animal crossing game review

Animal Crossing New Horizons: a paradise of novelties

Who has never dreamed of leaving everything behind to go into exile on a desert island? Far from the hustle and bustle and giving yourself the chance to start all over again? This is Nintendo’s promise to us with Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Finished the small village by the sea, you are now one of the first to tread the sand of what will soon be your island. And for this new opus, the emphasis has been on personalization with in particular the appearance of crafting and terraforming. The other novelty that changes the pace of the game a little bit is the arrival of the objectives. Ready to live your best life?

ESCAPE FORMULA

For many followers, Animal Crossing acts as a refuge or even a little corner of paradise where life is good, dotted with benevolence. Without any pressure, you can make friends with your neighbors, take out zero-interest mortgage loans with no due date, fish, garden, hunt insects or dig up fossils carelessly to help the museum to expand its collection. This is a bit of an overview of each of the episodes released until then with each time a little novelty. In New Leaf released in 2013 on Nintendo 3DS we could go on vacation and indulge in some mini games.

The latter roughly takes up the spirit of the series, but gradually shakes up the game with a few new features. This time you find yourself on an almost virgin island and, as an island delegate, you have the task of giving life and making this small piece of land as attractive as possible in order to attract as many travelers as possible. As in the previous section, you manage the constructions and participate in the development of the shops. Here is the proposition, you are free to answer it or make your life on your side, quietly.

NATURE, FULL OF RESOURCES

Who says desert island says nature in abundance. And if we could already pick flowers, collect fruits and shells in the past, New Horizons changes our relationship to our environment a little. Indeed, this episode sees the arrival of crafting. Our little villagers will therefore be able to get their hands on a whole bunch of resources using tools. For example, hitting a tree with an ax could save you pieces of wood, just as hitting your shovel against a rock can potentially bring you stone, iron ores and even on rare occasions, 'gold. Now, if you eat a fruit you get super powers and can among other things uproot a tree with your shovel. "Eating five fruits and vegetables a day" has never been more effective.

As usual, the resources are not unlimited, but are renewed every day. And if that is not enough, you have the possibility, paying for a few miles (we will come back to this), to buy you a getaway ticket. The latter allows you to travel with Dodo Airlines to an island. It is unique and randomly generated so avoid forgetting your stuff once there! These destinations are full of materials but also of fruits (sometimes different from those present at home), marine animals, insects and you could very well come across fossils and even, meet future neighbors. These trips have no restrictions and can be invoked endlessly. What you need is just a valid ticket.

BUILD, CUSTOMIZE, MODEL

Once you have everything in your inventory, what to do? Direction the workbench, first present at the start of the game in the residents' office. There you will have access to all the resources of your inventory and the DIY plans that you have. These can be acquired in various ways: in bottles thrown into the sea, generously given by the locals, received as gifts in your mailbox, redeemed for Nook Miles, etc. These small cards contain recipes for creating objects. Once learned, you have them for life.

The interface is pleasant, the information shows clarity ... In short, this new feature has been well thought out to integrate perfectly into the game. The choice of manufacture greatly and even graciously extends over the days. First of all you will find the essential tools such as the fishing rod, the ax, the shovel, the slingshot and the pole, to cross the rivers. These same accessories can be improved because, as already explained in our preview a few weeks ago, the basic ones tend to break quickly. In this regard, it is probably the first time that I have been able to feel frustration in an Animal Crossing. Kind of like what you could feel in Breath of the Wild, after all.

While advancing in the game, you will also have the possibility of customizing the other objects that you will have made or purchased such as interior and exterior furniture and other decorative elements. For some of them, you can even affix a motif that you have designed. And since we are talking about personalization, some very practical instruments are making their entry. The mirror, placed in your home, opens the same avatar editor as that at the start of the game. So you can change your haircut, skin and eye color but also, choose your gender between boy and girl. Also, the smallest wardrobe offers, as in the fitting room of the Soeurs-Doigts-De-Fées fashion store, to test all of our outfits in real time to perfect its style.

