Nintendo has released a surprise update for its popular life-sim game Animal Crossing: New Horizons. While not a particularly exciting one, it is worth noting that this is the first update the game has received in three years. In the patch notes for the update, which was released on May 27th, it is stated that this “improved the compatibility for multiplayer sessions between Nintendo Switch 2 and Nintendo Switch.”
What this improved compatibility means is not specified, and we will not get a clearer picture till the Nintendo Switch 2 releases on June 5. Most likely, this is being done just to make sure that no network issues prevent players on their newest console from being able to access the islands of friends that have not made the switch, as well as the other way around. This is important to note, given that the last update Nintendo released for this Animal Crossing came with the addendum that the company was moving on from supporting the title after that. Since Animal Crossing, like many other Nintendo IPs, usually sees its next release with the next console the company releases, updating the game so it is supported on new hardware is relatively new territory.
Additionally, unlike games like The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom or Kirby and the Forgotten Lands, Animal Crossing: New Horizons is not set to receive an update for the Switch 2, or a Switch 2 version of release. It was also not on the list of games that featured issues on the new platform, which Nintendo made public earlier last month. What this update does make clear, regardless of how much it fixes, is that Nintendo still sees Animal Crossing as a continued viable part of its ecosystem, which is a good thing.
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