I love games! Board games, video games, card games and other types of games of which I’m sure there are many. I am a pretty big fan of video games specifically, but I don’t think I want to do deep dives into the technicalities of certain video games, although I definitely could. I will be writing posts about games that I like or that are capturing my whole attention in the moment. I’m not a games journalist nor a reviewer, so I’m just going to talk about games I love or that are really exciting me, and that there’s a good reason to talk about. I want to have a virtual cut out of this space to talk about games, maybe it’ll even have a name, so hop on into the game tent with me! (I don’t think the name will be game tent)
I’m going to start with something I have put hundreds of hours into and recently picked back up, Animal Crossing: New Horizons for the Nintendo Switch.
Animal crossing is a series that has been running since 2001 on every major Nintendo console. Originally released as Dōbitso no Mori or ‘Animal Forest’ in Japan in April 2001 for the Nintendo 64, it released in the USA in English on the GameCube in 2002 as “Animal Crossing.” People loved it because it was pretty different than other video games at the time, and remains very unique. It utilizes the internal system clock so that whatever it is in the real world, it is also that time in the game. Each day is really a new day, and new items and events load in each day. You get to know your neighbors and improve your town.
My first experience with Animal Crossing was in college when a friend loaned me their copy of Animal Crossing: New Leaf for my 2DS, which I still have(sorry Liam). It took me a bit of time to grok just what Animal Crossing was, and although I was intrigued, I was not in love immediately. As a video game it’s hard to define. I have seen “Life Sim,” “Social Simulation,” “Sandbox Game,” and more. To me it’s a Vibe Sim. The key thing I get from Animal Crossing is a vibe. It puts out that feeling of childhood summer vacations where you meet other kids and you don’t think about how many days you have until you have to go home, and you get a bit more freedom from schedule and supervision than you normally have. You get to interact with who you like and focus on the things you’re interested in.
Pictured: Animal Crossing New Leaf on my newer 3DS with a cup of coffee to pair.
I had had a switch since 2017 and knew I would be getting New Horizons on release day after it was announced in late 2018, with more real info available in 2019. It was finally released on March 20th 2020, AKA the wild time of peak of Covid quarantine frenzy, when we knew very little and had to stay in our homes for hopefully not too much longer to let this whole thing blow over in a couple weeks. The internet went a little crazy and tried desperately to get Nintendo to release the game early. Bars were closing and we were supposed to keep our distance, little did we know that was just the beginning. Quarantine was a perfect time to get very deep into this little game and was kind of perfect timing. Imagine being able to dive into a world where you camp on a beautiful island, spend time with all your new friends, and just enjoy the outdoors. There’s a reason this game became a phenomenon.
Pictured: Beardo, Pierce and Keaton all wearing the exact same outfit on a rainy day! I immediately went to the store to see if I could buy my character the same outfit, but alas, they were not selling those items at the moment.
New Horizons is the best Animal Crossing game so far. Not everyone would agree, and there’s always a special place in your heart for the first one that clicks with you, but New Horizons just has the best combination of things. You can decorate your whole island, and terraform it to just how you want, or you can simply fish and laugh with the silly little hamster guy who’s whole personality is weight lifting.
For me what makes this game so special and what keeps me coming back is the feeling it evokes. The music changes depending on the season, weather, and time of day, so if you play at sunset or in the rain it adapts in ways that feel familiar and unique. At one point you can help build a coffee shop inside the museum on your island and you can then go in and order coffee from Brewster. Side note - I thought Brewster was a brew-rooster, but he's definitely a pigeon. There’s no in-game benefit to getting and drinking a coffee, in fact, it costs 200 bells (the in-game currency), but I can’t help myself from going in to order, usually two cups a day. I have even drunk my coffee in real life at the same time as I get coffee in-game as a little ritual. They play unique music in the coffee shop and it is absolutely lovely. The Roost Music
The game has no large through line or important story, so I could theoretically listen to a lot of podcasts as I play, but I never multitask when I play Animal Crossing. Diving in 100% is the whole point, and being present is necessary. You can’t play this game in a rush, or you’ll be bored and out of ‘tasks’ in a short amount of time. The cool thing about the time cycle is it encourages you to jump in for a bit in the morning, and a bit more a couple times later in the day. It doesn’t demand you play for hours a day, but leads you to check in on your friends and your place regularly. I almost never play more than an hour at a time, but I have played hours in one day.
I think I’ll be playing some Animal Crossing game for some period of time every year for the rest of my life. It’s great to come back to. Just a couple weeks ago I jumped back in on the switch, and my villagers reminded me that it had been just over a year since I had played at all, but I never considered myself done, and I don’t think I will. Even if another Animal Crossing game comes out, visiting the old village and listening to that music will be nostalgic and familiar instantly.
Video games can get a specific reputation, and games like this break the mold a bit in a way that I wish more people knew about. There are tons of incredible games out there that are emotional, creative, and thoughtful that I think people would love if they knew they were out there and what they had to offer. This may have gotten a bit more technical than I expected, but I am excited to share more games that I love in upcoming posts and I hope they provide everyone an insight into a space that has so much to offer.