Virtual Hangout Ideas: Animal Crossing!

In 2020 I had a lot of fun playing online games with friends, as I'm sure the rest of the world did being stuck at home.  

With my circle, it became something of a routine to meet up in-game for holidays or special events. I thought it might be a fun idea to share a few posts about some games I've played along with some photos.

In this post, I'll be sharing some cute photos and anecdotes from Animal Crossing: New Horizons.

I was a big fan of the DS edition of Animal Crossing and I think it's an excellent game for couples (better than the Switch version in my opinion) so I knew what to expect when New Horizons came out. I'm the type of person that gets overwhelmed by the concept of having to log onto a video game every day for daily rewards or check-ins, but even so, I decided to get the latest game.

I played it on and off during the summer, but as the fall came I grew a bit tired of the game and stopped playing for a few months. I'm not the most creative person so once I did all the basic tasks in the game and I was left to take the island in whatever design direction I wanted, I lost interest quickly. There are so many amazing islands posted online and I decided to just live vicariously through them.

Ursala looks concerned as Gui and I sleep in her bed.

However, I was really worried about taking a break from the game since the NPC's usually make some kind of snarky comment about it when you return, but luckily I didn't get too much of a scolding. I was also worried about 'losing' some of my favorite characters due to being inactive, which is a feature in previous games, but New Horizons omitted that from this version which has eased my anxiety a bit.

One negative point that I notice is that in previous editions of Animal Crossing, the characters had a lot more personality and weren't afraid to be mean at times, and I miss that in the latest edition. Not that I want them to be mean to me, but it makes the game more diverse and interesting. However, for someone who wants a cute and straightforward gaming experience, it's pretty relaxing and gives me something to do on days where I'm bored. 

One of my favorite islanders, Bangle, said this to me after my 3-month hiatus. This was so on the nose I had to snap a photo. 

I love to visit my friend's islands and see how hard they've worked on their designs, and do photoshoots together in different locations, so throughout this post I've scattered some photos I've taken with them. Animal Crossing is also great for couples who are long-distance since you can interact together in real-time and take photos. 

My current computer background is this shot I took when Guillaume came to visit my island a few months ago! 

I even celebrated New Years' with friends on Animal Crossing and got some shots of the countdown we did together. 

My friend Yoon invited me to her New Year's Party!

I think there are a lot of opportunities to make this game a memorable one with friends and take some adorable looking photos; it's very much a game that gives back what you put in it. I want to try and decorate my island a bit more in 2021 and really give it some personality. My friends have given me some great ideas on how I could do that, and I'm grateful!

If you're looking for a calm hang out with friends or a significant, I recommend Animal Crossing for a peaceful photoshoot session! 

I think we took this shot inside Bangle's house!

Wishing upon a shooting star together!

I hope you like all the pictures and as always, thanks for reading!