When I decided to log back into Animal Crossing: New Horizons this week, I honestly expected the worst. I have been playing this series for a long time, across many different versions of the game. I still remember the old days when villagers would say really mean things to you if you made them angry. I also remember how abandoning your town for just a few days would cause weeds to grow everywhere, making the place look like a jungle. So, a part of me was preparing for total chaos when I finally loaded up my old save file. I was imagining rampant plants taking over, villagers rioting, buildings on fire, and maybe even Isabelle looking wild-eyed on top of a pile of furry animal bodies. I was bracing myself for a disaster scene.
Needless to say, it was a bit of an anticlimax to log in and discover that almost nothing had changed. Beyond a few bugs in my basement, a mailbox that was blinking with old messages, and a slightly messy haircut on my character, there were barely any signs that four years had passed at all. Instead, I returned to my island, Honaloha, almost exactly as I left it. It was eerily suspended in time, stuck in the reverie of an approaching Christmas from back in 2021. The trees were twinkling with lights, and there were jaunty wreaths hanging everywhere. At least my villagers Avery and Zucker were happy to see me return.
Why did I decide to come back now? It is mostly in anticipation of the big 3.0 update for Animal Crossing: New Horizons. This update includes a substantial amount of free new features. The most notable addition is a new hotel for players to manage. Alongside that, there are a bunch of enhancements for the Switch 2 that Nintendo is charging a small fee for. Plus, it is winter right now, and the gaming calendar is pretty quiet, even though that will not last long. The prospect of popping back to check in on my little, long-abandoned island was surprisingly appealing, buoyed on by a mix of curiosity and faint nostalgia.
It is well known that Animal Crossing: New Horizons arrived in 2020 right when the global coronavirus pandemic started, leading to lengthy lockdowns all over the world. For many people, this game served as an unexpected lifeline during those troubling times. It offered a cozy corner of virtual freedom, with serene beaches, peaceful meadows, outdoor frolics, and a bustling community to enjoy. It was a comforting escape and a place to congregate with friends. I am sure there will be some people facing more complicated memories if this 3.0 update is enough to tempt them back into the game.
For me, New Horizons does not have quite the same heavy associations. My return this week feels much less complicated, more like visiting an old home after a long time away. This is the first time I have been back since the Happy Home Paradise expansion briefly brought me back at the tail-end of 2021. Looking at everything now with fresh eyes, the once-familiar has turned unfamiliar again. It is clear there is a lot of work to be done on my island. I am already annoyed by the needlessly convoluted footpaths I previously laid down. Goodness knows what I was thinking with some of my decor choices. I have got stacks of abandoned furniture littering the ground, and worse, the repressed memories of Chops have all come flooding back. Yes, that annoyingly little pig can still bloody do one.
I have barely been back in Honaloha for an hour, and already I have got a lengthy to-do list forming in my brain. That flower bed by the lamppost needs to go, for starters. That pretty Japanese arch, I now realize, does NOT mix well with my weird stonehenge setup. On the other side of the island, there is a picnic table blocking my Grecian plaza, and there is a bush I am convinced would look better shifted over a single square. And of course, I am still plotting Chops’ downfall. What I am saying is there is a lot to get sorted to make things tolerable for any kind of meaningful return with the new update. Unexpectedly, it already feels like I am on the cusp of getting sucked back in.
Whether the 3.0 update will result in an extended return to Honaloha, I am not yet sure. New Horizons, with its slow drip-feed of fundamental features, always felt a little too insubstantial to properly hook me. I never quite got over its comparative lack of personality, with the villager sass of old smoothed over lest it offend anyone. This made for a fairly dull series return, and I doubt I would have stuck around for so long if it was not for the whole lockdown zeitgeist thing. So, as intrigued as I am about hotel management, and as giddy as I am about getting more room to store the junk I left on the floor, I am skeptical my interest will last long enough for those Christmas decorations to come out again.
That, I suppose, might change if Nintendo has grander plans for New Horizons beyond the 3.0 update. But right now, whatever the future holds, it is surprisingly nice to be back among old haunts and old friends. Even if that includes the stupid moustachioed pig aside. The island feels quiet, but it is good to be home.
