Decisions

[katineko]

Hello!

So recently, I have been playing on my ACNH island, and exploring what the 2.0 update has to offer. I think it is amazing that a lot of features, villagers and so on have made a return from the older games. And the QoL updates are great as well. However, I have been playing Animal Crossing since the GameCube, and am very old school. I do miss some of the things left out from New Leaf and Wild World, especially a few favorite items, the soundtrack, the igloos, being able to actually roll balls around town, and villager dialogue. Also, maybe NH has lost some of the charm the older games had. NH can feel a bit rushed and less relaxing as well. What do you guys think? I can say that, between WW, NL, and NH, each game has something that I like and is missing. Each game has it's own thing going. For example, WW has awesome dialogue, NL has a little of each from the 3 games, and NH, with the 2.0 update, has improved dialogue and things I mentioned above.

Anyways, I own WW, and NL Welcome Amiibo along with NH, and am tempted to start either NL or WW. Would playing NL be exactly like NH with the 2.0 update? Or, does NL still have any advantages over NH? Will WW get boring pretty quick? Or does the dialogue, different holidays, etc. keep things interesting? Does WW have more detail or funny quirks? How much of an improvement over NH does NL have after the NH update as far as dialogue goes? Is there some rude or mean villagers in NL? And I do miss the mini games!

All these things make the decision on what one to play by itself, or along with NH
really difficult

I would love to hear others' advice, opinions and recommendations!

 

[xSuperMario64x]

I would say just play all of them at the same time tbh. they're all fun in their own way.

also there are no holidays in WW besides the acorn thingy with the acorn god himself Cornimer and towns littered with rotten acorns. it truly is a sight to see.

 

[Regalli]

My interest in the series usually goes through cycles, so it’s relatively rare for me to go back to a previous installment just because I’ll usually play, fall off, then catch back up in my current town as the mood strikes me. (In that respect, NH and the eighteen month update cycle kept my interest way longer than usual.) But New Leaf has better dialogue for lazies in particular (even if the jocks are way judgier, and while I don’t mind smugs being wannabe influencers over the flirting I can get people prefering NL’s characterization) and doesn’t have the same weird weighting towards a couple dialogue options despite HAVING way more varied ones, so it might be worth picking that up again if that’s something that appeals to you. And the Christmas event’s a bit more involved in NL, even if that means keeping track of things through the month which CAN be tedious. So y’know, depends on what you prefer. I definitely think that, while DIY crafting’s an interesting development, the tool durability that comes with it hasn’t really gotten any more enjoyable, (especially with the cute aesthetically different tools,) and that does change the vibes some as well. Plus, while the fandom definitely likes the complete customization and curation of the island - and don’t get me wrong, I do enjoy aspects of that myself, and I definitely chose a more curated layout for villager homes - I do miss it feeling like a place you were just living in with other villagers instead of a space where you’re making all the decisions for your villagers. But I also like outdoor decoration and choosing where my ramps and bridges go, so. Y’know. Both have merits.

I haven’t touched Wild World in some time, but the lack of holidays and being able to talk people out of moving bugged me then. And the art. At least now I can TELL when Redd’s scamming me. But it definitely has charm in its own right.

Honestly the thing I miss most from past games are some of the classic outfit designs that got changed over the years - I went to a lot of trouble to recreate the GCN Mod Top in New Leaf, and now I want to do the same for the Alpine Shirt and a few others. Not that the new ones are bad, but I got really attached to the originals. But that can be corrected with custom designs, I just haven’t blocked out the time yet.

 

[Romaki]

WW and NL should both have much better dialogue, but you'll miss a lot of the freedom that NH offers you.

 

[nightglow]

I feel like the update in NH fixed alot of things, for me anyway. I still don't feel like NH makes NL irrelevant yet. I mean, yeah there is alot more freedom in NH, and the graphics are much nicer, but NL seems more lively with villagers/NPCS. Maybe it is because the map is smaller?? And it always seemed like there was always someone to say "Hi" to. I feel like NL provides a different experience rather than a better one now that NH update dropped.
I guess one could also say that NH can feel as lively as you make it. I mean, if you put everything in the first half of your island, and you like the woodsy/wilderness feel, that would leave you practically half an island to gather supplies, roll snowmen ect while the "town" part will feel pretty together. Or you can spread villagers out and give them each a yard with some sort of border fence. I honestly think that was the reason why this map is so large. It was to accommodate people making villager yards since you can decorate outside in NH. It was nice that they didn't force the yards on people. The first 3 plots you get from nook, the "yard" was kinda forced because you couldn't put a plot down unless you had the room for the yard. Like it was blocked out as if the whole space was for a building. It is nice that NH doesn't have villagers randomly plopping their houses where ever or leaving whenever. I also love the crafting system. The dialog is better after NH's update so honestly I can't really complain about it. They now visit your house and ping you more often. It doesn't feel as repetitive to me as NL. I am happy. But I also try to have at least 1 of every personality. I have seen people in the forums have 5 villagers of the same type and I think that doesn't help with the feeling of repetitiveness. Use some of those slots to find a villager you like or tolerate in another personality group. Oh! and NH has introduced type A and type B subtypes to personalities. So it is possible to have two of the same personality but their dialog differs a bit still. I hope to see this expanded upon in the future of Animal Crossing because it is great.

NL on the other hand, I really really really enjoy the Public Works Projects. I wish they carried that aspect over a little bit into New Horizons. I liked the time and effort it took to get them and place them. Like maybe it could be items that are large and not something that "can be crafted". Items that look more like a tourist attraction or landmark. They could be fun and bizarre.
I don't care about the mini game stuff but I know that is a big critique of many players. It is understandable since it allowed you to also play with friends.
If I was to pick one, I would just go with NH because they had the update that addressed things that bothered me that I am not gonna list here. This post is long enough and I don't see the point in bringing all of that up again since it isn't the circumstance anymore.