'll be taking my Switch to a party – it is amazing how easy it is to take around friends houses, dock and everything – so most likely be digging out some fun multi-player games such as Puyo Puyo Tetris, Super Bomberman R, Snipperclips, Death Squared, Overcooked: Special Edition and probably a session playing the Jackbox Party games. So that's my Saturday, Sunday I will sleep.

Morgan Sleeper, contributing writer

One thing I didn’t anticipate when I picked up my Switch a year ago was just how much I’d end up treating it like a tiny, portable arcade cabinet - thanks especially to HAMSTER’s Neo Geo support and Zerociv’s Psikyo re-releases, I’m this close to modding on a 100-yen slot for credit-feeding! 

This weekend, I’ll be throwing my virtual money at Magical Drop III and Aero Fighters 3. I’m still working my way through Magical Drop’s story mode with each character, and having a blast with the quick-fire puzzle play, and while Aero Fighters 3 is my first entry in the dolphin-powered-shmup series, I’m loving it so far.

Which games are you playing this weekend? (451 votes)

  1. Splatoon 221%
  2. Kirby Star Allies15%
  3. Skyrim5%
  4. Super Mario Run2%
  5. Attack On Titan 21%
  6. DOOM6%
  7. Rush 2: Extreme Racing USA  0%
  8. Snowboard Kids  0%
  9. Vigilante 8  0%
  10. Flinthook2%
  11. Floor Kids1%
  12. Super Smash Bros. for Wii U4%
  13. New Super Mario Bros. U  0%
  14. Mario Kart 87%
  15. Steredenn: Binary Stars1%
  16. Castle Of Heart  0%
  17. ARMS3%
  18. Puyo Puyo Tetris2%
  19. Super Bomberman R1%
  20. Snipperclips1%
  21. Death Squared  0%
  22. Overcooked: Special Edition1%
  23. Magical Drop III1%
  24. Aero Fighters 31%
  25. Something else! (Comment below)26%

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So that's our choice of games for the weekend, but what are you booting up on your Nintendo console of choice? Be sure to leave a vote in the poll and a comment below...