Animal Crossing: New Horizons is a 2020 social simulation game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch. It is the fifth main installment in the Animal Crossing series, following Animal Crossing: New Leaf. In New Horizons, the player controls a character who moves to a deserted island after purchasing a getaway package from Tom Nook, accomplishes assigned tasks, and develops the island as they choose. They can gather and craft items, customize the island, and develop it into a community of anthropomorphic animals.
Development of New Horizons began in 2012, following the release of Animal Crossing: New Leaf. The game director, Aya Kyogoku, retained content from previous games to keep fans happy and also ensured that the game was simple enough to appeal to newcomers. With art and graphics, the developers used the concept of "trigger of play" and the "imagination gap", where the former kept the gameplay simplistic and easy to pick up while the latter kept the art style simple for the player to imagine the rest. The game was announced during a Nintendo Direct in September 2018 and after an extended development period, was released worldwide on March 20, 2020.
New Horizons received acclaim from critics, who praised its gameplay and customization options, although its subsequent updates were given mixed response. The game was nominated for over a dozen awards and was a major commercial success, selling over copies worldwide and breaking the console game record for most digital units sold in a single month. It has since been considered one of the greatest games of all time, and is the best-selling game in the Animal Crossing series, the second best-selling game on the Nintendo Switch, the best-selling game of all time in Japan, and the 12th best-selling video game in history. Its commercial success has been attributed in part to its release amid global stay-at-home orders during the COVID-19 pandemic. The game has been used as a substitute for social interactions such as weddings and graduation ceremonies, as well as political campaigning and virtual protests. The game also inspired fan creations, such as a trading website, a talk show, comics, and merchandise. It has received several major updates adding new content. An enhanced port for the Nintendo Switch 2 was released on January 15, 2026, alongside the 3.0 update.
Gameplay As in previous Animal Crossing games, New Horizons is a life simulation game that is played in real time. Weather also adjusts to the seasons of the Northern or Southern Hemisphere, depending on the player's real-world location, a first for the Animal Crossing series. The game follows a villager customized by the player, who, after purchasing a getaway package from Tom Nook, moves into a deserted island. After Tom Nook gives the player essentials, such as a tent, the game proceeds in a non-linear fashion, allowing for the player to play the game as they choose with only a small number of limitations which lessen as the player progresses.
The player is given open access to natural resources such as fruit and wood, which can be collected and crafted into a variety of items and furniture through D.I.Y. crafting. Alongside crafting, they can catch bugs and fish, plant and grow trees and flowers, extract natural resources such as rocks, and swim in the ocean to catch deep-sea creatures. The island gives open space for placing items and decorating as the player chooses. Certain content available, such as organisms, are season-dependent and only appear for a limited time of the year. Doing simple tasks rewards the player with "Nook Miles", which in return can be used to purchase premium rewards in Resident Services, such as furniture, recipes, and clothing. The other currency "Bells", a staple in the Animal Crossing franchise, can be used to purchase other goods and services. Another feature offered early on is the "Dodo Airlines", an airport; through Dodo Airlines, and tickets purchased through Nook Miles, the player can visit other vacant islands to harvest resources and meet other villagers. The player can invite other villagers they meet to their island if they choose.
The player starts with two other random anthropomorphic villagers that also purchased the getaway package. These villagers will live alongside the player and can be interacted with, building relationships. When the player has made sufficient progress in the game, Tom Nook gives more freedom of expanding as a village. Other shop owners will visit and settle on the island: museum-owner Blathers, who will display fish, bugs, sea creatures, fossils, and art captured by the player; sisters Mabel and Sable, who sell clothing and other player-created accessories; and Timmy and Tommy, who run a store that specializes in selling furniture and other quality-of-life items, eventually expanding to sell more items per day. That store is named Nook's Cranny. Eventually, the main area will expand to a Town Hall, run by Tom Nook with the help of Isabelle; other buildings and villagers will populate the community, and old tents and shops will grow into a more permanent structure that can still be moved if the player chooses. From there, the island will be given a star rating out of five, usually starting off at a one-star rating. As the island is further developed, the island's star rating will increase. When a three-star rating is achieved, K.K. Slider, a popular musician, will visit and perform a concert at the island, marking the "end" of the game as the credits roll. However, more options for island customization are given to the player for further community growth, such as the ability to construct and destroy cliffs, bodies of water, and paths, colloquially referred to as terraforming.
The game supports one island per Switch system, though other user accounts may join as secondary players. Animal Crossing: New Horizons supports both local and online co-op gameplay, with up to four players locally and eight players online able to occupy an island at any given time, an option available through the Dodo Airlines. The game supports amiibo cards and figures from the Animal Crossing series, which can be used to invite a villager to the island temporarily that can be convinced to join the island.
