Animal Crossing: New Horizons on the Nintendo Switch has been the smash hit of the season, but I didn't expect it to almost replace real-world travel. But there I was, wandering around my buddy Myke's island, and feeling a depth of emotion I didn't see coming.
Yes, as we all sit here in our homes, sheltered in place and social distancing to stop the spread of COVID-19, I know for a fact that I'm not the only one who had to cancel his travel plans. I'd planned to spend a little over a month in the United Kingdom, half for personal pleasure and half for work. It was going to be the mini semester abroad I never took in college.
Then we all became familiar with the COVID-19 coronavirus, and airlines suspended 90% of their flights as part of their efforts to ground all of our travel for the foreseeable future. But that's not stopping the folks at Dodo Air, the preferred (and only) method of island-hopping in Animal Crossing.
As I said, I didn't intend to feel a lot of feelings while playing Animal Crossing. It just happened. One day I walked into the Nook's Cranny shop on my island, and saw the perfect gift to buy for my friend Myke Hurley, with whom I always hang out when I go to London.
Myke is a professional podcaster, and when I saw an ink jar, pen and stack of paper (an "Essay Set") for sale I immediately thought of Myke's show The Pen Addict. He knows more about all the different kinds of pens than I will ever learn, but I couldn't simply give him the set, as we hadn't become friends in Animal Crossing yet.
So I texted Myke to set things up, teasing his incoming present. Later that night, when I saw his name appear in the top-left corner of the Switch UI, I let him know I was going to be coming over.
Myke then texted me his Dodo code, which I thought was an odd way to invite me over. Couldn't Myke just open his airport to all of his friends? Well, I've since realized that Myke was giving only me access to his island, so we could enjoy the moment by ourselves.
When I got to Myke's island, which he's named Mega, I felt a smidge of that feeling you get when you go somewhere completely new. Unlike all the other Animal Crossing islands to which I've traveled, Myke's was organized and designed to an extravagant degree.
Spotlights shot out from the grounds, rows upon rows of flowers lined the walkways and there was even a brick oven on the beach, with cast iron chairs and a table. Before we could get any further, I dropped the Essay Set in front of Myke's character, and he replied with the Joy emote, where blooms appear over the head and the character swoons.
This virtual trip to Mega felt like a neat little moment, but it was all amplified when I saw a UK-style phone booth on his island, and I remembered the trip that I'd cancelled. And as our little avatars moved around his island, myself in a red luchador mask and Myke in a snazzy fedora and leopard print spectacles, I noticed the little details.
As we ran side by side, our arms fluttered in the most adorable way. Standing outside his museum, we both performed the Delight emote. The emote looked similar to a pose that we'd seen a pro wrestler strike. Myke told me he didn't see that similarity before, "but now I won't think of it any other way."
Myke even gave me a tour of his three-level flat in Animal Crossing, which inspired me to buy some better flooring in my own game. But when I was inside his bathroom, I noticed not one, but two fans. When I asked about the necessity of such aeration, he replied "lol." Leaving the island didn't feel bad, as we added each other as Best Friends in the game. This will make returning easier.
Animal Crossing meetups are real, and not just for friends trying to connect when life won't let them. Mindy Weisberger, a colleague of mine at Live Science, tweeted out a little anecdote she learned during quarantine:
"High school relationships in the time of social distancing = hanging out on each other's islands and whacking each other over the head with butterfly nets, apparently." For teens, that's a lot less exciting than a real date, but parents must love it.
So far, as we all adjust to this bizarre way of living, I'm finding Animal Crossing connections to be a lot more pleasant than the Zoom calls. Videoconferencing has wiped us out so much that there's even a phrase for it: Zoom fatigue. Animal Crossing linkups, by comparison, are easier to focus on, as you don't have a grid of different people's faces, drawing your attention everywhere.
Even weddings and graduation ceremonies are being held in Animal Crossing, CNN reports. And I can't blame anyone. The calming and adorable islands of Animal Crossing may not have the power to create the moments that in-person events can, but so far, they're the most calming option around.
