Animal Crossing: New Horizons Direct unveils a bunch of new features ahead of March release

Today saw the airing of a Nintendo Direct which focused specifically on Animal Crossing: New Horizons, unveiling a bunch of exciting new features for the game. 

Fans have been waiting years for a fully-fledged new entry in the adorably charming franchise, and now it’s less than a month away. So, Nintendo took a chance to whet our tastebuds with 30 minutes of all-new footage. 

New Horizons will begin with players washing up on a deserted island, which happens to be managed by the dastardly Tom Hook, who is quick to hand you a tent and some living amenities before shafting you with a loan. The more things change the more they stay the same I suppose. 

Players can choose the layout of the island alongside whether or not it will be placed in the Northern or Southern Hemisphere, a decision which will influence some elements of your island going forward such as what fruit grows, the state of seasons and other things. 

Related: Upcoming Switch Games

Before long, other occupants will appear on the island, with the players deciding where to place their tent and eventually convince them to move in permanently after becoming fast friends. New and returning characters will appear, all of which are cute and charming in their own way. 

The most impressive new parts of Animal Crossing come in the form of its hugely expanded customisation and crafting system. The potential for designing your own creations and unleashing them on the island is staggering, especially with how easily they can be shared with friends and fellow islanders. 

You can even morph the island’s topography, choosing where to place paths and shaping the land to create waterfalls or additional paths across bodies of water. Stuff like this wasn’t possible in previous entries, and will go a long way in making each individual island feel more distinct. 

As for multiplayer, up to eight players an occupy a single island at any time, meaning you can invite a bunch of friends for impromptu selfie sessions through the island’s conveniently placed airport. It looks disgustingly cute, and we can’t wait.

Sadly, Nintendo confirmed during the presentation that you can only have one island per console, with one player acting as the leader while others can still occupy and play around on the island itself. This is unfortunate, but hardly surprising given Nintendo’s track record for things like this.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons will launch exclusively for Nintendo Switch on March 20, 2020. We’ll have plenty of coverage in the coming weeks, so keep an eye on Trusted Reviews for all of it.