After eight years of waiting, the beloved franchise “Animal Crossing” is back and better than ever with a new game titled, “Animal Crossing: New Horizons.” “New Horizons” is a new installment to the “Animal Crossing” series with game-play shown during E3 2019 Nintendo Direct. Visual improvement, new animation, and newly added features were showcased and left fans more excited than before.

    “I’ve read all the announcements from Nintendo and I’m in love. They’re adding more details into the animals and items to collect. To be honest, I think the game was fine already. I don’t care though cause I’m a sucker for cute things and I’m going to play it once it comes out,” Genevieve Canning (10) said.

  “New Horizons” is a life simulation video game that begins after the player character purchases a vacation package from Tom Nook, a character who operates stores and sells houses to players. Then it transfers the player to a deserted island where the player proceeds to explore the island and starts creating their town from scratch. The town is built alongside new neighbors, while paying off debt to Tom Nook, a similar setting to the 2017 “Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp.”

   “I like the new setting of ‘Animal Crossing,’ especially the improved graphics which makes it better. I’m happy to see the series expand to new places, the cute characters being stylized, and creating your own world to your liking. I can see why long-time fans are super excited for this game,” Emily Maya (10) said.

    Much of the “New Horizons” excitement is a result of the creative freedom players have when customizing a character. Players have the possibility to choose from a variety of new outfits, facial features, skin tones, and hairstyles; clothing items are gender-free, so the player can customize their character in any way.

   Outside of character customization, the players have the option to design their own island the way they see fit. The island can be personalized by crafting items such as furniture, tools, and much more.

 “I love what this game has to offer, the creative expression, not only with the characters but as well the setting you are playing with. And it doesn’t seem like a complicated game to play. I would 100 percent recommend it,” Melissa Barraza (9) said.

   If there is a desire to play with others, there is online eight player co-op, allowing the player to enjoy the games various seasons with friends and family.

“New Horizons” will be released on March 20, 2020, exclusively on the Nintendo switch. Visit the “Animal Crossing” website for more updates on “Animal Crossing: New Horizons.”