What would you take with you to a deserted island?
It’s a question that has been pondered upon by our greatest academic minds, our best-looking movie stars, and now, this humble writer.
My answer: Animal Crossing: New Horizons Nintendo Switch 2 Edition.
For $7 for those who have the original base game, this is a paid update for a game that, let’s face it, as of the 2021 update was at pretty much at it’s best — aside from a few growing pains.
I’ll be honest, the new gameplay on offer is a tad underwhelming, and could lead to feeling stranded with little new to do if you are simply bringing your old island over from your OG Nintendo Switch. With that being said, Animal Crossing — especially Animal Crossing: New Horizons — endlessly endures thanks to its cute, cozy, and comical take on “Capitalism: A Life Story,” and I think this is going to continue to be popular now on the Nintendo Switch 2.
Happy Hotel
Kappn’s Hotel is the largest upgrade on offer with this new trip back to your island.
Overall, this new core gameplay mode functions like “Happy Home Paradise 2: The Sears Catalogue God Mode Hotel Challenge”.
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With each new room, you’ll be given the choice of a theme to execute by selecting furniture from a catalogue and organizing with a focus on flow.
However, I’m struggling with feelings of extreme hotel nihilism as I run through these challenges, as there seems to be no need to stay on theme. You could put a single chair, and one that doesn’t even fit the theme, and still net yourself a happy visitor to your island who will make you feel all warm and fuzzy about yourself.
Yet, the reward for doing so is yet another ticket voucher — this time for special items to add to your catalogue of choices to use in the hotel.
And sadly, this is not Hotel California! Guests will eventually check out after having spent some time on your island, and then it’s time to say hello to the next new animal in town.
It’s fun, and it certainly fits what Animal Crossing: New Horizons has always done so well, yet here it’s beginning to feel just a touch unfulfilling.
Dream big with the new Slumber Islands
Animal Crossing: New Horizons Nintendo Switch 2 Edition introduces Luna and her three Slumber Islands — blank canvases that allow group play for up to 12 of your friends playing the same version of the game.
These islands function as sandboxes that allow you to test layouts, items, and designs without causing lasting damage to your main island.
I’m a fan of this addition, as it not only fosters stronger team play among friends but also removes the stress and worry of bringing your vision to life on your main island.
Crafting Quality of Life
Animal Crossing: New Horizons for Nintendo Switch 2 Edition offers the most ever for the series in terms of quality-of-life features.
Finally, can you craft more than one thing at once, so long as it is the same object you are crafting? Obviously, this limits you in not being able to furnish a room in one single instance at a crafting table, yet it is extremely helpful when crafting tools or 6 of those tiki torches you want to line your private beach with.
Also big in the world of crafting, you can now call raw materials seemingly from the cloud, being able to use what you have in storage from any crafting table, without having to have it in your inventory.
For those like me who enjoy the pleasure of not messing up the flow, Resetti’s Reset Service offers a new level of quality of life by letting you quickly erase the way you’ve set up a portion of, or all of, your island. I didn’t think it would mean much to me, but when I found myself using it three times to help me perfect the private beach I was building, I came to appreciate the power it gave me.
What wonderful sights to behold in Animal Crossing: New Horizons
For a lot of us, Animal Crossing: New Horizons Nintendo Switch 2 Edition‘s ticket to ride is going to be the updated graphical fidelity. Animal Crossing has always been a quintessential example of the Nintendo philosophy of “look like yourself, even if that’s not what looks best.” Animal Crossing: New Horizons was far from an ugly game. It’s all about cozy film grain and rich colours reminiscent of impressionist paintings. However, the handheld boost to 1080p and the docked 4K using upscaling make this game look crisp and clear while maintaining just the right amount of grain, with a little roughness around the edges at draw distance.
Verdict
I feel somewhat trapped by Animal Crossing: New Horizons Nintendo Switch 2 Edition. In all honesty, a part of me feels like Nintendo is just keeping me trapped on my own personal island I’ve been revisiting from time to time over the past five years. And yet, this is the least painful it’s ever felt to revisit. I am hooked once again. I’m somewhat perturbed about it as I’m not sure there’s enough here to fully justify this trip, but hey, at least it’s not too much of a proposition to revisit what is one of the most convincing experiences gaming has had this decade.
[The publisher provided a copy of the game for review purposes.]
Reviewed on: Switch 2
