The secret to Animal Crossing's big 2.0 update that’s coming next month.
Updates for Animal Crossing: New Horizons will be changing significantly though after the 2.0 update comes out on November 5 as future expansions or DLC for the game may no longer be given away for free. The Happy Home Paradise DLC for New Horizons will be a paid DLC that’s releasing at the same time as the 2.0 update. The expansion will be made available as a separate purchase, for $24.99 USD, or as a bonus for subscribing to Nintendo Switch Online. However, those who choose to go with the latter option for obtaining the DLC will have to keep in mind what happens if Animal Crossing players unsubscribe to Switch Online.
Whisker Squadron developer Aaron San Filippo shared his observations on Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ curvy ponds on his Twitter . According to his post, New Horizons may be using a dual grid system to enable its tiles to have more varied shapes along a supposed single line or edge, hence the game’s curvy angled ponds. San Filippo illustrates their observation in an image included in his Tweet that shows the slight difference between using a single grid and dual grid system for tiling terrain in the game. He also goes on to explain how the grass in the game doesn’t look repetitive, even though they’re made up of the same square tiles.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ terraforming feature, a first for the series, allows players to sculpt their island to their liking, including shaping waterways, cliffs, and more. Apart from the tiles that the game already includes, players are able to create and custom ones for even more flexibility. The feature lets players be incredibly creative with their islands and gives them the opportunity to come up with some extreme and out-of-the-box ideas for terraforming their Animal Crossing island.
San Filippo’s observations on Animal Crossing: New Horizons' ponds and tiles, in general, provides some pretty good insight into why the game looks so good in spite of its relatively simple visual style. It also puts into perspective the importance of details that may normally go unnoticed and how they can affect the overall look and feel of a game.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons is available on the Nintendo Switch.
Source: Aaron San Filippo/Twitter
