July 3rd Summer Update Discussion Thread

[Unaware]

Not to be rude, but 90% of the human population is in the Northern Hemisphere. The Southern Hemisphere has a lot more water, less landmass, and significantly less population density. (Source: https://sciencing.com/differences-between-northern-southern-hemisphere-8260091.html) So while half the planet is experiencing Winter, only 10% of the population is.

I agree Nintendo has half-assed the updates for the South, but considering most Japanese companies focus strongly on Japanese gamers anyway, its not surprising or unexpected at all.

Oh,, I 100% am aware of this. However, that doesn't make it any less jarring to see everyone else enjoying the summer update while we're in the middle of a snowy winter lol

It's completely expected, but equally disappointing unfortunely :[

(Also, don't worry, you aren't being rude~)

 

[samticore]

Y'all I'm not southern hemisphere but no one is talking about Christmas/Toy Day moving to July for them so they can celebrate it "in winter". They already celebrate their preferred holiday, Christmas or not, in December- their summer- because we are all on the same calendar year. Just because it's southern hemisphere doesn't mean the holidays are different, lol. I'm not looking to argue whether or not Nintendo should have done something for Southern hemisphere, since they can enjoy diving too, just please understand how calendars work. Also Christmas isn't the only thing about winter lol

I hope there are as many deep-sea items to get as there were in New Leaf, and are seasonally different!!

 

[loveclove]

No, those doing so in the southern hemisphere .

I'm sorry but..i'm confused as of to why southern islands are complaing..like I get it there isn't an update for you guys but I think Nintendo is purposely focusing on the Northern hemisphere due to a large chunk of their sales being in America like yes ya'll deserve something but it'd be weird to roll out Christmas stuff in July and that's just facts.

If you're confused, let me explain...
I def don't want Christmas in july.. For me it's not about that at all, that's 1 users opinion. Christmas is in december. But I paid just as much for the game as you did, and I think I deserve the same directed updates. I get that Nintendo sells more games in the north, yes that's just facts, but than they shouldn't have done 2 hemispheres, if it's not possible to create content for both. I didn't know there would be such a difference when I chose the south and now I can't change it without major consequences for my island. So saying this as respectfully as I can, you guys from the north don't really know how it is to be ignored by half of the world (not only when it comes to games), so just enjoy your updates and let us say our minds in peace lol

 

[Uffe]

i’m so hyped for pascal to come back - he’s one of my favourite npcs

Same. My brother has never actually seen Pascal in game, but he's happy there is a NPC named Pascal because that's his son's name. I'm just so excited for this update. At least I know why Gulliver hasn't visited in almost two months now!

 

[pawpatrolbab]

So happy for diving to be back it's my fave
I don't really get the people from other hemispheres complaining, you made the choice of what you wanted at the beggining of the game? The developers honestly shouldn't have even given the updates to choose, would have made updates a lot easier and then nobody would be "left out" like in prevous games

 

[Mistreil]

I feel like a lot of the contention with the whole "Summer Update" and the southern hemisphere experiencing winter right now could've been easily been avoided if they just called it a "July Update" instead of "Summer", and had a clip that includes diving in the winter (maybe with the little shivering animation, if they still plan to have that).

I'm in the northern hemisphere but I can see why it would feel off-putting for people in the southern hemisphere to see the words "Summer Update" when it's not summer.

 

[LilBabyDelirium]

What disappoints me the most with this update is that it's most likely code they've been sitting on since before release. Diving could have been in the base game (along with plenty of other things that I'm sure will be in future updates). The new mechanics of terraforming and crafting don't make up for everything that's being withheld at the moment. There are ways to make updates exciting and keep a game fresh without releasing something incomplete, but Nintendo went for the "release a hollow game at launch and keep the players on their toes over when/if we'll finish the game" trend.

I love New Horizons, and I'm sure I'll enjoy everything in this update but I can still be annoyed that my boyfriend spent $60 on a game for me in April that is still lacking a lot of core elements months later.

I agree in some respects, but I still feel the game was worth every dollar I spent on it... on six different systems... lol.

I know they were already well behind deadline when they released in March and there's no way they could have foreseen the way people drilled right through it due to covid19 and dupe glitches. I think that had they pushed it back another several months to have these features built in already, they would have both aggravated an already impatient fanbase (myself included) as well as missed out on holding the number one spot for so long.

I feel like some of these updates would have come sooner if not for the glitches they've been working to stay ahead of, and keeping things fresh when we have dataminers like Ninji spoiling those updates. I am excited for any update that keeps the game fresh and worth playing for my family and I.

 

[Shyria]

If you're confused, let me explain...
I def don't want Christmas in july.. For me it's not about that at all, that's 1 users opinion. Christmas is in december. But I paid just as much for the game as you did, and I think I deserve the same directed updates. I get that Nintendo sells more games in the north, yes that's just facts, but than they shouldn't have done 2 hemispheres, if it's not possible to create content for both. I didn't know there would be such a difference when I chose the south and now I can't change it without major consequences for my island. So saying this as respectfully as I can, you guys from the north don't really know how it is to be ignored by half of the world (not only when it comes to games), so just enjoy your updates and let us say our minds in peace lol

I totally get your point, but it is not "our update". Everyone is getting the same exact content. I get that it's less exciting to get diving and swimming when your town is all snowy and cold, but it's not like you don't get to experience this update until actual summer.

While I do agree it must be a little bit underwhelming to see those updates roll out and not match the season you're in, as someone stated before the Northern hemisphere represent a much bigger part of their target market so it makes sense to make the marketing decision they made.

