Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Despite its original release being all the way back on March 20th, Animal Crossing: New Horizons is still one of the best-selling games this holiday season. This is Nintendo’s fifth Animal Crossing release in the main series. New Horizons is the best selling Animal Crossing game by far and the second-best selling game on the Nintendo Switch console as a whole. In this iteration of Animal Crossing, the player purchases a deserted island from Tom Nook and slowly makes it their own. Over the course of 2020, Nintendo has also provided multiple free updates that have expanded the game’s content.

Screenshot of the menu open for crafting
As the player collects more items, they can personalize their island through crafting recipes.

Your Own Island

What’s the goal of Animal Crossing? Well… to have fun. You can collect various items throughout the island and use them to customize your space. You can also build structures and furniture. The core gameplay revolves around doing tasks, interacting with the characters, and customizing your island and yourself. The game doesn’t explicitly spell out  how to play in a linear fashion. The player is expected to make the island unique to themself. As the game progresses, them will meet more animals and find more opportunities to grow the community that they’re building on the island. There are plenty of ways to interact with the island, too. Players collect items in different ways, from fishing off the island’s coast to gathering fruit from the island’s trees. The game is meant to be low-stress and relaxing.

Screenshot displaying the Halloween update
The game motivates players to check in during special times of the year, like Halloween.

Dedicated Community

Considering how long Animal Crossing: New Horizons has been towards the top of the charts for the Nintendo Switch, it’s no surprise that the developers are still working on free updates for the game. There were numerous additions to the game based on calendar events. These events added new places to visit, new events to participate in, and new items to acquire. There were events centered around Nature Day,  May Day, International Museum Day, Wedding Season, Halloween, and more. These updates keep the game fresh and encourage players to keep checking in on Animal Crossing after they’ve put it down for a few days. Free updates are a great way for developers to show that they care about the game’s community. We’ll have to wait and see what Nintendo does with Animal Crossing in 2021.

#Nintendo #Switch #AnimalCrossing