Opinion on seasonal holidays coming out in patches?

[buttonprince]

What's your guys' opinion on the way Nintendo is handling holidays for New Horizons?

Personally, I'm not happy with this approach and I'm actually a little worried about the potential issues surrounding it...

What if patches are delayed / postponed / canceled due to real life events? Such as pandemics like this, or other unfortunate disasters?
What happens if Nintendo moves on from this game, such as focusing on a new installment? Would they just stop supporting it?
(I would hope they add a final patch which permanently adds all seasonal events)

and lastly, this one is definitely my personal opinion, I find it very unfair if Nintendo used this approach to deter users who time travel. I can see why people would enjoy a prevention for spoilers, but for people like me, who don't even post or play online it's really frustrating. I spent 60 dollars for this game, it would be nice to play it how I choose. It feels like a bit controlling on Nintendo's part to handle holidays this way, even if it wasn't their intent.

What do you guys think? I would love to hear your thoughts, or to why you think holiday patches can be good!

 

[alyssaisrad93]

I don't actually mind the events being behind seasonal updates. Knowing that everyone is experiencing the same event at the same time is fun! And it lets me know that Nintendo isn't just going to release the game and forget it, but will actually give constant updates to the game. I'm not actually worried about them forgetting or postponing the events, they most likely have a team dedicated to events and already have this stuff planned out pretty far in advance.

But, I do think after a year the events should become permanent unless they plan on changing them up every year, whether that's giving you new rewards or changing up the event itself. Either way, once the events are no longer being updated or modified they should be a permanent part of the game and not locked behind updates anymore.

 

[aibo]

Let's give this thread topic another shot. Once again, all of what I'm saying here comes from true love and passion for the game and series. I'm having fun regardless.

I find it very unfair if Nintendo used this approach to deter users who time travel

I don't feel strongly one way or another about Nintendo's devs trying to limit time traveling, but from what I've seen now that the first event is over, I don't really feel like it was their intent to hinder time travelers specifically- not being able to TT to holidays is just a side effect. It could be an attempt to keep holidays contained so social media blows up with posts about the seasonal updates, which is a very very effective marketing strategy with 'service games'. That's pure conjecture, but it wouldn't surprise me.

What if patches are delayed / postponed / canceled due to real life events?

We'll get the planned content eventually.

On paper, the concept of continual updates for the game sounds great, but it does severely hinder the lifespan of this game if we assume, as is the case, that a 'final patch' isn't a guarantee. If not a final patch, my personal (low) expectation is that after the first cycle of events is over, they will be 'reactivated' via the internet in future years without changes. The holiday content wasn't removed from the last update IIRC, so the only thing stopping Bunny Day from turning on when you time travel is Nintendo itself. If there's no final patch, holidays will just stop happening when Nintendo changes it's online services again. We don't know how this system works right now, so a patch could be very straightforward for them or very difficult depending on how the holidays were created.

I kind of wonder how much time this game was given for development. Remember, the game was delayed- and it has had huge issues with bugs and no matter which way you look at it, tons of content is missing. I truly hope that internet update holidays was a decision made to improve the game and not just something they did so they could release the game sooner. No more rushed games, Ninten. Please.

 

[John Wick]

It feels like an unfinished game.

Makes me wonder what they did with that extra year.
Just, taking stuff out I guess.

 

[niko2]

It's cool not having all the events spoilered as soon as the game comes out! Also you can play your game as you want but within the limits set by the developers.

 

[Lady Timpani]

Welcome to the forum!

I’m assuming Nintendo is setting their timeline by ~natural~, or whatever you want to call it, play. So my hunch is that, along with the Earth Day update, we’ll get the second Nook’s upgrade, since that’s around the time non-TTers will be getting their first upgrade, assuming they’ve been playing since the start and built Nook’s Cranny immediately when it was available.

Whether or not you think this is right or fair or what you paid for is up to you. That’s something I’m still mulling over myself, personally.

 

[FireNinja1]

Dislike. Would strongly prefer if they released them all at once.

