Animal Crossing: New Horizons (Switch) - 20/03/2020

BORbles wrote:It's £35 at Smyth's.

Not sure if I should buy it and a couple of my mates have started playing it. They kept talking about it and told me that I should get it.

It's a game where you collect stuff for no other reason than to say you've got it.

If that doesn't sound fun to you I wouldn't get it.

I played 100 or so hours at the start of lockdown and was hoping this would open up, or give you some kind of reason to collect stuff but no, it doesn't.

It's literally no different than any other animal crossing game other than a few quality of life things.

It's just a virtual doll house, all the items you unlock that give you an advantage don't unlock until you basically have no use for them

Fade wrote:It's literally no different than any other animal crossing game other than a few quality of life things.

This is my first Animal Crossing, but isn't terraforming and placing items outside of your house around the island completely new?

That's also the reason for collecting furniture beyond just saying you've got them - so you can use them in your island or house design.

Fade wrote:

BORbles wrote:It's £35 at Smyth's.

Not sure if I should buy it and a couple of my mates have started playing it. They kept talking about it and told me that I should get it.

It's a game where you collect stuff for no other reason than to say you've got it.

If that doesn't sound fun to you I wouldn't get it.

I played 100 or so hours at the start of lockdown and was hoping this would open up, or give you some kind of reason to collect stuff but no, it doesn't.

It's literally no different than any other animal crossing game other than a few quality of life things.

It's just a virtual doll house, all the items you unlock that give you an advantage don't unlock until you basically have no use for them

This was pretty much my experience. I really enjoyed it at first, but i always had this nagging concern that my island was never going to be interesting enough for others to want to see, which, when coupled with the massive QOL issues you experience if you leave your gate open for someone to "just drop in" whilst you were actively playing, meant that i came to the realisation that i was creating an intricate island with loads of unique character that would only ever be enjoyed by myself. Ultimately i found this a bit depressing and unrewarding and stopped playing. If i had friends who might have wanted to see my island, and if i could play the game to its fullest with my gate open, it might have been a different story.

kazanova_Frankenstein wrote:...I really enjoyed it at first, but i always had this nagging concern that my island was never going to be interesting enough for others to want to see... i came to the realisation that i was creating an intricate island with loads of unique character that would only ever be enjoyed by myself. Ultimately i found this a bit depressing and unrewarding and stopped playing...

This is genuinely a little sad, kaz! I'm sure that other folk from here in GR would visit; maybe try posting here that your island will be open from 9pm to 10pm (or whenever) and that you'd love to see some folk visit? I like looking around other folks' islands and I suspect other people do, too.

Having said that... yeah, I haven't played much at all these past months. I loved the game at first (I played a lot from April through August) and, for me, there were plenty of changes compared to previous AC games; particularly the terrain re-forming and "place items anywhere" approach. Since I "completed" my island build I haven't played, though. There are some aspects that I think were better in New Leaf (playable U and 3DS, better camp site, the coffee shop, better amiibo visiting process) but I still think New Horizons is very good.

I shouldn't have joined the stalk market dealing as, personally, I feel that getting lots of stuff too quickly puts a dampener on the experience. The game is better enjoyed through a gradual drip of cool things arriving rather than "I've made ten mil so I'll buy everything" kind of approach. IMHO, anyway .

But... having barely played it since last summer, now feels like a good time to return. Will load it up later.

jawa2 wrote:

kazanova_Frankenstein wrote:...I really enjoyed it at first, but i always had this nagging concern that my island was never going to be interesting enough for others to want to see... i came to the realisation that i was creating an intricate island with loads of unique character that would only ever be enjoyed by myself. Ultimately i found this a bit depressing and unrewarding and stopped playing...

This is genuinely a little sad, kaz! I'm sure that other folk from here in GR would visit; maybe try posting here that your island will be open from 9pm to 10pm (or whenever) and that you'd love to see some folk visit? I like looking around other folks' islands and I suspect other people do, too.

Having said that... yeah, I haven't played much at all these past months. I loved the game at first (I played a lot from April through August) and, for me, there were plenty of changes compared to previous AC games; particularly the terrain re-forming and "place items anywhere" approach. Since I "completed" my island build I haven't played, though. There are some aspects that I think were better in New Leaf (playable U and 3DS, better camp site, the coffee shop, better amiibo visiting process) but I still think New Horizons is very good.

I shouldn't have joined the stalk market dealing as, personally, I feel that getting lots of stuff too quickly puts a dampener on the experience. The game is better enjoyed through a gradual drip of cool things arriving rather than "I've made ten mil so I'll buy everything" kind of approach. IMHO, anyway .

But... having barely played it since last summer, now feels like a good time to return. Will load it up later.

I did try and promote/whore my island here a few times. It received no love. I did visit a couple of other peoples islands though, and they were awesome. In many ways that did not help as it left me questioning why i was wasting other peoples time to look at something inferior.

I have come to recognise this as a "me" issue though. Self promotion really isn't my thing, and, rightly or wrongly, its how i see this mechanic (outside of interacting with friends, none of whom own this, or even a Switch).

kazanova_Frankenstein wrote:I did try and promote/whore my island here a few times. It received no love. I did visit a couple of other peoples islands though, and they were awesome. In many ways that did not help as it left me questioning why i was wasting other peoples time to look at something inferior...

Try not to compare too much, kaz; everyone has different tastes!

Sudden thought: maybe we could setup an AC Island Visit Event. Say, a specific weekend where GRcadians could open their islands at certain times and visitors could comment here in the thread. I wonder if this would work?

