Thoughts on New Horizons?

[Tao]

I imagine this thread has been done already but I had a look back and couldnt find one. Seeing as the game has been out a little while now though, maybe we have a more solid opinion of the newest Animal Crossing title since theres been time to settle in.

Myself?

Firstly I am enjoying it enough to still be playing it every day since release. New features such as terra forming and being able to decorate the outside with items are welcome additions that adds a lot of things to do rather than being limited to the house. The island theme and everything about that is nice and generally just seeing everything with a higher visual quality is just brilliant. I also like getting Nook miles for doing things I was going to do anyway.

That said, I get the feeling that if it wasnt an AC game I wouldn't be as forgiving, maybe even lean towards disliking the game.

We've still got horrible clunky mechanics and interfaces that make even the most simple and seemingly quick tasks tedious and off putting. Some of the decisions such as having the initial 5 villagers have static 'basic' houses feels I'll thought out. Which special villagers are guaranteed each week are some absolutely baffling choices (seriously, why is Kicks guaranteed?). We still have pretty strict limitations on Custom slots. Seemingly less variation in items. Villagers seem to say and do a lot less, either doing one of 4 things in the plaza (get out of the damn plaza and explore the island, damn idiots) or repeating near the same few lines of dialogue everytime I speak to them (yes, Cherry, I know that shirt was seemingly designed just for you, give it a rest). Its especially disheartening to be able to design an entire island which non of your villagers will ever interact with, which I believe is something even the mobile title succeeded with. In typical Nintendo fashion the online is horrible, with how long it takes to get to a friends island to how little you can do when you're there. Shame that things like the mini games from Tortimer's island haven't been refined, theyve just been outright removed, that single May day maze being the closest we got.

As I say, I'm still enjoying the game, but I feel a lot more effort could have gone into this one rather than relying on irregular updates as they seem to be doing. Content is sparce or features that could have been expanded on from previous games are just not there at all. I dont usually give a numbered score, but New Horizons feels like a solid 5/10 to me, 5 being a true 'average', not an IGN "anything below 9 is awful".

 

[Xara]

i’m really enjoying it! i love trading with people again and trying to expand my catalog and complete my museum - there’s definitely a lot of npcs and features that i miss but nintendo has made it clear that they have several plans for this game so i’m hoping that everything i miss and helps to make animal crossing as great as it is will return at some point.

with so little content in the game, i can really only focus on decorating my island, trying to obtain villager pics, island hopping when i can and expanding my catalog - it gets a bit boring after a while which is sad and i’m was that the forums are slowly becoming a bit inactive again due to the lack of content but the anticipation for upcoming updates helps me to feel a bit more confident with the game

overall, i really enjoy it and i’m thankful that it came out when it did as at least one good thing happened during this pandemic ;u;

 

[meggiewes]

I'm enjoying it, but I find myself taking a break to play Monster Hunter. Yesterday was the first time since release that I didn't boot up the game to check my turnip prices. I didn't even get any turnips this week.

 

[rubyrubert]

I enjoy it! I've actually focused on it a little too much and probably should take a break haha. There's nothing to really do for me besides collect and decorate, but that's okay.

I'm hoping for an update announcement soon so that people can be active online again and so there will be more to do. Maybe Brewster + Diving? My dream update is them adding Reese + Cyrus in the game where they can sell different sets of furniture than the Nooklings? Or maybe turning Nook's Cranny into Nookington's and having Gracie on the second floor?

 

[Jhine7]

I enjoy it very much! I have short and long term goals in the game, which always give me a reason to keep playing! Even if it slowed down eventually, an update would definitely make me pick it back up at any time.

 

[Luxsama]

I enjoy it but I'm slowly getting bored

I wouldn't say my island is completely finished but there's literally no space for terraforning anywhere which was what I enjoyed the most with the game. I only use multi-player to do trades but other than that theres really not much point in visiting others since you're so limited on what you could do.

I think after more updates I'll keep loving the game but for now I'm meh. I wish they'd bring back minigames.

 

[Reploid]

I love the game. Sure, it has its flaws that have been talked about to death, but it still gives me so much enjoyment that I can look past those things. Do I miss some of the stuff that made NL so great? Yes. I'm staying optimistic that they add some of those things in a future update and even if they don't, I got plenty out of this game.

 

[xTech]

It's definitely a very unique game, and even if I do end up not playing it anymore in a couple month's time, I still think that it was a great game to experience, and has made me interested in a genre I never knew I enjoyed! To be fair though, i've still got so many ideas for my island and haven't been playing too much, so burnout hasn't really affected me and I'd like to think i'll still be playing it at least up to Christmas at this point.