 

[Speeny]

My biggest issue is that if your game ever becomes corrupted/broken or you lose your save somehow, once New Horizons becomes unsupported later down the line and you go to purchase a new copy, it basically means that you could be stuck with the base game only. (Which isn’t really all that much.)
I’m only going off what I know about the game from playing it and what I’ve heard from people who have time travelled.

Completely just my opinion but, I played the game for a little over 2 weeks and I’ve personally become bored with it. Sure, you can be optimistic like I’ve been and hope for updates, but referring to the base game as it is, is there really much to offer?

 

[ForbiddenSecrets]

My ultimate opinion is dependent on how they handle the past holidays in future patches as well as how they handle the game no longer being serviced. If they take out the data every patch like a mobile game I'll be very upset even though I have no need to go back to Bunny Day. Also the game currently doesn't have data for 2021 Bunny Day so I'm interested in seeing how they are going to handle that.

For the first year I kind of like it. Everyone gets to play the events at the same time which is pretty cool to watch.

 

[fallenchaoskitten]

I'll be nice and say its an awful idea and leave it like that.

Otherwise this rant would be too long with too much profanity.

-Signed someone who doesn't TT but enjoys playing games for 10+ years

P.S. Don't quote me saying there are could be end patches or any other such nonsense. You wont like my response.

 

[aibo]

My biggest issue is that if your game ever becomes corrupted/broken or you lose your save somehow, once New Horizons becomes unsupported later down the line and you go to purchase a new copy, it basically means that you could be stuck with the base game only.

I forgot about this one.
People 20 years in the future buying this game new will never have all of the content on the cart, with the exception of developing console hacks if they decide to take that route, which some people won't want to do anyway.
Important to remember that this issue is far from exclusive to Animal Crossing and kind of a product of the video game industry as a whole. Games are becoming less permanent.

 

[buttonprince]

I kind of wonder how much time this game was given for development. Remember, the game was delayed- and it has had huge issues with bugs and no matter which way you look at it, tons of content is missing. I truly hope that internet update holidays was a decision made to improve the game and not just something they did so they could release the game sooner. No more rushed games, Ninten. Please.

@aibo (sorry if tagging is a thing or not i'm new to forums,,)

I agree with all of this actually, and my own criticisms are also coming from a place of deep love for the game so I appreciate that.

I'm thankful for your thoughts because now that I think about it, it makes a lot of sense to me that these patches are the result of a rushed release date and likely nothing to do with Nintendo being controlling (Which I love Nintendo and what they put out, but they've got some control issues)

It makes me so sad, more so frustrated, that a lot of these issues could have been avoided by simply waiting to release a more finished game.
There are so many awkward decisions and design choices that I feel could have easily been fixed by not rushing it out. It's so hard to bring up criticisms or questions about the game because most of the time I'm shut down immediately or dismissed, which I worry enables this type of release model for Nintendo.

(A random example, but potential spoiler: The fitting room in Able's is a great feature, but you can only purchase one 'outfit' as a time. Which means you have to cycle through text and animation every time you wish to buy more than one shirt color)

 

[Kaioin]

I'm just curious at how they plan on handling it, it's something we won't really know unless their either tell us or we learn it over time. Right now, we can TT back to April 1st and do the whole event again (if we really wanted to) between then and the 12th. If you time travel forward to April 4th 2021 (the day that would actually be Bunny Day next year) there's absolutely nothing going on, which means the current Bunny Day event in the game occurs specifically between April 1st and April 12th 2020.

I don't know what that means. Different event each year? Probably not, but...what else would it be? What happens to the events each year once Nintendo get bored of adding them? It's very weird to me.

 

[aibo]

No worries. Tagging isn't a thing on most forums, unless you're responding to a lot of people in one post and aren't quoting them. You might use them to divide up what you say and make your post more readable, but tags don't send notifications, so it's totally up to your personal preference. Quoting a post does send a notification here, though.

(A random example, but potential spoiler: The fitting room in Able's is a great feature, but you can only purchase one 'outfit' as a time. Which means you have to cycle through text and animation every time you wish to buy more than one shirt color)

Animal Crossing's always been awkward in some of it's design choices, like this one, but there are absolutely things that point toward this release being "undercooked".