Today's best Animal Crossing: New Horizons deals
Nintendo Animal Crossing: New...
See the original post here:
Animal Crossing replaced my real-life vacation, and that's OK - Tom's Guide
- Seaching for Condors in the Andes - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Visiting "The Mayor" again - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- The fantasy boot in my dream of childhood - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Day 53 54 55 - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- www.acb.my - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- day 22 - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Hoover Dam Grand Canyon Byrce Canyon and another little incident... - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Amazing first week - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- It's Been Awhile - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Busan - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Existential Migration: Feeling at Home as the Foreigner - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Passport Chop - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Travel Photography with a Disposable Camera (it’s NOT an oxymoron) - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Miss Travel Girl - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Cape to Cairo - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Alison Travels - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- True Nomads - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- How the Economy Affected 16 Travellers in 2009 - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Do Travel Disasters Make the Best Travel Stories? - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- The Mother of All Trips - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- A story by Kudra Ricketts - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Auckland City - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Another Published Article Penny - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- A Sparkling Xmas Surprise Penny - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Sandboarding - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- The Way Of Make Money In Runescape - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Highway 1 California - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- cancun on thanksgiven - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- On tour with Louise and Zane 46 students - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Hvad vi har lavet siden Gili - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Thailand Check. Laos here we come. - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Team America - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Tour Operator of Bangladesh Sundarbans Adventure Tour Package - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- The Last Leg - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Dec 13 2009 - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Latest Border News - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- The Wandering Soul’s Wander Tales - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Adventure Rob - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- The Golden Papaya - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Support Passports with Purpose 2009 - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- Vagabonding at 60 - December 13th, 2009 [December 13th, 2009]
- The Books that Inspired Us to Travel in 2009 - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- Zululand drakensberg Lesotho and the wild coast - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- The Beautiful Higlands - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- Loch Ness to Inverness and Culloden - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- Aqaba The Little Merman - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- Royal Deeside and the Castle Trail - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- Southward in the Rain to Glamis Castle and Crail - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- Iguassu Falls - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- Stirling Castle and Edinburgh - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- Edinburgh Old Town - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- Galapagos II - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- El Chalten and Fitz Roy Massif - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- Semuc Champey - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- Mechanical Problems in Flight - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- "ACDC Tour Budapest without a satnav" - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- Liat Airlines Stay Away - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- Bariloche - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- Lundi Macon - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- Planning Australia Tour in Best way - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- Family Fun In Breckenridge Colorado - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- 5 Weeks in Australia - December 14th, 2009 [December 14th, 2009]
- The Movies and Music that Inspired Us to Travel in 2009 - December 16th, 2009 [December 16th, 2009]
- A wonderful Japanes experience - December 16th, 2009 [December 16th, 2009]
- So traveling again to a new part of the world - December 16th, 2009 [December 16th, 2009]
- Kangaroo roo roo a pinapple shake a tree.... - December 16th, 2009 [December 16th, 2009]
- Cutting wedding cost in the depression - December 16th, 2009 [December 16th, 2009]
- Pineapple Farm - December 16th, 2009 [December 16th, 2009]
- South India Chennai Pondicherry Auroville... - December 16th, 2009 [December 16th, 2009]
- Back to Amarpurkashi Village Life... - December 16th, 2009 [December 16th, 2009]
- MIA - December 16th, 2009 [December 16th, 2009]
- The most northern of Thailand - December 16th, 2009 [December 16th, 2009]
- Photo's - December 16th, 2009 [December 16th, 2009]
- Trip to Marleshwar - December 16th, 2009 [December 16th, 2009]
- Season's Greetings from Berkeley - December 16th, 2009 [December 16th, 2009]
- Small hiccup - December 16th, 2009 [December 16th, 2009]
- Thailand Laos and Vietnam in Three Weeks - December 16th, 2009 [December 16th, 2009]
- On the road again - December 16th, 2009 [December 16th, 2009]
- Part Two The Map Part Way in Cabal - December 16th, 2009 [December 16th, 2009]
- Heading Back North - December 16th, 2009 [December 16th, 2009]