Zahid Iqbal
Since it’s first release in April, 2001 Animal Crossing has captured the hearts of millions with it’s open-ended game play and lovable characters. Now, Nintendo is bringing a new Animal Crossing game to fans in a way we’ve never seen Animal Crossing before; it will be played on mobile devices!
Source: Wikimedia
Animal Crossing, which first came out on the Nintendo 64 in Japan and later in America on the GameCube, is a legendary and unique game that has delighted gamers both young and old throughout the years. Gameplay is completely open-ended, this means that the player has no clearly defined objectives, and instead can do whatever tickles their fancy. Some of the activities that the player might do include bug catching, fishing, planting items, collecting house furniture, designing clothes, and getting their hair done. The player can also socialize and become good friends with their neighbors, all of whom are fun and colorful animals, each with their own unique personality.
Source: Animal-Crossing.com
With so many things to do, there is every reason for the game to sell millions. Animal Crossing: Wild World, the best selling game out of the Animal Crossing series, sold 11.75 million copies alone. The game was so popular, that in 2006, OLM, a Japanese animation and film studio, adapted an anime film based on the game, which earned roughly $19.2 million in the box office.
Source: Anime-Planet.com
You will also find a variety of Animal Crossing references among Nintendo games, such as Super Smash Bros. Brawl, which has a stage dedicated to Animal Crossing. You can also find songs from Animal Crossing on Wii Music, and a mini game on Nintendo Land called “Animal Crossing: Sweet Day”.
The initial announcement of Animal Crossing Mobile on April 2016 was set to release in fall of 2016. However, in September of 2016, Nintendo delayed the release to give more time and energy on two other apps that were coming to mobile, Fire Emblem Heroes and Super Mario Run. The game was set to come out before March of 2017. The game was delayed a second time, and pushed to the next fiscal year, which ended March 31, 2018.
Now, in a recent interview with Reggie Fils-Aime, the president of Nintendo of America, revealed a new facet to the Animal Crossing Agenda, that the game will be released before the end of 2017!
Source: NintendoWire.com
Animal Crossing Mobile will be designed to be able to connect with the Animal Crossing world for dedicated gaming systems, according to Kotaku.com
In an interview with Nintendo’s president, Tatsumi Kimishima spoke of Nintendo’s general approach to mobile as ‘synergy’. This could mean big things for contests in the game, or the Stalk Market, where players buy and sell Turnips, similar to the Stock Market. A big goal of Nintendo’s is to broaden their fan base even further.
Needless to say, Nintendo will bring a game to mobile that will leave fans playing for years and years to come. If you’re as excited as us at Nerdism to see the launch of Animal Crossing Mobile, leave a comment down below!