New players

[Hunnybuns]

Don’t get me wrong, I love how New Horizons was able to gain so much popularity that when it came out a whole new wave of players came along. But I feel like since it mainly became a trendy thing (bubblegum kk blowing up on tiktok and etc) it’s welcoming a whole new set of players who got the game because it’s now trendy. Which is completely cool, I’m not saying they’re all bad for jumping on the bandwagon, that isn’t what I have an issue with. I don’t mind the game being mainstream now, I actually like that there are so many more people to trade with online. Not only that but being able to connect with friends and acquaintances through the game who never played it before. I also really like that trading is a big thing in this game, in New Leaf I would talk about trading with my friends, and they thought I was some sort of Animal Crossing god, in New Horizons, everyone is trading! I don’t know anyone who isn’t online making a profit in one way or another.

I just really don’t like that with this new wave of players, it also came with people who’ve taken the wholesomeness out of the game, and trading. I’ve seen people ask for 60+ NMT for artwork, 20+ NMT to sell turnips on their island, and unfortunately so many more people are getting scammed. It’s a little frustrating. I know people will always be trying to make more and more, that’s not an issue but things are just less and less about being nice and friendly with each other about it. People are so demanding about it now. I’m wondering if anyone else has noticed it too? Or if I’m just complaining.

 

[Fey]

Lots of people have been talking about an increased problem with greedy players, but I can’t say whether that’s really a new problem, or was there all along. I know that prices for villagers on the New Leaf board used to be pretty gross before the amiibo cards came out, so it definitely just seems like a continuation of the same behavior to me.

Do we even know whether it’s the new “casual” players charging these prices? For the most part I’m glad there’s such an increased interest, since AC gaining popularity will only increase our chances for more updates (and maybe less than an 8 year wait between games for the next installment).

 

[Annika.]

I really don't think new players know how to exploit the economy like that. They're more likely the ones getting exploited.

The people who have already set up their shops and such are definitely the ones who were around for New Leaf, even if it wasn't on here.

And regarding Animal Crossing's popularity... I think most people are aware of it, but they see no reason to buy a casual game like that under normal circumstances. Now people are bored and want something to do on a day-to-day basis, so this was a perfect opportunity. From my experience, New Leaf wasn't as talked about, but back in the day Wild World was everywhere and I had so many classmates who played it too.

 

[ellienoise]

I really don't think new players know how to exploit the economy like that. They're more likely the ones getting exploited.

The people who have already set up their shops and such are definitely the ones who were around for New Leaf, even if it wasn't on here.

And regarding Animal Crossing's popularity... I think most people are aware of it, but they see no reason to buy a casual game like that under normal circumstances. Now people are bored and want something to do on a day-to-day basis, so this was a perfect opportunity. From my experience, New Leaf wasn't as talked about, but back in the day Wild World was everywhere and I had so many classmates who played it too.

I feel the same way. I still remember back in new leaf the crazy prices ppl would ask for marshal, ankha, marina, fang, etc... or how much ppl would pay for the sloppy set. So those new players are definitely not the ones jacking up the prices, there have always been greedy ppl and there always will be. Now Raymond selling for real money, that is something I don't remember happening before, but still, I think the ones who are crazy about him are the ones already bored with the rest of the villagers.

 

[Llunavale]

I'll echo what others have said here and also contribute that it's actually more likely to be the New Leaf generation of players who spurred it on, after all that's when trading got huge and a bigger focus was put on certain villagers in-game being more desirable than others. I mean, your account is a 2014 one, so maybe you and I'm sure many others remember how absolutely ridiculous the tier "system" was around 2015 on this forum alone, and how unbearably popular certain furniture sets were (like sloppy) - it was even worse on other communities like Tumblr - non-stop drama around trading and villagers. It was like being stuck in a school yard where everyone was split into groups of three and they all hated eachother but tolerated eachother just enough that they could make snide remarks to eachother. That period of time was probably the worst I ever saw the community, tbh.

 

[kojuuro]

I'm a new player to the AC franchise with New Horizons, but my sister had been playing New Leaf for a long time, so I knew generally what went on. While I think greed has been an issue that's been discussed for a while, truthfully I do think it's a bit disingenuous to put the blame on new players for insane prices.

As for trading, isn't that a good thing? Items are restricted for island shops and sometimes the only way you can get a specific item colour is by trading. If there's something that I have that I don't need but someone has it on there wish list, I'm more than happy to sell or give my items away. Some people like to put a price on their time or efforts to give particular items. I don't really see an issue with that. If you're not willing to pay someone for their time and effort to get that item for you, get it elsewhere for cheaper or wait. Like you said, there's a ton of people out there trading now, so you might as well shop around.

Like another user said, those who immediately set up shops are likely familiar with New Leaf and the trades that were happening then, so I think some of your frustrations might be misplaced here.

 

[Corrie]

It's like that with most other fandoms. The bigger the fandom gets, the crappier they seem to get.

 

[Annika.]

Now Raymond selling for real money, that is something I don't remember happening before, but still, I think the ones who are crazy about him are the ones already bored with the rest of the villagers.

I think people weren't as "shameless" in 2013 as they are now. I constantly see people selling bells on marketplaces online. One person is selling 300 iron ores for 10 bucks on eBay. I think the earliest I've seen stuff like that was with Pokémon Y/X later down the line.

 

[Hunnybuns]

I like all the responses, I mean my opinion might be biased since I’ve never really experienced people being as rude and greedy as they are now. I never really thought of all the greedy players as also being people who played and traded in New Leaf. My bad for that, I wasn’t trying to “blame” new players, I had just assumed since it is now a popular game, a lot of the greed is coming from new players who have just came into the game, discovered trading and just went rampant with it (which didn’t make sense on my part, anyone can get greedy). I’d like to add I’m not just talking about this site, I’m talking about people on discord, reddit, and etc. I do believe this most of these actions are new because people are starting to pay real money for in game items, which I think most of us can agree was never a thing before this game?
When I made this post I was specifically thinking about the Animal Crossing: New Horizons discord. The trading on there is so crazy, and it’s honestly something I’ve never seen before. Since it’s a new discord, and it’s the largest one for this game, and also the most known about one, I was assuming most of the users on there are newer players, mainly because discord is also a more known about, rather than, for ex, this website.