Approaching the One Year Anniversary, what will you think if there aren't any big updates coming?

[Feraligator]

EDIT: I know I've had a history of being mean to NH (including in this very post), but I will say this, though... In spite of my distaste for the game as it is, if they introduce any really good Bowser-themed items or villagers as part of the Mario update, I will actually have to seriously reconsider trying it again to see if it's at least tolerable. I love Bowser that much.

I whole heartedly agree with your love for Bowser

 

[coldpotato]

This is honestly just a technicality. This could have replaced with any character and a new character. It's honestly ridiculous to say "we have him" because of a line of dialogue that most players will never even see. He could have, I don't know, physically appeared for Groundhog Day? Or have the little manhole be his home like in New Leaf? Maybe he could have been repurposed to attack time travellers (hot take).

We don't "have him".

I agree that he could have appeared for groundhog day and that would be awesome, but he definitely is in the game working at the rescue services and that is a fact. Just because he doesn't appear like he does in previous games, doesn't mean we don't have him.

 

[Jaco]

This is honestly just a technicality. This could have replaced with any character and a new character. It's honestly ridiculous to say "we have him" because of a line of dialogue that most players will never even see. He could have, I don't know, physically appeared for Groundhog Day? Or have the little manhole be his home like in New Leaf? Maybe he could have been repurposed to attack time travellers (hot take).

We don't "have him".

Resetti is hilarious and while part of me wishes he was "really" in the game, I understand the reasoning why he's behind the scenes now. As funny as he is, apparently his monologues used to scare children and I guess Nintendo just decided to move a different direction.

That said, I do wish we could see him (along with all the other special NPCs like the Nooklings, Blathers, Tom Nook, Isabelle, etc.) hanging out at a social spot (like the Roost) during their "off" hours.

Also, I legitimately called rescue services today (boxed myself in decorating and didn't want to undo all the decorating to get out...thanks for the lift, Resetti!)

 

[cocoacat]

I'm not getting my hopes up for March. I expect some Mario themed items and maybe a cake or something, but not much else.

There's a lot I wish they'd add, and maybe we'll get some big exciting update soon, but no hint of anything like that yet. I still enjoy the game, but something new to do would be a welcome change of pace. I agree with others that feel NL had more. They did a great job with adding terraforming, and outdoor furniture, Celeste, and the beautiful graphics, but for me it seems there's a real lack of growth and life. Lack of shops and other things to unlock, museum exhibits, villager house visits, npcs, etc. New Leaf had a lot of different things in comparison. I don't want an exact copy of New Leaf, but I'm not sure there's really sufficient replacement for all the things that are missing.

 

[John Wick]

Actually...

I bought New Horizons and played it for a few weeks. To make a long story short, I didn't like it! For a while, I tried to force myself to think positively about it, because I loved NL so much and I felt like I should love this game, too... but after some time, I just had to admit that I wasn't having fun. At first, I blamed my distaste and disappointment on the severe lack of furniture. However, my issues with the game are with the core design and gameplay decisions. I didn't care at all for crafting, nor did I care that outdoor design stuff had trampled all over indoor design, which was a part of NL that I loved so much. On top of that, I felt that the villager personalities were lobotomized, especially the lazies. Beau was my first lazy move-in in NH, and after just a few weeks of enduring the new lazy dialogue, it's actually kind of made me dislike Beau, now. I just felt that no amount of waiting for more furniture, NPCs, or future QOL improvements would ever make the game better for me.

So, I returned the game, and went back to playing New Leaf to try and cheer myself up. And I rediscovered what I knew to be true all along; that NL actually is a masterpiece. I love it; it would place at least somewhere in my top 20 games. The graphics are gorgeous, the atmosphere is fantastic, and it's just plain fun to play. I can decorate both indoors and outdoors exactly how I like, and there's always stuff to do every day, even if there's not a holiday going on. What other people may call limitations or inconveniences, to me, is just part of what makes Animal Crossing so special.

My only regret is that I bought NH in the first place. At the time, I was just so excited to have a new Animal Crossing game, but if I had just waited to see that it was actually completely different than what I thought it was going to be, I wouldn't have given them my money.

As for the March update, to rope this post back on topic, I imagine it's just going to be a handful of Mario items... I wouldn't expect any other Nintendo-themed things, and I also wouldn't expect a massive update for the anniversary.

EDIT: I know I've had a history of being mean to NH (including in this very post), but I will say this, though... In spite of my distaste for the game as it is, if they introduce any really good Bowser-themed items or villagers as part of the Mario update, I will actually have to seriously reconsider trying it again to see if it's at least tolerable. I love Bowser that much.

I wish I could give more than one LOVE to this post!

A zillion loves! ^_^

 

[TxAnt]

I don't imagine we'll get an update. More likely an anniversary cake in the mail from Nintendo.

 

[Boidoh]

I agree that he could have appeared for groundhog day and that would be awesome, but he definitely is in the game working at the rescue services and that is a fact. Just because he doesn't appear like he does in previous games, doesn't mean we don't have him.

