When lockdown rolled up in the U.K. I’d finished my review of DooM: Eternal and wanted a fresh experience. Enter Animal Crossing: New Horizons. The hype surrounding the title was inescapable, I caved in and I regret nothing.
The overall aesthetic, cute sound effects, relaxed atmosphere and overall simplicity was practically begging to have a shot at melting away my anxiety, and I let it.
As some of my close friends, colleagues and lovers will know, I’ve never been an advocate of games that simulate any kind of day-to-day experience or activity. My passion for escapism and its positive influence on my mental health just didn’t have room for anything that came close to reality.
My classic anxiety therapy was a session of Smash Bros. Plowing through Covenant or Promethean scum in Halo. Hitting up some raids on Pokémon Shield or just losing myself in Skyrim or The Outer Worlds.
The Good Life
There’s nothing quite like the satisfaction of picking weeds, collecting sticks, picking fruit, crafting tools/furniture, bug catching and fishing in uninterrupted peace and quiet. Animal Crossing is Nintendo’s answer to life rehabilitation, and it has taught this writer about appreciating the simple things in life. Friends would constantly regail me of their Animal Crossing trials and tribulations regarding nuisance villagers and finding recipes to make a bamboo drying rack. I just automatically shut my mind off to such a simplistic idea, it lacked creativity and imagination in my eyes.
Once my delusions of grandeur passed, I finally understood what was so special about Animal Crossing. It’s gone full circle, it doesn’t want high resolution textures, a symphony and epic storyline, it just wants to offer a relaxing yet addictive experience that rewards players simply by allowing them to enjoy their own accomplishments. Animal Crossing has been around for years now and is by no means a new concept, but it’s such a refreshing experience for me.
Sneaky Tom
Once I worked out that Tom Nook is ever so nicely getting me to do his grunt work for him and pay him for the privilege, I got with the program and started opening a museum, upgrading to a house and helping open a shop on Felch Isle (don’t ask). It was great seeing my island grow and have animals visiting and paying off debts to then obtain a bigger debt and all, but I didn’t want to lose that childish innocence of collecting random stuff and stock piling it as I saw fit.
I took a leap and started using nook miles tickets to visit random islands. The way Animal Crossing utilises online play is amazing. Letting you visit aforementioned random islands and those of friends. It’s a great way to find unique trees, materials, new villagers and items for your very own paradise.
It’s such a magical moment for me, finding a new franchise to fall in love with and obsess over. This is around the time I start thinking about another issue, the toxic and flatout messed up side of fanbases.
I decided to join some online groups on social media dedicated to Animal Crossing to pick up hints and make some friends as one does, and I found it to be quite a disturbing experience overall.
All the Hallmarks of a Vibrant Community
From really inappropriate artwork of villagers in suggestive circumstances to people who literally roleplay their Island and treat their relationships with inhabitants as real life experiences, it freaked me the frank out.
I’m not the kind of gamer that slams toxicity with more toxicity, but a line seems to have been crossed in the dark corners of the Animal Crossing fandom. On the flipside of this, a welcoming and outgoing fandom counter balances this with groups regularly running in-game giveaways, sharing friend codes, recipes and experiences in-game that may help someone else. This side of the fandom reminded me of some of the nicer Pokemon communities I’ve joined in the past.
Good or bad, this passionate fandom speaks volumes about the power of Animal Crossing. I feel that my journey has only just begun, which it has. I’m just not sure if I’m quite ready to let go of my quaint Island life in exchange for modernisation and terraforming. Time will tell.
