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With the week drawing to a close, it's finally time to kick back and play some games on your console of choice. Here at Nintendo Life, our time of intrepid writers, editors and video producers will be delving into our backlogs (and covering plenty of things for review), so expect a diverse melting pot of virtual goodness below. Feel free to vote in our poll, then leave a comment and share your picks with the community. Have a great weekend and thanks for reading!

Liam Doolan, Australia correspondent

As you might have heard – earlier this week Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp added a gacha-style fortune cookie update. Now, don’t get me wrong, I love the concept of gashapon but I’m a little worried about how it will translate to the world of Animal Crossing.

For anyone looking to complete their collections, I can imagine this new update might cause them some trouble. Regardless, I’ll be jumping into the game this weekend to see what it’s like. I also feel like I owe the animals at my campsite a visit, as I am embarrassed to say I haven’t spoken to them in at least a month or two. Hopefully they still remember who I am.

Dave Frear, retro reviewer

At the risk of creating a mini-feature within a feature entitled ‘What Game Boy game is Dave playing this weekend?’, I will be replaying Driver 2 Advance. It’s a game that was a bit too ambitious for the PlayStation hardware it originally appeared on, so there were cutbacks to bring it to GBA (including two of the four cities), but the mix of racing to pickup points, smashing up cars and escaping the lunatic local police is a lot of fun when you get in to it. This week I’ve also noticed a lot of people playing Rocket League, which reminds me I haven’t played Rocket League in a while, so I’ll get on to that if I get the chance.

Dom Reseigh-Lincoln, editor

This weekend I'll mostly be playing a certain game set in a certain town in Colorado for review (look out for on Monday on Nintendo Life), but in between all that fart-related, turn-based combat I'll be playing more Yo-Kai Watch with the eldest. Also, with all these rumours about Pokémon on Switch, I've been replaying Pokémon Omega Ruby (one of my all time faves). Yes, I know I'm predictable, but at least I'm honest about it!

Glen Fox, guides editor

So I did end up getting Lost Sphear for my birthday! I resisted grabbing it at launch because of some middling reviews, but I recently I realised that the biggest complaint, that it’s TOO MUCH like an old school JRPG, doesn’t even apply to me! JRPGs are the one genre that I’m not really looking for change in – they’re kind of like comfort food. I just want to dig in and relive past glories.

And to be fair to it, Lost Sphear does fix plenty of issues from I Am Setsuna. Finally, it’s easier to see hidden items around the world thanks to a much bigger and more obvious shiny effect than the first. Combat has been totally overhauled too, and while I wasn’t sure at first, I think it’s a good move. Other additions like chatting to your party members, fishing, and more variation to the environments also help make Lost Sphear feel a lot fresher than Setsuna did. So while the reviews do hold merit (I’m only two hours in and love JRPGs to a borderline insane degree) if you do like classic JRPGs, check this out.

Mitch Vogel, contributing writer

I’m gonna be playing a lot of Shovel Knight this weekend. To prep for the upcoming King of Cards expansion, I’ve decided to go after as any feats as I can in the existing campaigns. I just finished my deathless run of Shovel Knight’s campaign, and I’ll be spending this weekend trying to get his speedrunning achievement next. When I’m not doing that, I’ll be doing my best to get further in Don’t Starve. My last run was ended when my character was unceremoniously consumed in a forest fire started by his campfire, but I swear, I’m getting better.

Gonçalo Lopes, contributing writer

From the dangerous skies of WW1 to the emptiness of outer space, this weekend will be spent with one single title: Manticore: Galaxy on Fire! Okay, that is not actually accurate, empty space would not make for a fun video game at all so I am glad to find plenty to shoot and even more to dodge in this mobile-to-Switch port done right. I never understood why campaign driven arcade space shooters went out of fashion but have been very pleased with recent years revivals of the genre and Manticore is right up there with the very best of them.

Steve Bowling, US editor

This weekend is all about experimentation for me, namely conducting experiments to see if Nintendo Labo can bridge the gap between my children's love of toys and my love of games. I picked up the Toy-Con Variety Kit, which I think is better suited for younger kids than the Robot Kit. I'm excited by the possibilities it offers and the idea of introducing my kids to my passion in a way that I'm comfortable with. I'm a little skeptical of Labo, but as a parent the opportunity seems too good to pass up. I have a feeling I'll have a lot of thoughts to share on it after this weekend.

Alex Olney, video producer

I'm off to IKEA at the weekend and I'm driving, so I won't have any time to play at all tomorrow. When Sunday rolls around though you can bet your sweet collective bottoms I'm going to be playing some more ARMS. Don't know what it is but recently that game's suckered me right back in, and I'm loving every second of it. I need to improve my Helix play but I'm getting there.

Which games are you playing this weekend? (277 votes)

  1. Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp​1%
  2. Driver 2 Advance1%
  3. Rocket League11%
  4. Yo-Kai Watch  0.7%
  5. Pokémon Omega Ruby1%
  6. Lost Sphear​3%
  7. I Am Setsuna​3%
  8. Shovel Knight​: Treasure Trove5%
  9. Don’t Starve1%
  10. Manticore: Galaxy on Fire5%
  11. Nintendo Labo - Toy-Con Variety Kit​8%
  12. Nintendo Labo - Robot Kit  0.7%
  13. ARMS6%
  14. Something else! (Comment below)55%

Please login to vote in this poll.

So there are all our picks for the weekend - now we want to hear yours. Pop a vote in the poll if any of the games apply to you, and leave a comment or two with your chosen gaming exploits. Have a great weekend!