 

[EpicGamer12]

While I haven't posted my thoughts on TBT yet, I have discussed this multiple times a week since the game came out with friends.

New Horizons is... okay. I'm not on the side that thinks that it's the best AC game ever released. I definitely don't think any Animal Crossing game is "the worst" either. I'm going to divide my thoughts up into different sections like a review would.

The Good
Graphics. New Horizons is a masterpiece when it comes to visuals. Not only are the game's graphics good, but the textures and items you can get in the game complement the environment very well. The four seasons all look beautiful in their own way, and there is a plethora of moods you can feel playing throughout the year (I have an island for the Northern hemisphere and another for the Southern hemisphere). Aesthetically, this is the best Animal Crossing game ever made.

The Early Game. When you boot up New Horizons for the first time, you are already making decisions on what your island is going to look like. You can make a selection from four different islands. You get to customize your character right away. When you get to the island, the progression from "what do I do" to "make ALL the things" is very smooth and easy to understand. It's obvious to me that the game's intro was very carefully crafted and a lot of attention was put into it.

Island Customization. The tools Nintendo gives to add and remove bridges, ramps, terrain, and paths is very powerful. For the right person, these tools are near limitless creativity. For a dunce like me, it means that I spend 2 hours trying to change how a cliff looks and then cry when it doesn't look right.

The Meh
Hourly Music. There are some tracks in New Horizons I have really liked, but the lead synth in most of the hourly tracks during the day feels overbearing and it gets tiring fast. I actually got annoyed enough with some of the hourly music that I modded my Switch and changed my hourly music to AC:GC's hourly music.

Villager Dialogue. I was impressed in the first week with the dialogue, but I started getting disappointed when a new villager moved in. I talked to them once, and got the typical "greeting" from a new villager. I talked to them again, and they instantly were on my case about talking to them so much that day. The second dialogue with a villager ever shouldn't be a "you again?" dialogue, and it made me want to talk to my villagers less overall, which made me get less invested in my island. Overall, some of the dialogue is still pretty good, but there is simply not enough variety to keep it interesting.

Furniture Variety. As someone who has spent hours pouring over and analyzing the items in this game, I can say that I am very disappointed with the lack of variety with furniture. Nearly all furniture sets from previous games are gone, as well as many other items that are nowhere to be seen. The only redeeming quality of this is that many of the items that exist now have anywhere from 1 to 32 variations (usually about 4-8), so it's easy to find items to match the theme you're going for. Overall, most homes I've seen in the game look very similar and it feels like the game is lacking the charm it once had in previous titles.

The Bad
Online. Nintendo has somehow managed to make the online experience the worst of any title in the series yet. Why does it take longer for me to connect to friends in a 2020 game than it did in City Folk, a game released a dozen years earlier? The first time I used the online, I was simply blown away at how long I was sitting looking at a loading screen while a couple of friends connected to my island. It made me not want to play the game online at all, which was one of my favourite things about previous titles. Furthermore, there is simply nothing to do online except fish and check out their islands! In New Leaf, you could check out anyone's town with the Dream Suite, and when you went to play with your friends, you at least had some online games on Tortimer's Island to play. The potential for this game's online was amazing - there are so many fun ideas I can think of for online games for New Horizons, yet there is absolutely nothing.

Missing NPCs. Don't get me wrong, I don't actually care who is missing. It's what these NPCs did that is missing. If you boot up New Leaf, there is a good chance you'll have a visitor with some unique task for you to do. All the while, there are many shops you can visit. In New Horizons, you are reduced to Nook's Cranny, The Able Sisters, and the Museum. It bothers me that there is so little to do each day because of all the content they cut. The random visitors in New Horizons are dreadfully boring and rarely show up anyway.

Lack of Permanent Tools. I see why Nintendo did this, but I simply disagree with it. They want people to have their tools break so they have incentive to play more by collecting more materials, spending the time to pull the materials out, going to the crafting bench. It works well with their gameplay loop, but it's hard to not just think of it as a huge inconvenience. I don't want my tasks interrupted because of my tools.

I have quite a few other qualms with small things in this game that have bothered me (such as the lack of events, the horrid Bunny Day 2 week event that made me want to not play at all, and more), but these points pretty much summarize my thoughts with the game. When I boot up the game, I have no drive to customize my island or talk to my villagers because of the issues this game has. I've never been so un-invested in an Animal Crossing game in my life. I think the game is more geared towards a certain type of person who is very self-driven and has a very high level of focus to accomplish their goals. The game feels more like a sandbox than a life simulation nowadays.

