In the past several months with no significant updates, many players have stopped opening Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Because there's no set objective after players invite the pop star dog KK Slider to perform on their island, Animal Crossing is focused on building relationships, cultivating a beautiful island, and accomplishing personal goals. After that's done, there's not much to do.
New Horizons is a game that's meant to be played over a long period of time, but because of that, new content is important. It makes the game stay relevant and interesting. So when Animal Crossing fans went several months without updates, many thought the game had more or less been abandoned by Nintendo. As it turns out, Animal Crossing is about to have a massive comeback on November 5.
A Lot of New Horizons Players Finished Their Islands
Animal Crossing: New Horizons has been out for about a year and a half, much of which took place during the COVID-19 quarantine. The slow-paced, wholesome, family-friendly game couldn't have come at a more perfect time, and without much to do, people were able to pour hours upon hours into perfecting their islands. With consistent seasonal updates, the game also stayed fresh and exciting.
After the first full year of updates, however, things started slowing down. There weren't as many updates or new content to look forward to, and a lot of players were able to complete their islands. New Horizons is a wonderful game that can take hundreds of hours to "complete," but once the player has perfected their island, there isn't much to do without getting rid of everything they worked for.
With only one island per Switch, starting a new save means deleting tons of hard work. Some players do restart, but not everyone wants to. For those players who aren't sure what to do with their finished islands, all of the new content is coming just in time.
The 2.0 Update Adds a Ton of New Content
On November 5, a huge 2.0 update is coming to New Horizons. For players who haven't visited their islands in a while, this is the perfect opportunity to dive back in. While this will be the last major update for New Horizons, Nintendo didn't pull any punches. After the update, players will be able to visit entirely new mysterious islands with Kapp'n, experience Brewster's coffee shop in the museum, and meet NPCs like Tortimer and Harriet on Harv's island. That's just the beginning.
The update is adding new furniture like the iconic Froggy Chair, new character customization options, and new design interior design opportunities like accent walls and ceiling lights. New game mechanics are being added as well, such as farming and cooking. For players looking to mix things up in their neighborhood, sixteen new villagers are being added.
The new villagers joining New Horizons will probably be available to hunt down on mystery islands, but they'll also be included in Series 5 Amiibo card packs. With all the new updates, there are a ton of reasons to go back and play more Animal Crossing.
The Happy Home Paradise DLC is Like a New Game
If the free update isn't enough, the paid DLC Happy Home Paradise is also being released on November 5th. It can be bought alone for $25 or as part of the Nintendo Online Expansion for $50, and it looks like it'll be well worth the extra cost. Happy Home Paradise feels like an entirely new game, with a new cast of NPCs and brand new locations. The premise of the DLC is designing vacation homes for NPCs, which sounds simple enough, but has a huge impact on Animal Crossing's value.
There are countless NPCs to design vacation homes for, and by doing so players can obtain a special currency to buy unique items. As the player builds their reputation as a home designer, opportunities will become available on the player's main island to redecorate villager homes, a feature that's been highly requested. With the Happy Home Paradise DLC, players can revisit Animal Crossing: New Horizons for a whole new experience on November 5.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons is available now on Nintendo Switch.