Terraforming, the ability to shape the ground, comes much later in the game. Nintendo is talking about a month of gaming, a time that we have not yet reached with the test. We will come back to this in the coming days, but we were still able to try this new function thanks to a small demonstration. By putting on your construction helmet, it is possible to change the level of the ground but also create paths made of earth, sand or paved as well as remove or extend the water points. Here is what to develop your island according to your construction projects.

CARROT AND STICK

Despite the events and the changes of seasons, Animal Crossing could suffer from a lack of clear objectives. It is not uncommon for players to drop out after one or two weeks of play. But that is ancient history with the new Nook Miles point system. If you take out your Nook Phone, a new essential tool, you will have a number of fairly practical applications, including the one dedicated to Nook Miles. These are small short, medium and long term goals that, once achieved, reward you with points. There are those which are more extended in time or daily like saying hello to all the inhabitants of the island, cutting so many trees, bringing back so many fossils, welcoming so many inhabitants, etc. And those called Nook Miles + which are quickly achievable and which are automatically replaced as soon as they are heard: capture three insects, talk to three neighbors, plant a fruit tree, etc.

The list of things to do is growing as you go. Simply put, the more you do, the more you have to do. And all of this gains in variety depending on the evolution of your actions and the island. A nice progression which should prevent anyone from getting bored too quickly. The pace of the game therefore changes greatly; before the number of spots per day was quite limited. Now you can multiply the objectives to extend your session. In addition, you are no longer punished when you change the date and time of your console to make your game evolve faster ... It's a bit cheating I grant you, but it's possible. The different multi modes should also prove to be a great way to progress faster by helping each other.

And if not, what are these points earned for? Yes, because having directives is fine, but if it is just for filling in a table, it does not have much interest. Nook Miles can be redeemed for bells, DIY plans, getaway tickets, new decorative or fashion items or even unlock content that will improve your daily life. We think in particular of the size of the inventory which can thus be enlarged. And when you spend your day crafting, it's essential.

A CONSEQUENT CONTENT

In addition to the Nook Miles that will punctuate your game a little, the variety of actions and activities makes the New Horizons experience truly complete. The number of things to do is increasing every day spent on the island and there is no doubt that we are not out of surprises. Other types of resources are likely to appear, especially with the seasons and events. The list of objects to build seems inexhaustible, even after three weeks of intensive play. The construction of bridges, stairs and terraforming seem to gain interest over time. The shops are also developing and the arrival of camping and events on the island also pushes us to improve the latter. Moreover, a rating in the form of stars indicates its reputation.

The dialogues between the different characters benefit from this iteration of greater diversity. This reinforces this illusion of dealing with deeper personalities and prevents them from repeating themselves too quickly. With your neighbors, you will learn new expressions, participate in birthday parties, contests or even do yourself a few services. Besides, new heads are appearing, in addition to those we already know. The same goes for merchants and more specifically, itinerant merchants. But we leave you the pleasure of discovering it for yourself.

Finally, note that the Amiibos are there. They can help you progress faster after several weeks of play. They will also be used on Photopia Island presented in the Nintendo Direct special Animal Crossing. Honestly, we are still looking for the true interest of this destination if not to unlock miles. Arranging rooms for taking photos has a relatively small amount of fun capital. But maybe the rest will prove us wrong.

The notes
+ Positive points
Significant efforts on weather effects, textures and dialogues.
The arrival of crafting increases the interest of the title.
Content that seems substantial to us.
The goal system changes the pace of the game.

-Negative points
The possibility of cheating could make you lose interest over time.
The usefulness of Amiibo questionable for the island of Photopia.
One island per console or how to take the whole family out of the gaming experience

Animal Crossing: New Horizons is timely to offer us a change of scenery by proxy. There is no doubt that this is a good investment to occupy the long weeks to come. The multitude of things to do (and still to discover!), The system of objectives and the possibility of modifying each corner of its island should enthuse the faithful and perhaps convince the others sensitive to crafting. To summarize as briefly as possible, the series has managed to evolve without betraying the spirit of the previous parts: to spend peaceful days and do what we want, without pressure. Possibly, New Horizons is the breath of fresh air we needed.