 

[AppleBitterCrumble]

I really like it! - especially on rainy days

I'm resetting today and am planning on taking it slowly because terraforming an island takes time and I went into my first island without a set plan and one day I decided I'd be a lot more happier if I did something that was along the lines of a tropical theme since this is an island.

So I'll be spending my days working piece by piece to really detail out every corner of my island but balance that with the nature aspect of it~

 

[FRANS_PLAYER]

I'm honestly having a pretty good time! The game was just released and I know Nintendo has great plans for it in the future, so I don't really worry about it being "incomplete"

 

[sleepydreepy]

In short I really like it. Just like NL there are a few little things I don't like, but overall I am really enjoying this game. Having to wait for updates in real time is annoying yet exciting, and I hope the new content doesn't disappoint.

Something that does really bother me though is the lack of furniture options. I felt like in NL there was so much stuff, and in NH I feel like I'm reusing the same items over and over again on my island because there is no alternative. I really hope they fix this in future updates. But, even before the amiibo update I felt like NL had a nice range of items, and adding the amiibo furniture made it almost overwhelming (but in a good way). Maybe its because we are decorating the outside of an entire island, but I just feel like in this game there isn't enough items.

Honestly I think that is my only real problem with the game. I am super happy we can decorate outside this time, and I really like the new direction they went with terraforming because it opens up even more creative opportunities. Personally I find the villager dialogue to be the same as NL in terms of repetitiveness, and the hourly music has good and bad tracks also like NL. Again, overall I am really pleased with this game and would give it a 8/10 rating, with NL being a 7/10. Perhaps my rating for NH will change next year once all the updates have been released.

 

[rezberri]

hmm idk. i think acnh shines in many areas, but is also kinda sad in others.

Spoiler: wall of text of my thoughts

i feel like compared to previous games, it's really easy to make your island how you want it. all the things that were added for island customization was definitely the next step in the game series. the pathing tool is really nice, the ability to move buildings whenever and however you want was definitely needed, and while terraforming is a bit frustrating to use at times im still really grateful for it. i feel like it's easier to make whatever theme you want because we aren't restricted to pwps and can instead put furniture outside, so many of the islands ive seen are quite different in comparison to other islands.

i think that the character customization is great compared to other games. you can actually see the details in clothing now, and make out the fact that you're wearing shoes. even though i liked the lil questioning sequence at the beginning of the game, being able to choose your facial features and having different noses & mouthes is awesome. im happy that we can also pick our skintones without having to tan on a private island for like 5 hours. i would like more hairstyles, though, but i think that they covered a lot of ground with the ones available.

adding mystery tours is kind of a blessing & a curse i think. in general, it just seems to be easier to get villagers compared to other games, but that may be because a lot more people play this game so more trading is going on. but for people who weren't able to collect all the amiibo cards, or get any in general, mystery tours is a nice way to try to go after ur favorite villager. the campsite is also nice since it seems like it's easier to get villagers in there than other games, but im not too sure on that.

tbh im not quite sure where i stand on crafting now. i was all for it at the start because some of my favorite games have it but now it's kinda tedious. maybe it's because i dont have all the storage space yet, but it just seems inconvenient. im not mad its in the game, but i could also do without it and not miss anything. if we could only craft furniture & clothing i would be fine, but i just rly hate breaking my slingshot when there's a balloon right in front of me. i also fear that one day i'll find the money rock, and my shovel will break in the middle of hitting it.

it's kinda sad that we just don't have a lot of furniture. i think it has to be my main issue with the game atm. i love decorating houses quite a bit, so having a really limited selection stinks. that doesn't mean im not finding a use for everything, though. the furniture we do have is rly lovely and looks way nicer than past games. i'd just like to see older sets make a comeback in these graphics.

speaking of graphics, the game just looks great. all the graphical details like footprints in the sand and actually seeing each individual leaf on a tree is amazing. i wasn't sure how i felt about the style of the game at first; compared to acnl's melted plastic graphics it was definitely a change and i wasn't really for it. looking at the renders of villagers, it was a bit jarring to see that they all kinda looked like they were made of felt. but the lighting in the game helps with any issues i had, so there are no complaints about what im seeing from me.