While I totally understand the need to rant about it, it seems necessary to keep that in mind... And not act like you're not getting the same content!

But I 100% agree it would have been nice to have a disclaimer before your chose your hemisphere letting you know you'd have a slightly different experience update wise

 

[Underneath The Stars]

the background music they've used is very familiar ->

isn't this the background music while searching for treasure or no? either way, where else do we hear this? because not gonna lie, it's probably the best soundtrack from the new horizons installment (like, we know how popular it is for being criticized for its hourly music lol)

 

[rubyrubert]

I know the update is obviously a summer update, but these seem to be permanent updates, not events, that people can enjoy in all seasons. Diving most likely has seasonal animals to catch. I don't get why SH are complaining it's unfair when it's permanently added to the game like Redd or Leif. Yes, it's not geared towards a winter island, but it's far more common to be in the NH. You can do all the stuff when it's January in the NH or can TT into the summer too. It seems like such a petty thing to complain about when they're giving out a free update

 

[loveclove]

I totally get your point, but it is not "our update". Everyone is getting the same exact content. I get that it's less exciting to get diving and swimming when your town is all snowy and cold, but it's not like you don't get to experience this update until actual summer.

While I do agree it must be a little bit underwhelming to see those updates roll out and not match the season you're in, as someone stated before the Northern hemisphere represent a much bigger part of their target market so it makes sense to make the marketing decision they made.

While I totally understand the need to rant about it, it seems necessary to keep that in mind... And not act like you're not getting the same content!

But I 100% agree it would have been nice to have a disclaimer before your chose your hemisphere letting you know you'd have a slightly different experience update wise

I didn't mean like it's not my update as well. I obviously know that, and will very much enjoy diving and the new content. I'm even excited for it! But the discussion about how nintendo is handling this is still necessary for me. I think you understood my point, it's called "free summer update" after all

 

[Nefarious]

the background music they've used is very familiar ->

isn't this the background music while searching for treasure or no? either way, where else do we hear this? because not gonna lie, it's probably the best soundtrack from the new horizons installment (like, we know how popular it is for being criticized for its hourly music lol)

I believe it played on Bunny Day, it might be the “event theme”?

 

[Jillenium]

Needless to say, I’m super excited! Game needs freshening up a bit to keep me hooked, very happy

 

[pawpatrolbab]

I know the update is obviously a summer update, but these seem to be permanent updates, not events, that people can enjoy in all seasons. Diving most likely has seasonal animals to catch. I don't get why SH are complaining it's unfair when it's permanently added to the game like Redd or Leif. Yes, it's not geared towards a winter island, but it's far more common to be in the NH. You can do all the stuff when it's January in the NH or can TT into the summer too. It seems like such a petty thing to complain about when they're giving out a free update

Yeah this confuses me too, diving, just like fishing and bug catching, is something you can do year-round and has specific creatures you can catch depending on the year. Sure it's not "summery" but it's not like you're getting excluded from the update since your island is in winter, you're still getting the diving update. You were always able to dive in winter in New Leaf so I really can't imagine that New Horizons will be any different at all

 

[Le Ham]

Ok, to take this topic in a completely new and panic-inducing direction:

Is the update titled "Free Summer Update" only because Nintendo wants us to very clearly know it's not paid DLC?

...Or is it that they plan to distinguish at some point?

 

[Snek]

Yes! FINALLY!!! We can swim again! I am so glad that the mermaid series and Pascal have returned! I wonder if the jellyfish have returned as well? I hated bumping into them in NL. And Gulliver as a pirate...hmm I wonder what that could mean...maybe new pirate themed furniture?

 

[jumpman]

If they can add something as big as diving in an update it makes me excited for the future of this game

 

[QueenOpossum]

Ok, to take this topic in a completely new and panic-inducing direction:

Is the update titled "Free Summer Update" only because Nintendo wants us to very clearly know it's not paid DLC?

...Or is it that they plan to distinguish at some point?

It would be very unusual for a VERY POPULAR game in 2020 to not eventually get a large expansion via paid DLC.

BOTW got 2 DLC packs, Splatoon got the Octo expansion (Same Devs as ACNH), Pokemon got 2 expansions..

And I'm SO excited. I would have loved paid DLC for NL a few years in.

 

[yoohamsta]

Everything in southern hemisphere just feels idiotic at this point. When its summer we celebrate....christmas? What? it doesnt make sense anymore ;-;

I'm from a SH country and tbh I'm a little bit offended by this lol. Christmas is on Dec 25th and falls during summer so it's always celebrated in summer here, it sucks sometimes (because of all the white christmas portrayals which look amazing) but it does make sense for us and celebrating Christmas in July just because it's winter would make less sense. Are you from the NH but chose a SH island? I think the problem isn't everything on SH islands is idiotic and doesn't make sense, but rather some who are from NH chose a SH island not realizing the two hemispheres isn't just about different bugs/fish but also means opposite seasons and what that means for events like it is in real life.

 

[rubyrubert]

Ok, to take this topic in a completely new and panic-inducing direction:

Is the update titled "Free Summer Update" only because Nintendo wants us to very clearly know it's not paid DLC?

...Or is it that they plan to distinguish at some point?

I think they might have put that there because people would ask if it was free. Or maybe if they would have just said "Summer update", people would ask if they would get they update too if their island was in another season. Free summer update sounds like everyone's getting it.

I hope I'm right. Animal Crossing and paid DLC don't mix.