I'm really disappointed in the behaviour of some of the fandom.

[Figment]

I think every fandom is going to have some dark underside. The more people who like something, the greater the potential for more people doing something you're naturally going to disagree with. And it's true what they say; the squeaky wheel gets the grease. People are going notice negativity.

On the other hand and on a somewhat (un)related note, people are going to react to things that they love. People have FOMO because there are so many incredible islands on twitter or reddit, and they feel like they've been left behind. However, they don't even consider that's just the tip of the iceberg. Likely a very large percentage of people who play AC don't have elaborate islands at all, despite playing for a large amount of time. People do AC at their own pace and I think people really need to respect that.

I digress.

One reason that the dark underside of this fandom really sticks out is because AC is such a wholesome series. Some things that people do go completely against the spirit of the game.

 

[Bugs]

Twitter as a whole is just a cancer fest, I don't understand why ya'll even use it, I can't be on there for longer than 3 minutes before I see some insane **** that makes my blood boil, and I'm not an angry person at all, just something about people on twitter, it's the worst trash I've ever laid eyes on, and it's just constantly pouring 24/7, echo chamber after echo chamber of insanity.

I feel the same way on twitter, and other sites too to some extent. When I see the way people argue and rant and rave at each other without a second thought, it just seems like a very angry place full of angry people. It's a very extreme environment.

That's why I just use it to look at art and photos of bugs haha

It's funny though, cause I swear this happens whenever a game is popular. After a year or so the really angry/obsessive ones tend to disappear. I really enjoyed Undertale when it came out for example, but I stayed well away from the community as it was similarly toxic, you had to play the game a certain way and believe certain things about the characters, but as far as I know they've all moved into something else now... Probably animal crossing! Haha

 

[cainhurst]

I know there are exceptions to every rule, but - I feel like a lot of the people who have these intense reactions and opinion are typically < 24 years of age, more often in their teens, maybe....early 20's. maybe. I watch the way they speak and write on the various discords and forums and it's appalling.

That said, I think that as a community we also have to understand that a majority of the active fandom on these websites and discords, are mostly youth. And perhaps it's my "old" age, but I roll my eyes at youth both online and IRL - and in fact, it is something that only comes with age. It's like this IRL too - do you ever look back at yourself in your youth, and think "Damn, I really shouldn't have stressed that much about this, because it didn't really matter." But it's something you can't explain to someone - they just have to experience.

My entire group of IRL friends are playing Animal Crossing, but we're all 28-33. We have our own discord, and it's super pleasant. And even in quarantine, we still have things to take care of, children to feed and businesses to run - things that take more effort and energy than worrying if someone changes the time on their Switch.

Ultimately, though I appreciate that all fandoms, hobbies, and interests build communities, we also have to be cognizant of what that community consists of. I highly doubt the same type of demographic is in, say, a Danielle Steele bookclub. We must realize that AC is mainly youth, and just because we play with them, they are not anyone in the community's responsibility to reprimand or babysit.

I have to agree with this. Of course there are exceptions, but when I see people overreacting to "fandom"-related stuff, they're usually minors. Black-and-white thinking is common when you're young, as is the likelihood of interpreting disagreements as vicious personal attacks and going overboard to defend yourself. I want to say most people grow out of it, but that's not necessarily true, so to OP and anyone else who's having a bad time, I'd honestly suggest finding some older players.

I realize that sounds kind of weird, telling kids to go play with adults specifically, but when I was younger and felt like my peers weren't mature enough, I sought out folks a few years older and, given that those people were well-adjusted individuals (which is the exact kind of person it can be hard to locate online, of course, lmao) I felt much better. You have to distance yourself from people who cause/perpetuate drama if drama is what drains you.

I'm usually told I'm an extreme case because I deactivated most of my social media specifically because the stuff I was seeing was eating at me emotionally and putting me in a more negative headspace. I genuinely feel that most of us would benefit from taking a step back from social media in general, but I also understand that it might feel like it's 'mandatory' ... it really isn't, but I digress. OP, just take care of yourself, okay? If the behavior of other people upsets you, all you can do is stay away from it. We can't change strangers.

 

[Thyl]

Does this happen here? I don't think so. If u want Twitter people to change, talking about it here hardly changes things.

e// Also when it comes to the CJ and Flick pairing, I kinda understand you. I do not like it because they both seem very young in my eyes. People are too quick to call you homophobe for that.

 

[Imbri]

It does go the other way, as well. It hasn't happened here (thank you, everyone!), but in other places I have said I don't TT because I enjoy the slow pace. I've been castigated for that because I must be looking down on those who do or think I'm better than them. No, I simply like the chance to slow down, given that my RL is crazy and chaotic.

People on both sides (and why are there sides?) need to stop throwing stones and just enjoy the game.

 

[Hyoshido]

Does this happen here? I don't think so. If u want Twitter people to change, talking about it here hardly changes things.

