For the first article of this series, I conducted a survey to determine what college students’ favorite video games are. Animal Crossing was another popular answer given, most notably the title Animal Crossing: New Horizons. It was mentioned four times amongst the fifteen college students that were surveyed. Animal Crossing, released in April of 2001, was the first video game of the franchise. Five main series games and three spin-offs make up the games’ franchise today, having sold “59.74 million units worldwide,” according to its Wikipedia page. Animal Crossing: New Horizons is an especially popular video game. In fact, it is the second best-selling Nintendo Switch title as of December 31, 2020.
How has this video game series succeeded?
To begin, Animal Crossing is classified as a “social/life simulation” video game series where the gameplay somewhat mimics real life. As a human living in a village inhabited by anthropomorphic animals, the player can engage in various daily activities. These activities include conversing with the local villagers, fishing, bug catching, and fossil hunting. Animal Crossing generally follows a nonlinear, open-ended style of gameplay. It also utilizes the game console’s internal clock and calendar to simulate the real passing of time. In Animal Crossing: New Horizons, the gameplay takes place on a deserted island that the player moves to after purchasing a getaway package. There, they are able to use the ample number of resources to craft and build their village from scratch. Up to ten villagers can move in and make their home on the player’s island.
Specifically speaking, Animal Crossing: New Horizons supports local and co-op gameplay through an in-game feature called “Dodo Airlines.” The player can also use amiibo cards and figures to summon particular villagers to join their island paradise. The game is also consistently updating with new events, seasonal items, and gameplay features. This level of accessibility has made the game exceedingly more popular since its initial release in March of 2020. It should be noted that Animal Crossing: New Horizons was released during the first month of the COVID-19 pandemic when stay-at-home orders were first being enforced. Many journalists attribute the game’s success to being released at such an opportune time, combined with its online features.
Several anonymous comments were made by the college students about why Animal Crossing: New Horizons is one of their favorite video games:
“The ability to customize yourself and your entire island is why Animal Crossing: New Horizons is one of my favorite video games.”
“Animal Crossing is great for relaxing and doing mindless work.”
“There is always something new coming out with Animal Crossing, keeping me glued to the game.”
“The style of Animal Crossing is adorable and endearing. Each character is charming and personable in their own way.”
While there are no new titles scheduled for the series, Animal Crossing: New Horizons recently released a new update called the “Sanrio Crossover.” It features many new characters, furniture, and clothing, styled from various titles published by the company, Sanrio. These titles include Hello Kitty, Keroppi, and My Melody. Unfortunately, the “Animal Crossing Sanrio Collaboration Pack” must be purchased in order to download the new content. This collection is also a Target-exclusive product, making it somewhat difficult to obtain.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Maggie Spring
Student Author - Spring 2021
