Four years after his last major updateNintendo announces its rebirth Animal Crossing: New Horizons early next year with a new one Switch 2 Edition, a major content update for all players including a new island resort hotel, and a special collaboration with Lego. Additionally, it brings back the ability to play classic Nintendo games in-game (a feature longtime fans have been hoping to see for decades), but only for Switch Online subscribers.
As the name suggests, Animal Crossing: New Horizons – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition features a number of enhancements specifically for Nintendo's new console, including upscaled resolution to 4K and additional Joy-Con mouse controls for decorating rooms, creating custom designs, or writing handwritten messages on a bulletin board. In addition, it will be possible to find villagers by calling their names into the console microphone (this requires the new in-game Megaphone element), and online sessions will be improved to support up to 12 players and CameraPlay functionality.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons' Switch 2 Edition will be released on January 15 next year and will cost £54.99/$64.99. Existing owners of the original Switch 1 can upgrade for a more modest £4.19/$4.99. Pre-orders for the full game and upgrade pack are now available..
There will also be an extensive free update for all players on January 15th, which will include, among other things, the grand opening of the new Pier Resort. Run by the Kapp'na family, it looks like it will serve as a more sophisticated version of the New Horizon campsite, bringing additional guests to the island – provided you contribute and help decorate its rooms. There is also talk of a gift shop stocked with new furniture and clothing, as well as mannequins where guests can dress up in clothes that guests can wear.
Elsewhere, home storage can be expanded to 9,000 items – now including trees, shrubs and flowers – and there's a new reset service, courtesy of Resetti, that will offer a quick way to start over.
This brings us to the exclusive features of Switch Online. Once the update goes live, subscribers will be able to design and save up to three Sleepy Islands, choosing the size and layout of each, then build and decorate it with friends. You can access existing inventories and invite residents from your home island. Additionally, subscribers can play “selected” classic Nintendo games within the game—a feature not seen since the original Animal Crossing—by collecting Nintendo consoles.
Expect to see other familiar Nintendo items, including the Ultra Hand, as well as special Lego items as part of the new collaboration. And if you have Legend of Zelda or Platoon amiibo, it will be possible to invite “certain characters” to your island and unlock various items inspired by each series. All this, we remind you, will happen on January 15 next year.