for some reason i think it's just easier to share content now. i think it mostly has to do with the switch console itself, but the fact that we can take little videos is great. people also don't have to ship their whole console over to japan to have someone insert 3rd party add-ons to it just so they can make videos and stream now. i feel like this type of easy accessibility has really grown the community as a whole because we're finally able to share the things we love.

im a fan of the "updated" villagers. appearance-wise, they're all so precious, but gameplay/mechanics-wise, they are stunning. compared to games like the sims its just kinda meh, but when u look at all the other animal crossing games its just so cool what they can do. i love seeing them run around and sing and just chill out on an island. i do wish that some personality types weren't so bold, and that they were a bit more differentiated when u have more than one, but im content. i wish that they had more things to say with their dialogue, but tbh i felt like acnl & accf also had repetitive dialogue so i dont think there's much they can do there other than sit for centuries and churn out more. & im also not sure where i stand on more rude villagers. i watched some gamecube ac streams & videos and it was actually kinda funny how mean they were to u, but i can understand being mad and upset if they were to be mean on the wrong day, u know? it's not in the game, but ig i wouldn't be as upset as i thought i would be if it was.

all the little details in the game is amazing. like how the weather changes so seamlessly, how there's actual wind, how there are different weeds. i like that we can customize our phone cases like it's just so insignificant but it's just so nice. the fact that the villagers all have a different looking picture/poster is so cool as well, and that we can change the picture frame was rly needed. that villagers can wear dresses, glasses, hats, and things with sleeves is so cool. rugs, wreaths, and doorplates r awesome. like i never thought we'd need these things but they're here and i dont think i could live without them now lol. this is request is rly nitpicky, but i do wish that lamps gave off more light outside. but im just content with all the things i see.

based on all the new things we've gotten i dont think i could ever see myself going back to previous animal crossing games seriously (unless im in a very specific mood). even though this is a new game, i would like to see returning features (dream suite, furniture sets, balloons, other things). i would also like some quality of life updates (like crafting in your house takes things from ur storage), but even with some missing & inconvenient features this game is everything i needed.

 

[DeltaLoraine]

I have really enjoyed this game, but I found that I like it for a way different reason than I've liked previous AC games. In City folk, I was more invested in the characters and the trips to the city, which allowed the player to visit Shrunk, Gracie, Kicks, Redd, Harriet, and Katrina. As a kid that easily invests in game worlds, just the change in location itself to somewhere other than your town was amazing! Even in New Leaf, being able to travel to a whole different Island with Kappn was exciting and seen as a fun trip to somewhere else. I would spend my nights happily farming rare beetles to sell and make my daily money, and I would pretend that it was my in-game job to catch beetles. So it was the little things about these two games that really made them come to life as an alternate reality in a fictional world. Both these games had life to them, including the villagers around you. They actually seemed to care. You could play games with them, visit their houses or they visit yours, and on some days you could even buy their furniture during yard sales because they wanted to declutter. It made them feel like "real" neighbors, so even the ones with the same personality type could feel like different people.

Unfortunately, New Horizons greatly lacks all of this. The only in-game place you can go is the mystery islands, which are basically your own island, but smaller and with less things to do. Yeah, you get lucky sometimes with a rare one, but it doesn't make the normal islands any more fun. At least in New Leaf, you had a box that you could fill up with stuff to send home, and there were island exclusive items you could purchase and other minigames you could play. It seems like a bit of a cop out, because once you get all your supplies and villagers, the mystery islands are basically useless. And speaking of villagers, their personalities are stale, as many people have stated before. It's just not the same as past games. I do enjoy how they interact with the environment and that they can hold things during the season, but overall it's a downgrade in quality. I really hope they patch this stuff in future updates, but I feel like some of these things should have been implemented at the start rather than using "oh we're going to add that in later" as a cop out for everything people complain about.

Now, I know this whole review sounds negative despite me starting it with a positive remark, so here's why I still love this game. Terraforming and being able to put furniture outside was a GENIUS move. The inner artist in me freaked out when I learned that you could shape rivers/move houses/ build cliffs/ and decorate with beach chairs, lights, music players, campfires, and more. It opened up a whole new world and it really got my mind rolling. I can't tell you how many hours a day I spent just contemplating and moving stuff around. Growing flowers to breed and decorate, collecting materials to craft, and moving things from one side of the island to the other just to see where it looks best. It turned into a whole art project for me that I wasn't expecting when I started this game. Even in New Leaf, I wasn't as invested in decorating the town as I am now. So, even though I haven't enjoyed the "story" portion that New Horizons has to offer with all the NPCs and events, I have enjoyed it as a beautiful sandbox of infinite creativity.

