With summer nearly here, many students are preparing to graduate from college. Many take the opportunity to customize their graduation garb to celebrate the occasion, and gamers are no exception to the rule.
Such is the case with one particular student who chose to decorate their graduation cap with an Animal Crossing: New Horizons theme. With the game being a big part of many gamers' lives over the last couple of years, it's a choice that many are charmed by.
Reddit user jellyfish-squish shared their creation with the Animal Crossing subreddit, showing off the cute design on their graduation cap. Their cap features an image of their Animal Crossing: New Horizons character standing on a beach, holding a diploma in one hand and a net in the other. Beneath that, a text bubble declares, "Woo-hoo! I caught a diploma!" emulating the success messages seen in the game after catching or fishing up something. Beneath that, a small bow says 'Off to New Horizons,' another reference to the game.
Many took to the comments to congratulate jellyfish-squish on their graduation, and to praise them for the design. It seems the community is quite charmed by the choice, as well as the execution of it. Others pointed out that a reference to the unfortunate side effect of college education - financial debt - would have also been a funny angle to take, especially with paying off debts to Tom Nook being a big part of the gameplay.
Many students have found similarly creative ways to decorate and customize their graduation caps. Minecraft and Elden Ring fans have taken inspiration from the games to make their graduation caps their own. However, during the worst of the pandemic, Minecraft also played a bigger role in graduating. When it was too dangerous for students to gather in real-life, Minecraft was utilized for graduation ceremonies itself, giving students a way to celebrate together without creating any risk of COVID-19 transmission.
While attending school can make it difficult to find the time to play video games, they can also be helpful in reducing stress and anxiety that often comes with gaining an education. Animal Crossing: New Horizons is a great choice, since it can be played casually and during spare moments. While the time for content updates have come to an end for the game, with the continuous font of fan creations and players using it as a way to relax, it's likely the game will remain popular among students and gamers in general for years to come.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons is available now for Nintendo Switch.