...What do you mean? Of course it happens here.
There are threads, maybe not as common now but I can ensure you, there have been threads of people complaining at eachother regarding time traveling complaints/harassment to the point of them saying "You're playing the game wrong" regardless on either side you're on.

It may be more tame and less frequent but this place is far from excempt from it.

 

[Sloom]

I don't hang around AC twitter that much, just this forum, reddit & youtube, so I don't have much experience with people like this. I'm not saying these people don't exist (obviously lol) but I really feel like I'm seeing more people complaining about the fandom having gross people in it than actual gross people.

it's kinda expected to me that a game with millions of fans would have some crummy people in it. but the parts I hang around are just so painstakingly wholesome it's easy to ignore imo. someone's complaining about time travelling being bad? ok, I don't agree, but I think I'd rather just let them tire themselves out then get into a heated argument with them. someone selling animals on ebay? ok, have fun man. I'll report the listing and head out.

the thing that does kinda annoy me is debates on TBT where literally every comment is agreeing with literally every other comment. "time travel isnt bad". ok then why do there be like 500 pages of replies lol. we've cracked the case. we've come to a unanimous decision. let's move on

 

[Thyl]

...What do you mean? Of course it happens here.
There are threads, maybe not as common now but I can ensure you, there have been threads of people complaining at eachother regarding time traveling complaints/harassment to the point of them saying "You're playing the game wrong" regardless on either side you're on.

It may be more tame and less frequent but this place is far from excempt from it.

I have seen plenty of threads about people bullying TTs, but I've only seen one or two cases of someone actually bullying and they've been called out by both sides. Or is saying opinion in mature way nowadays considered bullying?

 

[Lazaros]

With every new game comes new players and bad sheep - I'm not saying there weren't bad sheep in the AC fandom beforehand, but the surge of them, on my twitter tl alone, is a massive hellfest. We're all stuck at home for god knows how long and those who waited for the ACNH release finally got their hands on the game after years and those bored enough to give it a try also do - I feel like there's more newcomers pouring in from all sides than there was with other games, but I digress. Hell, even my two coworkers who didn't own a switch before and never played an AC title/didn't like AC caved in and bought a Switch. Specifically for this game, which is just insane.

There's so much stuff going on all over the place, everywhere and people with different opinions are going to collide if they interact with one another. For example: I see tons of opinions about time travellers attacking non-time travellers, when the only thing I do see is non-time travellers cancelling those who do, because they apparently didn't put in any work, say there island isn't worth anything because they "cheated" and so forth. So, what gives? Why can we not ruin someones day when the entire narrative everyone is trying to push is to take care of themselves in these harsh times and that we all should be kind to each other when many, MANY people would rather attack someone for "stealing their island layout uwu" or "i made this first, you can't copy me!!" among other things and we ruin peoples days to the point where they either don't want to touch the game anymore or feel like they did something horrible?

Rome wasn't built in a day, but if I want to build my island in a day, I sure as hell can if I want to. And I shouldn't be shamed for it. Nobody should shame someone for offences that really aren't what they are made out to be - I can't just go force people to be nicer to others, but this is the reason I literally took a dip out of AC twitter and dove back into my "main" interests only.

 

[Romaki]

People can be rude regardless of what game they're part of its community. I don't think it's fair to blame Animal Crossing just because it has a multiplayer economy. People are allowed to have their opinions. It's more important to not create a harshly critical atmoshpere, that also includes the "right opinion".

im sure most people know that CJ and Flick aren’t actually in a relationship

But let's not pretend it's the same situation for queer pairings. The only couple are Cyrus and Reese, but we also know that game aren't allowed to be explicit about the existence of queerness if they want to keep the appropiate rating and availability for their game or media in general. More often than not the little dialogue hints are put in on purpose, because the other option isn't allowed. Just like back then the western localisation made Saharah a woman because god forbid a man uses fake eyelashes, eh? Context matters for these situations, that also includes the climate of our social acceptance. We had to fight for queer couples in the Mii games as well, it's good to be vocal about this topic because it helps us.

 

[Mairen]

Thankfully the members here have typically been pretty reasonable and kind. I've heard awful stories about the communities on twitter and discord, so I'm glad we have this safe(er) place to enjoy this series (it's not perfect, but it's certainly one of the best ones out there as far as community goes). I must agree I've seen it from both sides too. Time travelers can get bullied but I've lately seen time travelers spreading just as much negativity. ("oh you're against time travel and don't choose to do it in your game? you must have a superiority complex! or you're just jealous of my super awesome town! na na na~") A lot of people these days don't seem to understand that just because someone has a different opinion on your style of gameplay doesn't mean they are automatically attacking you as a person. I happily play together with a group of people who both time travel and don't time travel and we're perfectly capable of doing so while respecting each other's opinions.

A lot of the negativity has come from the huge success this game has seen, so we're getting a lot more people wanting to check the series out. Some of them will stay and have become true animal crossing fans. Others might eventually decide the game isn't for them and will move on once the hype dies down.

