#viche

Seeing that Nintendo Today! notification on my phone was a surprise in of itself--it'd been less than four years since the 2.0 update, and the only patches since then were bug fixes and as of 2025, compatibility improvements for Switch 2. Nintendo themselves even said that 2.0 would be the last update to the game.

Despite all that, there was still demand for New Horizons, as one of the premier cozy games for the Switch. As of writing it remains the 2nd-highest selling Switch game, only surpassed by Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. People were even restarting their islands again and again to help keep the game as fresh as its launch in March 2020. With Switch 2 dramatically improving the performance, many were wondering what would come with the series on the new hardware. Well, we got it alright.

The Nintendo Switch 2 Edition

On paper there's really not a lot of new features for the Switch 2 version. Higher-res graphics, mouse controls, GameChat support, 12-player online, and the return of the megaphone. Admittedly that last point is something I've missed from New Leaf--it's always annoying losing track of a villager you need to talk to. That said, does this make it all worth an upgrade?

At 5 bucks a pop, absolutely! Well, 7 loonies if you're in Canada, anyway. Still, that is a HUGE steal, especially when you consider how much the upgrade packs for other games are going for. We'll be held on Switch 1 for the foreseeable future, but when the time comes to finally move up to Switch 2, this'll be one item we'll get along with it.

Kapp'ns new Seaside Hotel

I like to call this "Happy Home Paradise Lite" at it basically operates the same as the DLC. Not that it makes it a bad addition, far from it. It's just such a familiar formula it's hard not to compare the two. Still, this brings more than just another place to decorate--it allows you to almost double your island population! Having hotel visitors wander your island could make things even more lively. I also appreciate being able to invite non-villagers for a break too. It'd be nice to get to know them a little more. Plus, everyone gets to see Kapp'ns family outside of using amiibo in the Roost. I missed these guys from the Island Tours in New Leaf.

Quality-of-Life Changes - Bulk Crafting, Improved Storage, and a New Cleaning Crew!

As someone who's been playing Disney Dreamlight Valley for the past year, these changes are a much welcome sight. The ability to craft more than one copy of an item is awesome already, but being able to tap into materials directly from your storage is such a relief. No need to worry about pulling specific materials out of the closet just to build that one item you need--just keep your supply up, find a crafting table and you're good to go!

In addition we have upgrades to storage itself--not only with more item slots, but allowing for plants and trees as various stages of growth too. Coinciding with this change is the addition of a new cleaning service, provided by the once grouchy Mr. Resetti. If you've ever needed to clear the canvas, be it for a change in season or just starting fresh, I know this'll be a big help to a lot of you. Glad to see that mole's finally mellowed out after all these years.

Slumber Islands - A Blank Canvas (or three)

Remember how I said people would reset their islands to start fresh? The only traces left behind would be their Dream Addresses--while the originals would be gone, the Dream versions would still be intact. With Slumber Islands, you have a whole new option to express your design skills--and you don't have to do it alone! With up to 8 players (or 12 on Switch 2), I look forward to what people can come up with a group effort! Of course this does come with the caveat of being locked behind an Switch Online subscription which I know will be a problem for some folks.

Collaborations, Old and New

Lastly we have new items and even new villagers from across the multiverse! First, the return of Nintendo consoles, featuring NES and Gameboy games (if you have NSO, of course). In-game emulation hadn't been seen since the series' GameCube days--while it seems redundant with Nintendo Classics, it's handy to be able to play these in quick bursts to pass the time and then get back to to island life without going back to the Home menu.

Then we have the LEGO items. As someone who's bought every single Animal Crossing set as of writing, it still surprised me that this collab came full-circle and brought the world of Lego into the game itself. And of course there's the big ones accessible by amiibo--Zelda and Splatoon. Cece and Viché make their return from New Leaf with fresh looks (ha), and we have two newcomers straight out of Hyrule: Tulin and Mineru, plus a whole collection of items from their respective series. We're well prepared for the Splatoon side of things, but I think I'd better start hunting for the Zelda ones ASAP. Either way, I'm excited to see all these!

In Conclusion

New Horizons 3.0 may not be a whole new game for the series like some had hoped for, but it's a much-needed and very welcome update to a game that kept our sanity intact during the pandemic that held us down five years ago. With the real world crumbling around us, we could really use another escape. Sure, the market's been saturated with cozy games at this point, but I'll always find myself coming back to Animal Crossing in one way or another.

And it looks like I came back to Mapleton at a really good time. See you guys across the horizon in January!