AC players, would there be any appetite for this?

jawa2 wrote:

kazanova_Frankenstein wrote:I did try and promote/whore my island here a few times. It received no love. I did visit a couple of other peoples islands though, and they were awesome. In many ways that did not help as it left me questioning why i was wasting other peoples time to look at something inferior...

Try not to compare too much, kaz; everyone has different tastes!

Sudden thought: maybe we could setup an AC Island Visit Event. Say, a specific weekend where GRcadians could open their islands at certain times and visitors could comment here in the thread. I wonder if this would work?

AC players, would there be any appetite for this?

For me I'd probably yes I'd say. There's less of us that play than there used to be but I'm sure some of us would be up for it!

Kazanova, everyone builds and designs their islands differently. Chaos was built to be a bit of fun really. I never really intended it to be loved or hated by others, it's more so that me and Ella can have fun on there. Having people like and enjoy my island has always been a big bonus, as it's meant more people have liked to visit more. Everyone's islands are built differently, and I'd love to see what yours is like! I like seeing the different styles and designs others have thought up!

I've also had nights where I've opened up the gates and no one has shown up. It happens, people may not have been online at the time or someone else has been open with a meteor shower. Or people haven't been on here and seen your post!

Yeah it's tricky to guarantee visits unless you pre arrange - I too have posted Dodo Codes in the thread and gotten no interest, but if no one else happens to both see the posts and get online, it just happens! Don't take it too personally Kaz

I like jawa's idea of a planned meet weekend - there could be host slots and anyone who can drop in at those times knows which islands are open and when.

OrangeXMS wrote:

Fade wrote:It's literally no different than any other animal crossing game other than a few quality of life things.

This is my first Animal Crossing, but isn't terraforming and placing items outside of your house around the island completely new?

That's also the reason for collecting furniture beyond just saying you've got them - so you can use them in your island or house design.

yes

I don't think New Horizons has much in common with the other games. The life sim aspect has been toned down massively in favour of the customisation and terraforming angle. I thought it was a huge disappointment for that reason, I've only played around 80 hours since launch and don't have much inclination to go back.

jawa2 wrote:...Sudden thought: maybe we could setup an AC Island Visit Event...

Boom! It's happening! Click here to discover more!

Jawa have you played since the dream islands got added? I know it can be fun to visit live (and you have to if its for something like a meteor shower or to buy something or to trade) but if you just want to look around other people's island at your own pace then dream codes are perfect for it.

Spindash wrote:I don't think New Horizons has much in common with the other games. The life sim aspect has been toned down massively in favour of the customisation and terraforming angle. I thought it was a huge disappointment for that reason, I've only played around 80 hours since launch and don't have much inclination to go back.

hasnt been tone down at all, sure theres a couple things missing but its hasnt changed that much

OrangeXMS wrote:Jawa have you played since the dream islands got added? I know it can be fun to visit live (and you have to if its for something like a meteor shower or to buy something or to trade) but if you just want to look around other people's island at your own pace then dream codes are perfect for it.

I would concur with this. I thoroughly enjoyed my dream tour.

username wrote:

OrangeXMS wrote:Jawa have you played since the dream islands got added? I know it can be fun to visit live (and you have to if its for something like a meteor shower or to buy something or to trade) but if you just want to look around other people's island at your own pace then dream codes are perfect for it.

I would concur with this. I thoroughly enjoyed my dream tour.

Guys, yeah, this is another good option. I'll update the event post to say that folk can share their dream code alongside the other details. I like the idea of the player interaction that comes with a "real" visit, but the dream code method could be a great thing for folk who can't make a visit during the times slots. Ta!

snow guy 64 wrote:

OrangeXMS wrote:

Fade wrote:It's literally no different than any other animal crossing game other than a few quality of life things.

This is my first Animal Crossing, but isn't terraforming and placing items outside of your house around the island completely new?

That's also the reason for collecting furniture beyond just saying you've got them - so you can use them in your island or house design.

yes

Those things are literally quality of life changes though. They don't alter the gameplay loop in any way, just gives you more gooseberry fool to collect and more places to put it.

None of the furniture nor the structures have any gameplay relevance. Animal crossing is like if in monster Hunter every piece of armour your grinded for just looked different and didn't have any bonuses.

Animal crossing could do things like have "sporty" items give your house more "sporty points" so if you invite a sporty villager over it makes them more impressed by your house and more likely to befriend you, unlocking more dialogue options.

Stuff like that would give you a reason to go after certain items, every time a new villager moved in it would give you a reason to change up your house.

But no, let's not actually add any substance to the game, let's just make the exact same game we've been making for 20 years with the most barebones of improvements people expect.

Animal Crossing is just a cash cow for them, just like Pokémon, they really don't give two gooseberry fools about actually improving the game.

It sounds like you're looking for them to fundamentally change the game, rather than improve it (Which they absolutely have done compared with previous instalments). Fair enough if you don't like the series, but if you've played the AC games before and knowingly buy the new version then criticise it for only enhancing the core features of the game, then that's on you.

I think the one thing I'd like from a future Animal Crossing is to be able to interact with the furniture beyond just changing clothes and getting into bed. The original game had a whole bunch of NES games emulated in there (which obvs now they aren't going to do because that's their incentive for signing up for Nintendo Online ), so why can't we get little minigames for the table tennis tables and chessboards and things? Or even just animations of parts moving, so it doesn't look so static.

And a football that you can actually move, for goodness sake

Fade wrote:None of the furniture nor the structures have any gameplay relevance.

Town building is a kind of gameplay, just obviously not one you are interested in.

I love the building/creative style of play; it's my main enjoyment when playing both New Horizons and F76.