If you had a arbitrary checklist and had only checked or unchecked as options - then maybe your right. But life isn't an arbitrary checklist. Resetti the character isn't in the game - or to satisfy you, has extremely minimal dialogue to the point where he is insignificant. Resetti the concept isn't in the game, as the role he once occupied is now left unfulfilled.

For example, Joan isn't in the game - but who cares? Daisy Mae is basically a replacement.

 

[lykkelille]

As someone who didnt play NL, you are all talking about Brewster and how much you want him/the café back: But would that really add any proper content? Would adding it back give us any proper things to do in the game?

 

[Che5hire Cat]

As someone who didnt play NL, you are all talking about Brewster and how much you want him/the café back: But would that really add any proper content? Would adding it back give us any proper things to do in the game?

Well, The Roost itself was actually just a fun gimmick for the game imo, like back in the previous games, you could buy coffee which your character drunk... And that's pretty much it. K.K. used to perform there back in Wild World and City Folk, otherwise new in New Leaf, there was that mini game where you could work for Brewster and giving out coffee to your villagers. In exchange, you got Brewster inclusive items as rewards. Sometimes, NPCs also showed up there and you could talk to them, finding out a bit about their life outside of their work. Of course they can change up things with Brewster and how The Roost now works in NH, making it a bit more interesting, different and all. Personally, I just would like to have him back, simply because I want finally another NPC building on the island.

 

[-Blue-]

Brewster by itself probably wouldn't make that make of a difference, but it was all the little things combined that made the game feel whole. Like there was an actual community in your game. It's been a year and we still can't hold food and drinks (or other stuff villagers hold) and take bites/sips out of the items. Yet, we've been watching the villager's do that since day 1. I was a bit disappointed that there were so many emotion activities they could do in the beginning like sitting, and it took us 8 months to get those basic emotes they had from day 1 and they couldn't add all of them.

We're still wondering if we're going to get another Nooklings upgrade after a year. The coffee shop is just one more thing that would be fun to have and experience. More so if they actually do bring back the mini-game it had in NL. It would also probably bring back being able to hold coffee cups and sip them (among other drinks possibly and maybe foods)

I see some people commenting how they don't want Brewster or the shop and that is fine. You don't need to add it to your island. It was optional in NL. You can just act like it never existed if we do get it back.

But the way the game started with villagers doing stuff we couldn't do with emotions, food/beverages, and interacting with each other made it feel like I was just an observer and not part of their community. I could stay and watch, but I couldn't partake. Sure some of the stuff finally came back in updates, but it left a bad taste for me in the beginning.

So for a year update, I would like us to finally be given the stuff villagers were able to do from day 1. Everything. It was there from the beginning, there's no reason to keep it out of our reach.

 

[Cloudandshade]

Well, The Roost itself was actually just a fun gimmick for the game imo, like back in the previous games, you could buy coffee which your character drunk... And that's pretty much it. K.K. used to perform there back in Wild World and City Folk, otherwise new in New Leaf, there was that mini game where you could work for Brewster and giving out coffee to your villagers. In exchange, you got Brewster inclusive items as rewards. Sometimes, NPCs also showed up there and you could talk to them, finding out a bit about their life outside of their work. Of course they can change up things with Brewster and how The Roost now works in NH, making it a bit more interesting, different and all. Personally, I just would like to have him back, simply because I want finally another NPC building on the island.

Brewster by itself probably wouldn't make that make of a difference, but it was all the little things combined that made the game feel whole. Like there was an actual community in your game.

Yup, you guys summed up for me exactly why I miss Brewster. I've wanted him back the same as many others, but I wasn't really sure why - I never really visited him on NL! I'd pretty much accepted that I wanted him back just because he's not there, and it feels like content was taken away from us. But no, it's like you guys said, it really made the game feel like a community. I completely forgot that NPCs used to hang out at the cafe, and that was such a meaningful little touch. I love NH, but for me the lack of NPC buildings is the main thing that has always made it feel a little soulless compared to NL. Also, I mean, we're on an isolated island - it's not like we can just pop to the nearest city for a coffee. We need amenities!

 

[Fridaynightcatlady]

I'd love to see Brewster back, and I'm 99% sure he's coming back (not sure if he'll be back in the upcoming update, but I'm guessing yes). I definitely would like to see the mini game return and be able to work in The Roost. I would love The Roost to have a stage again for other NPC's (maybe we can get Dr. Shrunk to teach you very specific reactions) and I'd love to see NPC's show up there (even NPC's we haven't met yet; maybe Phylis can show up or Rover can show up again like he used to in WW). I read someone (I'm not sure if it was Reddit or here) suggested that your villagers that moved out could also show up! That would be so cool, but I'm not sure how'd they pull that off.

I would love to see them adding another gimmick to The Roost.

 

[VanitasFan26]

While I do like the Mario items like I feel like this is not going to be enough to get people back into playing. We are almost a year into this game and they still haven't made any improvements to the game since a lot of people have been asking for quality of life updates for the longest time now. I mean how many times are we going to have to wait for all these improvements to come? Nintendo promised "advanced improvements" last year in a interview but I am not seeing it.