 

[rhinoo]

I don't think C.J. and Flick are in a relationship, for example. Yet if you have that opinion apparently you're 'ruining people's fun.' They're not real people. They're animals. Who cares?

I agree with this on many levels. I was called a "homophobic ****" for not saying that they're in a relationship.

 

[Sudsofsplash]

I never will understand the people who are like "You time travel! That's cheating!!"
It's like...Yeah, I just didn't want to wait a day to move this building or for this bridge to be built...Like for real, why does what other people do bother people so much? Like it's my game and I can play it however I want LOL

Some people are just toxic, but that's not the community, that's toxic people lolol if you get what I mean

Post automatically merged: May 6, 2020

I agree with this on many levels. I was called a "homophobic ****" for not saying that they're in a relationship.

Yeah they aren't in a relationship, but it is called a "headcanon" and while they aren't in a relationship canonly, people may headcanon them as being in a relationship I don't see why it would bother you what other people headcanon, I think it's an especially cute headcanon

 

[Blueskyy]

Does this happen here? I don't think so. If u want Twitter people to change, talking about it here hardly changes things.

e// Also when it comes to the CJ and Flick pairing, I kinda understand you. I do not like it because they both seem very young in my eyes. People are too quick to call you homophobe for that.

This comment was not productive. It happens here too. Maybe not as common as somewhere like Twitter, but the point is valid. The OP brings up relevant points.

 

[tajikey]

There's little difference between those who rant and the very people this rant is about.

 

[RisingSun]

I never will understand the people who are like "You time travel! That's cheating!!"
It's like...Yeah, I just didn't want to wait a day to move this building or for this bridge to be built...Like for real, why does what other people do bother people so much? Like it's my game and I can play it however I want LOL

Some people are just toxic, but that's not the community, that's toxic people lolol if you get what I mean

Post automatically merged: May 6, 2020

Yeah they aren't in a relationship, but it is called a "headcanon" and while they aren't in a relationship canonly, people may headcanon them as being in a relationship I don't see why it would bother you what other people headcanon, I think it's an especially cute headcanon

He didn’t say that it bothered him, he just disagreed that the relationship was there. I agree with him that there isn’t a relationship, and I personally don’t think any of the animals have one. What does that make me?

 

[Blueskyy]

He didn’t say that it bothered him, he just disagreed that the relationship was there. I agree with him that there isn’t a relationship, and I personally don’t think any of the animals have one. What does that make me?

Exactly. I don’t head-cannon a relationship either but I don’t care if someone does. I used to head-cannon all the time with the Gamecube game as a kid, and the villagers were even more simple back then. It is what it is.

 

[Mairen]

I missed the second point to that thread, but if someone feels the need to insult me because I don't fantasize about two video game characters dating, then that person is the one with a problem, not me.

 

[moonolotl]

a loud minority is always much more noticeable than the quiet minority (ive heard a quote along those lines and i think it fits here)
I absolutely hate it when people wont give any credit to time travellers because they TT. Oh yeah, its not like ive spent hours and hours designing my island, I TTed so all of that was way easier and i didnt work for what i got. Definitely not.
Yes, things are easier, but only the tedious waiting. You still work for what you want.

I've been trying to get involved in the community on twitter, but i ended up saying one thing that certain people didnt agree with and i got flamed because of it even though i wasnt being rude.
To sum it up someone gave best friend status in-game to strangers and then got their island completely destroyed. I replied saying that they should never ever give best friend to people they dont trust, but im terribly sorry and its such a horrible thing for people to do. I got tons of replies from people misunderstanding what i meant and saying im inconsiderate and that what i said was terrible and mean. People on twitter just need a chance to jump on your every word and opinion, no matter how lightly you put it across and how little hostility you show.

Animal crossing has never been the completely wholesome fandom though, and i dont think it ever will be. No fandom is perfect, the only downside now is there's more of that terrible, loud minority plaguing us. You just have to focus on the positive sides and the positive areas sadly. I'm stepping away from twitter and putting more of my time into TBT because its where i feel most comfortable and where I feel like the community is much more positive.

 

[Sudsofsplash]

He didn’t say that it bothered him, he just disagreed that the relationship was there. I agree with him that there isn’t a relationship, and I personally don’t think any of the animals have one. What does that make me?

That was more of a general you, not really directed at them lol it doesn't matter if you think there isn't a relationship! someone's headcanon is their own headcanon and there isn't "agreeing" or "disagreeing" because it's someone's personal headcanon (PS. when most ppl say stuff like "its canon i dont make the rules" its a joke and not serious.)

It doesn't make you anything beyond someone who doesn't have the headcanon of them being a couple, I don't understand why so many people dont get that they don't have the same headcanon as someone but they don't have keep saying "WELL I DONT THINK THEYRE A COUPLE" all the time, like yeah we get it! who cares! why do you care if people headcanon them as being a relationship? like i dont recall people being like "well I disagree" when ever anyone shipped any of the animal villagers but like why is such a problem now? LOL