 

[buttonprince]

Welcome to the forum!

Thank you!! I always wanted to participate but I was too shy to share my opinions (reddit AC communities censor a lot)

I’m assuming Nintendo is setting their timeline by ~natural~, or whatever you want to call it, play. So my hunch is that, along with the Earth Day update, we’ll get the second Nook’s upgrade, since that’s around the time non-TTers will be getting their first upgrade, assuming they’ve been playing since the start and built Nook’s Cranny immediately when it was available.

Whether or not you think this is right or fair or what you paid for is up to you. That’s something I’m still mulling over myself, personally.

Are access to upgrade criteria, such as Nooks, directly tied to patch releases? Oh my gosh I hope not

but agreed, I'm still mulling it over but it's unfortunately leaning towards unfair / unright as of now...

 

[Fey]

I can see some concerns, but I’m not too worried at this point. If they do stop updating the game in the future, I’m pretty certain they’d add all holidays/events permanently before doing so.

That aside, I’m actually in favor of this decision. I know most people mean well or are even trying to limit spoilers, but the amount of info I’ve picked up passively from Time Travelers (just by scanning through thread titles) is upsetting. Having a vocal part of the community discuss events weeks in advance—and with holidays it would be months in advance—definitely bothers me a bit.

 

[buttonprince]

No worries. Tagging isn't a thing on most forums, unless you're responding to a lot of people in one post and aren't quoting them. You might use them to divide up what you say and make your post more readable, but tags don't send notifications, so it's totally up to your personal preference. Quoting a post does send a notification here, though.

Oh good to know then! Thank you!

Animal Crossing's always been awkward in some of it's design choices, like this one, but there are absolutely things that point toward this release being "undercooked".

This is the first installment I've played though where I've repeatedly encountered design choices that I find awkward or flat out disagree with, if these are the result of being 'undercooked' (love that term) then I hope Nintendo utilizes this new approach to patches to actively improve Quality of Life features for the game. (Please nintendo just give me pockets specifically for material or give me outdoor storage)

 

[aibo]

occurs specifically between April 1st and April 12th 2020.

Does the event activate when you TT back to the dates within 2020? If not, the events are solely activated by Nintendo over the internet, which is what I think is happening here. They will probably activate the events automatically during the designated times of the year instead of having a person press a button, but there will be no infrastructure for this once the Switch inevitably falls out of support as Nintendo Network for 3DS/Wii U inevitably will at some point. This isn't a problem for the foreseeable future, but it will be an issue once we're all old and the Switch servers are long gone, which is where the concern about longevity comes in.

If it was just a time switch, there wouldn't be nearly as much worry.

 

[buttonprince]

I don't actually mind the events being behind seasonal updates. Knowing that everyone is experiencing the same event at the same time is fun! And it lets me know that Nintendo isn't just going to release the game and forget it, but will actually give constant updates to the game. I'm not actually worried about them forgetting or postponing the events, they most likely have a team dedicated to events and already have this stuff planned out pretty far in advance.

But, I do think after a year the events should become permanent unless they plan on changing them up every year, whether that's giving you new rewards or changing up the event itself. Either way, once the events are no longer being updated or modified they should be a permanent part of the game and not locked behind updates anymore.

I was going to disagree at first, as I don't like being forced to play the same experience as others, but I actually think I agree with what you said. To me, it would be a 'fair' compromise to keep the first year's events 'secret' as to surprise everyone and avoid spoilers, and then release the holidays permanently afterwards for people to enjoy at their own pace.

I am actually interested to see if they will modify / change holidays yearly! Such as addressing people's complaints, such as eggs overlapping the cherry blossom recipes....

 

[Kaioin]

Does the event activate when you TT back to the dates within 2020?

They do. If you go back to the 1st April 2020, you'll be blessed with eggs all over again, between then and 12th April 2020. That makes me think it's real-world time activated initially but afterwards it doesn't matter.

Perhaps it's possible the event will be "removed" after the next patch is released for whatever reason, who knows - but it not being present during Easter 2021 made me raise an eyebrow - what is their intention there?