At its best, Animal Crossing is a contemplative series about small moments. The Nintendo franchise emphasizes simple pleasures, like sitting on a tree stump and admiring the rosy caress of a sunset, or listening to the comforting patter of rain under the protective embrace of an umbrella. But social media and its rapid-fire updates have changed the nature of the idyllic games for some fans playing Animal Crossing: New Horizons.
“I feel shabby and inadequate,” says player Devon Gozjolko, who spoke with Polygon over email — alongside dozens of other players — about what it’s like to see other Animal Crossing fans share elaborate designs on social media.
“Every time I get on Twitter I see posts from both friends and internet people I follow who have these either incredibly ornate or certifiably insane setups on their island, and it honestly feels terrible, like, who did I think I was buying this game?” says New Horizons player Patrick LaBelle.
The more people see each others’ games — the gorgeous rooms they are building, the fancy furniture and knickknacks they’re acquiring, the monumental towns they’re decorating, and the cool characters they are unlocking — the more it becomes impossible not to compare yourself to others. It’s like the Instagram effect that comes with seeing what rad time other people are having and then feeling bad about your comparatively boring life, but applied to a video game.
shinsei 🥺
@nise_shi
I don't understand animal crossing. after playing for a couple hours daily I finally have a museum on my humble island but then I open twitter and apparently everyone else has just finished constructing the mesopotamian empire
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9:49 AM - Mar 24, 2020
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Prior to 2020, Animal Crossing was definitely a successful franchise, but it was also somewhat of a sleeper hit relative to mainstream franchises like Call of Duty or FIFA. In the last couple of weeks, that’s changed. Celebrities are playing New Horizons. Animal Crossing has taken over TikTok, and, bread baking aside, it is possibly the most pervasive non-COVID-19 thing lighting up social media feeds.
The big change comes down to a single button. Where before Animal Crossing was relegated to handheld consoles with limited and cumbersome online functionality, the Nintendo Switch has a dedicated “share” function that allows people to upload screenshots and video clips. This feature has catapulted Animal Crossing into the public view in a way the series has never seen before, much like Pokémon Sword and Shield before it. Beyond colonizing feeds, for the first time ever, Animal Crossing has a pronounced presence on Twitch and YouTube. The newfound Animal Crossing phenomenon will undoubtedly be great for Nintendo’s bottom line, but it also means the fandom is expanding and changing in an unexpected way.
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