Animal Crossing: New Horizons has been highly anticipated by fans since Nintendo announced a new game for the Nintendo Switch in 2018. While Nintendo had originally announced that the new game would be available in 2019, the release was pushed back and is now officially set to release on March 20, 2020. There are a ton of new features for Animal Crossing Fans in New Horizons and we’re going to look at the ones we know will be added for sure!

Nintendo had this to say about the reason for the delay:

“We’re not going to put a game out before we think it’s ready to be enjoyed by fans. In the case of a franchise, like Animal Crossing, that has so many loyal fans, we’d be doing them a disservice if we put out a product that was rushed.”

“So it’s a difficult decision for a company to make to move a ship date out. We think moving to March 20 of next year was the right decision because we needed to give the development team enough time to make it the game we want to make.”

“So, that’s been the Nintendo approach from the beginning and it’s something that we’re going to continue to do. We’re not going to rush a game out until it’s ready because we want to keep that quality bar high.”

While 2020 still seems pretty far away, we already know some of the best features we can expect from New Horizons. For instance, we know that, like Pocket Camp, crafting will be a large part of the game. Players will also have more design freedom. For example, players will now be able to take advantage of “half tile” spaces to place furniture and other items. Not to mention, furniture can now be placed outside so players can finally take advantage of a little curb appeal.

Read on to discover some more of the coolest things you can do in the new Animal Crossing: New Horizons!



Be the Lumberjack You’ve Always Wanted to Be

In previous games, players usually felled trees to make space or remove an obstacle. In New Horizons, tree chopping has an even better purpose! Equipped with an ax, players can chop trees and collect stacks of wood. Players can craft various stuff out of these stacks of wood like furnishings. Tom Nook’s workbench, a new feature in the game, will allow players to utilize materials like wood, clay, and even clams to construct tools, furniture, and clothing items. Different trees will yield different types of wood such as hardwood and softwood, and players will use these unique wood types for crafting different objects. It may be entirely possible to make a bedroom set out of mahogany or use oak for your doors!

Try Your Hand at Cooking

Seeming to play off of the crafting feature, players will now also be able to collect and concoct delicious recipes. Recipes can be learned by talking to villagers or by discovering new “ingredients.” Food will no longer just be a furniture item for display. We expect there to be a multitude of meals players can prepare in their homes. After learning the right recipe, players will also be able to create fishing lures out of clams. (This could mean that lures are needed for fishing rather than just the fishing rod as in previous games). Perhaps the new lures give the player an added bonus to fishing or there could even be a required lure for certain fish types!

Pave a Sidewalk

In the past, players made paths diligently, by running over the same patch of grass over and over to eventually reveal the dirt beneath. This was extremely time-consuming and a bit of a boring part of the game. In New Horizons, however, players can strategically pave pathways with new tools and materials. Sources say that players will be able to mine rocks for clay and, with the help of a trowel-like tool, players can smooth the perfect path in locations of their choosing. Needless to say, the new feature helps make towns a lot more “custom.” Now that players have the ability to make paved or brick pathways instead of a simple dirt wander path, towns will look more decorative and neater.



Vault Over a River!

In previous games, it was always frustrating to see an elusive or valuable bug on the other side of the river. By the time you would find the nearest bridge and circle back to where you last saw your treasure, it had already moved on or been scared away by one of the less-careful townsfolk. In New Horizons, taking the “long way” is a thing of the past. With the integration of a pole vault, you will be able to traverse any stream in one swift leap! No more looking for bridges, instead, just pull out your trust pole and vault across!



Become a Master Gardener…of Sorts

Players who enjoyed cross-pollinating flowers in previous games might be excited to learn that flowers function even more realistically in New Horizons. In footage released by Nintendo, a player can be seen planting flowers, watering them, and waiting for them to mature from sprout. Unlike previous games, players will harvest flowers in New Horizons, meaning that flowers will grow back once they’ve been picked. Sources say these flowers will be used for crafting and players will likely have the option to weave flower crowns out of their beloved blooms. You also seem to be able to plant trees, allowing players to create their own orchards!



Give Yourself a Makeover…Anytime, Anywhere

In New Horizons, players will have access to a wider variety of skin tones and facial features than in previous games and facial features and hairstyles will no longer be associated with gender. Instead, players will have more freedom to design their character than ever before by selecting from an even wider “gene pool.” Players will also be able to edit their features at any time without visiting the salon as in previous games.



Decorate for the Holidays

In screenshots released by Nintendo, decorative wreaths can be seen hanging on the doors of villager’s homes. This little detail has led many to believe that players will now be able to craft wreaths and gift them to villagers to display on their front doors. One wreath appears to be made of tulips, which could mean that players will be able to craft wreaths out of the flowers they harvest. Another appears to be made out of winter ornaments.

With a ton of unique, new features, Animal Crossing: New Horizons will be the most detailed, personalized installation yet. Nintendo has sure added a lot of new customization features from the ability to give yourself a makeover anywhere to the new sidewalk system. While it’s hard to be patient for its 2020 release date, rest assured that features like those mentioned above will make New Horizons well worth the wait.