So, in the end, I'd give it a 7/10 because I'd be lying if I said I haven't been enjoying it. However, I can't give it more than a 7 because there's so much missing that I really want them to add within this year rather than waiting a couple years later when I have no more time to play AC.

 

[Stalfos]

It was instant love for me the second I started playing the game. Even more so than New Leaf (which in my book was a 10/10). I don't really care if the game is missing stuff because I still haven't explored everything it offers. Right now, New Horizons is everything I could have wished for, but will I still feel the same way three months from now? I dunno. New Leaf kept me interested for three and a half year and 2,700 hours. Will New Horizons stay relevant for long? I guess it depends on what Nintendo has planned. If it's anything like the bunny day and wedding stuff then I'm gonna have to say no, because that stuff was boring.

Anyways, I can't really rate a game on what it isn't. I haven't been enjoying a game this much since New Leaf and that's the only thing that matters to me.

 

[Shellzilla_515]

I feel like this game was negatively impacted by the model of updating it with new stuff every once in a while, and it sometimes doesn't justify the stuff that is missing from the previous installments. Plus, you can't really go anywhere else from your island aside from Harvey's island and the mystery islands you go to. In terms of navigating through menus, it's very clunky. Just because it worked years ago doesn't necessarily mean you can get away with it in today's standards. Crafting furniture is the biggest offender, especially when doing it in bulk quantities. At first, I didn't mind plucking flower petals. But when it came to removing the whole thing together, you spend minutes doing it when it can be quickly done in seconds if we're playing New Leaf, City Folk, Wild World, or the original Animal Crossing.

Those are some gripes I have with the game, but I'm not that type of person who finishes things off on a bad note. I'll list some things that New Horizons did get right! The dialogue. Yes, I've seen many people saying it's worse than New Leaf, but I feel the total opposite. While yes, it's still lacking compared to games before New Leaf, it's definitely an improvement regardless. The customization. It's a must need with the issues most of us had for years. Changing up the layout of our island and choosing where buildings go is a game changer drastically reducing the number of times we reset. The villager interactions are a big step up. Seeing them sing, work out, run, eat food, and the increased frequency of villagers talking to each other breathes more life into them in my opinion. The drawbacks of not being able to play hide and seek or the lack of visits to our house is there, but I'm focusing on the positives we have gained in this new installment of Animal Crossing.

Again, this is just my opinion so don't feel bad if you disagree with it! As for rating it, I'm not sure. It's more of something that you review a year after the release and I'll probably provide my in depth review when that time rolls around.

 

[Corrie]

I'm still not sure what the game was delayed for. It feels very empty to me.

 

[Hsn97]

I think the best way I can sum up my feelings on New Horizons is just disappointment. It’s a good game but it’s not the game I hoped NH would be.

Compared to WW and NL that I played religiously for hours each day for over a year solidly, with NH I barely play it twice a week for 30mins.

I think the games good. It’s exceptionally pretty with some amazing features. But there’s just so much that irks me when playing. It just doesn’t feel like an AC game to me.

I hate the tools breaking and the week long events. I hate that the villagers repeat the same line of dialogue 20x a day and are as interesting and dynamic as a house brick. I don’t hate the crafting system but I just feel like it doesn’t belong in an AC game. And I hate the sudden pressure and focus on making a pretty town.

I think that’s the main difference between NH and other AC titles that I hate.

This game is a decorating sim and that’s basically it.

Im glad I got a chance to play and experience the game. But I really don’t care for it and I often find myself choosing to play other games or do other things over playing NH.

 

[Corrie]

I do enjoy how they interact with the environment and that they can hold things during the season, but overall it's a downgrade in quality. I really hope they patch this stuff in future updates, but I feel like some of these things should have been implemented at the start rather than using "oh we're going to add that in later" as a cop out for everything people complain about.

It irks me when people get real defensive about NH critiques and use the excuse of "they'll add it in later!" How do you know they will? What if they don't? None of us fans know and I feel like these people are just clinging onto faith because they don't want to hate an Animal Crossing game. It's a whatif game so fans that aren't happy have every right to complain about stuff that isn't there because as far as we know, that stuff may not get added in.

We're talking about the game as it is right now. Yes, in a year it might be different and have lots of stuff in it and I'd be very happy! But right now, it lacks and sometimes you just have to admit it. NH doesn't get a free pass for mediocrity because it's an Animal Crossing game.