Maybe a bit of Ring Fit Adventure to reverse all that holiday binging?

Not only has another week passed us by, but an entire year has been and gone quicker than a Toad with a Golden Mushroom. We've been celebrating in style with a look back at Nintendo's 2019 - and Nintendo's whole decade - as well as all sorts of Game of the Year and Game of the Decade discussions, but now it's time to get back to our regular game sessions.

Members of the Nintendo Life team have jotted down their weekend gaming plans below, and we'd love for you to get involved too via the poll and comment sections. Enjoy!

Gavin Lane, staff writer

I hit the sales over the holidays and found myself with a half-dozen new games. Incredibly, I managed to play and actually complete Ape Out in a fun couple of hours (hurray!), so only five more to go. I started Dead Cells a few nights ago and it had me hooked, so I’m jonesing to get back to that.

I also revisited Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith on DS for our Star Wars game feature before Christmas. What a cracking little game that is! Time permitting, I’m looking forward to putting another hour or two into that on my cherry DSi XL, too.

PJ O’Reilly, reviewer

The first week of a new year. My body and mind are swollen and slow, the result of a two week Xmas diet of port, ham and very smelly cheese. And yet somehow I struggle on, there are games that must be played and no amount of newly gained Xmas beef is going to stop me.

This weekend I’ll be jumping properly into Pokémon Sword for the first time, helping my son fill up that Pokédex and Dynamaxing my brains out. I’ve also given into temptation in the wake of the excellent TV series and picked up The Witcher 3, which is nothing short of a miracle in handheld mode. Here’s to a New Year, a new decade and the hope that my gym membership doesn’t expire before I manage to right
the many, many wrongs I’ve done to myself this holiday season.

Ryan Craddock, staff writer

I've finally got around to starting Luigi's Mansion 3 and thank goodness I did. After a slightly slow start, the game's really coming into its own and I'm loving exploring every last nook and cranny of each of the hotel's floors as I progress.

The game's reminding me of the original Luigi's Mansion on GameCube, which is exactly what I was hoping for. I played a bit of Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon on 3DS but I didn't enjoy as much as the first game - luckily, this one seems to have brought back the general feel that I loved from that first entry. So, to answer the question, I'll be playing more of Luigi's Mansion 3.

Gonçalo Lopes, contributing writer

I cleared a bunch of backlog of shame games during the holidays but none of them were DAEMON X MACHINA or Astral Chain so here we go again! I haven’t mentioned before but today is my 79th consecutive day of Ring Fit Adventure so my arms and shoulders have become lethal weapons and I even have a sort of six-pack situation going on.

But now I will also begin sharpening my brain with Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training on the Switch, a title I played for well over two years back on DS before upgrading to a 3DS. The surprise arrival of Ultracore yesterday and my continued exploration of SD Gundam G Generation Cross Rays rounds up this weekend efforts.

My game of the week is the low poly world of Ashen. I waited a bit to read PJ’s review before committing into it and I’m well and truly hooked. Happy New Year, folks!

Austin Voigt, contributing writer

Lately, with all of the holiday vacation time, I have been on a completionist roll. I finished Zelda: Link’s Awakening and Pokémon Shield over the holidays, and I can’t give up on my backlog now! I’m determined to get through Luigi’s Mansion 3 this weekend, as well as a bunch of post-game missions in all of my games. I might also pick up Dragon Quest XI S now that it’s on sale (I’d only ever played the demo).

Feels good to finally complete everything - but it’s also a little bittersweet; I usually end up with these ridiculous backlogs because I hate when games end... but we undoubtedly have many more coming this spring, so I’d better get over it and keep moving.

Ollie Reynolds, reviewer

After a surprisingly very busy Christmas and New Year, I'll be kicking back with one of my favourite pastimes at the moment: playing retro collections. Specifically, I'm very much getting back into the delightful Castlevania Anniversary Collection, which might have something to do with the new Dracula series on TV... Now, how about a GBA/DS collection, Konami?

Otherwise, I've started back on Animal Crossing: New Leaf in an effort to prep myself for the eventual release of New Horizons. I forgot just how darn relaxing and charming that game is, and I can't wait for the next entry!

Which games are you playing this weekend?

(You may select up to 3 answers)

As always, thanks for reading! Make sure to leave a vote in the poll above and a comment below with your gaming choices over the next few days...