Animal Crossing: New Horizons (ACNH) is the newest game within the Animal Crossing franchise. Available on the Nintendo Switch console only, it was released Friday, March 20 while the Animal Crossing Switch console released March 13. This game has ruined my life in the best possible way. I have spent a lot of time playing it, and while there are some not so great parts, I’d still recommend anyone with a Switch to get this game. 

In ACNH, you purchase a package that involves moving to a deserted island, and from there it’s the player’s job to gain residents, hold concerts and pretty up the island. It’s similar to the rest of the franchise in terms of characters and shops, but different in many ways. The ability to craft, different forms of currency within the game and the ability to choose where residents live on your island are just some of the new concepts. 

This game was highly anticipated, along with the console. I decided last-minute that I wanted the console and game (after some persuasion from my best friend Joey). I had to go to Walmart at midnight on the console release day, since all pre-orders were sold out. I managed to pre-order ACNH at Best Buy with no problems.

I’ve previously played Animal Crossing games but hadn’t done any research previously before playing. I was pleasantly surprised by the new additions. 

The game is super cute, and that’s what I love most about it. The characters? Adorable. Tom Nook? Love of my life. Timmy and Tommy? My homies. Agent S? My sister from another mister.  The fruit? Scrumptious. The literal money trees? Brilliant and wish they were real. NookPhone? Didn’t know I needed it until now.

The NookPhone is basically like a modern day iPhone — there are apps which allow the player to access bug/fish logs, Nook Miles (a form of currency within the game), crafting recipes and custom designs. 

The crafting aspect reminds me of Minecraft, the most iconic game I grew up with. It gives ACNH a feeling of nostalgic happiness for me. The added features of the NookPhone, being able to manipulate cliffs and waterfalls, upgraded shops, holidays and tournaments really boosted my experience with the game.

The most frustrating part of the game is at the beginning. Building houses for residents, getting 30 iron nuggets and having such flimsy tools. The tools break after you hit a rock a certain amount of times, and you have to hit rocks to get iron nuggets to build the houses for the residents. This is the most tedious process I’ve ever been through in a game. 

Another downside I’ve noticed with ACNH is it can be kind of slow at times. Usually, there’s always a goal to reach or things you can do — you can invite people over to your islands, go to other players’ islands, go to a mystery island and try to get your island rating up, etc. After a while, and after K.K. Slider comes to your island, the number of things to do dwindles. Does that mean I’ll stop playing it? No. 

While ACNH can be frustrating, it’s still a really fun game with an unlimited amount of customization ability. The animation is really cute, and the characters have fun personalities that make the frustration worth it. 

Rating: 5/5 stars