Animal Crossing New Horizons Review
So There’s This Game…
For the last 2 months, I have been pretty stressed due to everything going on in the world. I have been looking for something to do to keep me busy and away from the news. My husband started playing Animal Crossing New Horizons a while ago. I thought to myself, “Why is he so enthralled with this game? All he does is catch bugs, fish, and plant things all day. How is this fun?” I would laugh at him, but then I decided to give the game a try. Y’all, I am now hooked. Haha! Animal Crossing New Horizons is just the thing I needed. It has kept me away from the news and has helped to reduce my stress. Continue reading to learn about the game, if it’s ok for kids, and some tips and tricks I have learned along the way.
What Do You Do in Animal Crossing New Horizons?
In Animal Crossing New Horizons you are the caretaker of your own island. (You don’t own the island, but it’s your island.) It’s your job to take care of the island, plant trees/flowers, invite guests and new residents to the island, etc. Your goals are to collect all of the available fruits, flowers, earn nook miles and bells, build up your island and up your island’s rating. (It really reminds me of the SIMS.)
When you play the game you spend your day’s/night’s catching fish, bugs, planting flowers, picking fruit, and traveling to different mystery islands to gather resources to bring back to your own island. You earn nook miles, which you use to redeem for travel tickets and other items for your island, by doing certain tasks such as watering flowers, chopping wood, etc. Bell’s are the island’s other currency. You use bells to purchase items, and you are paid in bells when you sell items.
Sounds A Little Boring Doesn’t It?
Haha! Some people might find the game boring, but surprisingly it’s not. Finding new fossils, bugs, and fish to add to your museum or traveling to different islands is a lot of fun. An added bonus to the game is you can play with others. There are two ways you can do this. You can use 1 switch with 2 controllers. For example, my husband has an island and our characters can run around on the same island together as a team. (One person is the leader. The leader can play the game regularly, but the second person cannot. You can switch who is the leader though by shaking the controllers.) The other way to play with others is to use Nintendo Online. You can get your friends island code or be friends with them on your switch profile, and that will give you the ability to visit their island.
Ok For Kids?
Yes! Animal Crossing New Horizons is a great game for kids. Our 4-year-old has a character and plays with us as well. The only thing is there is a lot of reading involved in the game. So, kids who cannot read yet may get frustrated because they will not know what is going on. But for those kids who can read the game is a great way to teach hand-eye coordination, business skills, and for kids to learn about bugs, fish, and plants.
Beginner Tip’s and Trick’s
If you are just starting out here are some tips and tricks that I have learned that may help you.
- Take Advantage of Money Trees – If you see a golden spot on the ground dig it up. Usually, it is a bag with 1,000 bells in it. If you replant the bells in that spot a money tree will grow in around 3 days, and it will have 3,000 bells on it! If you dig up the spot and plant 10,000 bells in the hole in three or so days you will have 30,000 bells!
- Work to get sturdy tools as fast as you can – Flimsy tools only last so long. Sometimes you need sturdy tools to reel in certain fish, cut down trees, and dig holes.
- Work hard to up your pocket space – Pocket space is super important. The bigger your pockets the more you can hold which means the more things you can sell. Make those bells!
Hitting big rocks with a shovel produce items
- You can get some cool and important stuff when you hit rocks with a shovel. (Think gold, iron, bells, etc.) The more you hit the rock the more will come out, up to 8 items. But if you hit a rock and get pushed back you can lose out on items. So, before you hit a rock dig three holes behind. One directly behind you and one to each side. It will keep your character from moving so you don’t miss a beat.
- Clearing a mystery island of all things can produce more bugs – Mystery Islands are like boxes of chocolate. You don’t know what you are going to get. Islands come in different shapes and with different resources to harvest. If you clear an island of all things, trees, weeds, flowers, fruit, etc it can spawn more bugs. Like lucrative butterflies/moths, and tarantulas. In fact, some islands, flat ones with no stream in the middle, are perfect places to clear and spawn tarantulas that you can sell for thousands of bells.
- Play multiple times a day – That was funny to write, but it’s important. Certain fish, bugs, and such come out at different times during the day. In fact, some are only available during certain months! For example, tarantulas spawn only at night and only during Nov-Apr. (Can you tell I have a thing for tarantulas? Haha! I actually dislike them, because they will chase you!)
Cost
Currently, Animal Crossing New Horizons costs $59.99. Do you have multiple people in your family who want their own island? You will need to have multiple switch consols and a game for each then. Nintendo Switch Consol costs $299.99, and Nintendo Switch Lite costs $199.99. If you want to be able to visit your friend’s islands you will need to get Nintendo Switch Online. Currently, it costs $19.99/yr for 1 user and $34.99/yr for a family membership. (Up to 8 accounts.)
Do you play Animal Crossing New Horizon?
If you do tell me in the comments. Need help or want more visitors to your island? Drop our island code or needs in the comments as well!
