Now that Animal Crossing: New Horizons is finally out, players can now make full use of the most robust multiplayer features in the series yet. With these, it’s possible for up to eight players to interact with one another and make a virtual life together on a charming desert island.

Upon starting the game it might not be immediately clear how they’ll be able to do so. There are, in fact, multiple ways to play multiplayer in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, depending on whether players want to play with friends on the same console, through local wireless, or online. Each option comes with its own unique functions and limitations, so it’ll help players avoid some headaches to know what these are from the get-go.

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Couch Co-Op (Party Play)

animal crossing new horizons call resident menu

This option takes a few steps to set up, but it has the benefit of requiring only one Switch and one copy of the game. To start, one player is going to have to settle on an island (which New Horizons considers done once they go to sleep after their welcome party), and establish themselves as the Resident Rep. While this locks their new character and island to their Switch, this enables other players to move in and start living on the island with them, though all additional players will each need a unique user account on the Switch to do so.

Up to eight players can live on a single island, but only four can play together in local Party Play, which the Resident Rep can set up through the “Call Resident” option in the NookPhone menu. The way it works from there is that the Resident Rep is automatically designated the “leader” of the group while the invited players are considered “followers.”

What this means is that while the leader is able to do and access everything the island has to offer, the followers are mostly limited to catching bugs and fish, on top of having to stay close to the leader, since the camera follows them. Luckily, though, players can change who the leader is at any time either by shaking the Joy-Con or through the Call Resident menu.

Local Wireless and Online

animal crossing new horizon airport

Though Party Play caps its player count to 4, it’s possible for a group of eight players to play together without needing an internet connection via local wireless, as long as each player has their own Switch and copy of Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Setting up a local wireless session is different from inviting players into Party Play, as it’s done at the Airport, the island’s transportation hub.

There, a host player can invite the others to their island by talking to Orville and saying they “want visitors” via “local play.” Additionally, guest players can get the process going from their end by talking to Orville and selecting the options “I wanna fly!,” “I wanna visit someone,” and “local play.” This will bring up a list of local islands for them to choose from.

Setting up an online session works similarly to local wireless (aside from a Nintendo Switch Online subscription being required), but in this case players are going to pick online play after selecting “I wanna fly!” Along with being able to invite friends, players will also be able to invite players who aren’t registered as friends by using a one-time “Dodo Code.”

As for gameplay, visiting players in both local wireless and online play are restricted from using tools– a measure designed to prevent them from harvesting items before the host can– but the host player can get around this by designating players they trust as a “Best Friend,” which lets them use tools as well.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons is now available for the Switch.

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