Updates Since the game depends on seasonal changes, New Horizons received frequent updates, adding new seasonal items, events, and sometimes new gameplay features. Most updates are loosely based around national holidays, with the first update being "Bunny Day" in April 2020 and based on Easter. Other seasonal updates followed, such as "Nature Day" (Earth Day), May Day, Halloween, "Turkey Day" (Thanksgiving) and "Toy Day" (Christmas). Other popular seasonal events, such as summer, also came with new items. Each respective update also featured popular characters from past Animal Crossing games. With each update, the island changed in look, and the player's island is often decorated for the occasion. Alongside seasonal changes, Nintendo has also released themed items from other popular media, such as Mario outfits and decor in celebration of the franchise's 35th anniversary. Nintendo Switch Online cloud saving was added during a late July 2020 update, allowing users to recover game data if their Switch is broken or lost.
In an October 2021 New Horizons-focused Nintendo Direct, Nintendo announced the version 2.0 update would be released the following month. At the time, it was announced that it would have been the last free update to the game. The update added returning characters Kapp'n, Brewster, and Harvey, the latter two both bringing new activities to the game. Kapp'n can be found with a boat at the pier after the player achieves a 3-star rating on their island. He runs Mystery tours that allow players to travel to deserted islands, where rare resources can be found. Brewster runs a cafe called The Roost located in the corner of the museum, where players can buy a cup of coffee for 200 bells. Harvey's Plaza allows players to find new purchasable items and services from shops. Other additions include being able to dig up gyroids, establishing ordinances, and cooking to create dishes that give the player power-ups. The update released on November 3, 2021.
Happy Home Paradise Announced alongside the 2.0 update was paid downloadable content (DLC), entitled Animal Crossing: New Horizons – Happy Home Paradise. The DLC was released on November 5, 2021, two days after the 2.0 update. Similar to the 2015 spinoff Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer, the expansion allows players to visit a distant island and design vacation homes for villagers and adds new customization options that can also be used on players' personal islands once learned. It follows the player making vacation homes for several villagers, as well as establishments such as a school and a restaurant. Lottie returns and two new characters are introduced. The player can use wallpaper on an individual wall as opposed to only all four, have villagers live with each other, among many other new features. This DLC may be obtained as part of the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack, or purchased separately.
Nintendo Switch 2 edition and 3.0 update In October 2025, alongside the announcement of the release of the Nintendo Switch 2 edition of the game, a new free update, version 3.0, was announced. The update was released on January 15, 2026, and added a new resort hotel, slumber islands, quality of life improvements such as bulk crafting, a mass flower/custom design removal service (operated by Mr. Resetti), and the ability to use resources in storage when crafting, additional Amiibo functionality, classic game systems that allow players to play certain games on them (akin to the original Animal Crossing), and new collaboration items featuring Lego, The Legend of Zelda, and Splatoon (the latter two also featuring new villagers based on their respective series). The hotel, run by Kapp'n's family, brings a room decorating service similar to Happy Home Paradise, as well as a new currency used to purchase various special items, including past Nintendo systems and toys like the Ultra Hand and Ultra Machine. The hotel is located on the pier on the island. The Switch 2 edition also enables mouse controls using the Joy-Con 2 when designing interiors and custom designs, 4K resolution, and a megaphone using the system's microphone to locate villagers. It also increases the number of players in multiplayer to 12 if everyone is playing on the Switch 2.
Development
Development of a new main series Animal Crossing game for the Nintendo Switch was confirmed in a Nintendo Direct on September 13, 2018, with an unspecified 2019 release date. Although the game was announced in 2018, game director Aya Kyogoku confirmed that the game had begun development in 2012, shortly after the original release of Animal Crossing: New Leaf for the Nintendo 3DS in Japan; she stated how concepts for the game were forming long before ideas for the Nintendo Switch had even existed. Hisashi Nogami and Katsuya Eguchi reprised their roles as the game's producers.
Nintendo released the game's title and first trailer at its E3 2019 Nintendo Direct on June 11, 2019. The game was delayed until March 20, 2020, with Yoshiaki Koizumi stating that in order "to ensure [that] the game [was] the best it [could] be, [Nintendo had to] ask that [players] wait a little longer than [Nintendo itself] thought." Nintendo of America president Doug Bowser cited a desire to avoid crunch and maintain a healthy work–life balance for Nintendo employees as the primary reason for the delay. Nintendo's stock market value posted a 3.5% loss in reaction to the delay, amounting to a total loss in value of more than US$1 billion.