January was pretty lackluster, February with the Festivale event it was cool but it was short, and now we are getting Mario items. Its not looking too good and you have to wonder if Nintendo is even listening at this point.

I don't mean to sound negative but seeing as we are getting closer to the 1 year anniversary of the game's release I am not sure if they are going to release a massive update or improvement to the game.

 

[JKDOS]

I don't mean to sound negative but seeing as we are getting closer to the 1 year anniversary of the game's release I am not sure if they are going to release a massive update or improvement to the game.

The way I see it, we're still about 4 weeks away from the game's anniversary. If there is an anniversary update, they could easily drop the trailer between the 15th-18th of March, and the update on the 19th. I don't think we've ever gotten trailers more than a week out. So we'll just have to wait a bit longer to see.

 

[mattu]

As much as I have been hyped for updates in the past I'm not sure we'll get a Anniversary update in march, maybe a special item to celebrate 1 year on, but not a full feature update. That said if they are giving more functionality to the Sanrio Cards (at least the villagers) they will need to be included in an update so either the update (tomorrow) or another one in March before the cards are re-released.

However I do think 2021 is going to be a massive year for New Horizons. With many of the datamined features and things missing (from NL) making a return.

I believe some features may have been pushed back to 2021 due to Covid but also because Nintendo understands this is an evergreen title now, and they did'nt need a huge push to keep sales strong in 2020. However by having more features arrive in 2021 they'll keep the media reporting on AC and keep new players coming in as AC stays in the media.

Also Nintendo have set out to achieve what they said pre launch, or providing all the special characters they outlined and the seasonal updates so I imagine there will be more room in 2021 for features and new characters as opposed to the seasonal events and items they've been adding.

I adore Brewster and miss the Roost like crazy, but I've settled into the mindset of I'll be happy when he arrives, which I hope is not too much longer now because the comments in this thread about him being a community hub are spot on. Our islands need that spot where people can gather, and even go in the evenings to hang out.

I expect over 2021 we'll see all the things picked up in early datamines. Which when you add them up with be a lot of great content for the game.

1. Brewster, the Roost & Gyroids
2. More Vegetables and Cooking
3. Nook's Cranny Upgrade
4. Museum Upgrade
5. Tortimer's Island
6. Sewing Function

Not too mention potentially many more special NPC's we can expect, Gracie, Lottie, Katrina, Digby etc

it's gonna be a great year regardless of whether we also get a march anniversary update

 

[Sara?]

As someone who didnt play NL, you are all talking about Brewster and how much you want him/the café back: But would that really add any proper content? Would adding it back give us any proper things to do in the game?

I have played ACNL, the only AC game of the series apart from NH, and i loved learning all villagers and NPC coffees cause everyone liked it in their own way ( different coffee grain, amount of milk and sugar ), the rewards if you dis a good job were cute and i adored been able to get a coffee to the go or in the coffee store.

Personally, i loved Brewster in NL and i do expect him to be introduced with an upgrade such as; more beverages like; juices ( apple, peach, pear and orange from oye towns ), tees ( cold and hot depending on season ) and different coffees ofc, also would love to see meals come back like a little bakery of sorts with salty and sweet products like; pizza,chocolates, cakes etc.
With his introduction i would love to have new gameplay dynamics such as; cooking, juice machine, gifting new items such as food/beverage etc.

Dont know, i know its something many are desperately wanting for Nintendo to add and we might be annoying always pointing it out, but i must admit im genuinely looking forward for him ( also very excited and hopeful for Katrinas introduction )

 

[Valeris]

I'm on the fence. The Mario anniversary to me is lackluster and I understand it being such if a bigger update is being worked on or on the way. The one year anniversary should be the focus. If the latter isn't a big update, especially at the expense of the prior then that's a waste and I probably won't be happy.

 

[ThePondGirl]

This is totally some wishful thinking on my part, but... compared to past updates, the Mario update is pretty small. That makes me think that either:

A) They’re planning a big update for the next one, or
B) There’s some behind the scenes updating going on- I.e. the sort of stuff you’d find in patch notes, but not advertised with the update.

Of course it could also just be a small update, and I’m jumping to conclusions- but I’m sure Nintendo knows that people think the dialogue is lackluster. The issue is that it’s not really their style to “improve” something like that and announce it. So maybe they’ll surprise us with all new dialogue out of nowhere? Probably not, but... I can dream.

 

[Sharksheep]

The Mario update is very bland. I do like the non Mario items that are coming with the update tonight. I'll be sad if there's no anniversary update but I'll just play as normal which is for a few hours on the weekends.

Fingers crossed for more furniture, villagers, and Brewsters in that order. I never got far in NL to get Brewster so I don't understand the appeal right now other than to have more stuff to do in game other than decorate but I really enjoy the decorating part of NH.

 

[Bluebellie]

I think it’ll be just the st. Patrick’s day update.
Very disappointing since st. Patrick’s day is actually my birthday. I Would love to be wrong and wake up to a huge surprise.