Nintendo has just released Jump Rope Challenge, a free little exercise game for Nintendo Switch that turns your Joy-Con into the handles of an imaginary jump rope.
Jump Rope Challenge was created by a small team of Nintendo developers while working from home, as a way of adding some quick, fun movement to their daily lives. “It’s all the fun of skipping, but there’s not a rope in sight!”, says Nintendo’s press release—as someone who’s never really clicked with skipping, I do like the idea of giving it a go without whacking my shins with a rope every 10 seconds.
The goal is simply to jump, aiming for a daily target or new high score, while a cute cartoon bunny mimics your actions on screen. There’s also a two-player mode, with each player holding one Joy-Con each and challenging each other for a high score. For players who aren’t able to jump, or are concerned about noise, you can also play without jumping, by bending your knees or moving arms.
While the world continues to deal with the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, plenty of people are still stuck at home. Jump Rope Challenge is a nice, easy way to get a bit of extra movement into your day. It’s a good alternative to Ring Fit Adventure, which saw a spike in demand around the beginning of the pandemic as people looked for ways to keep active at home, and is still difficult to get hold of.
Jump Rope Challenge is a limited-time release, and will be available for free through the Nintendo Switch eShop until the end of September.