i mean...if you like it then go with it! no reason to stop yourself from using something because it's popular. personally i don't use the path and the only thing i dislike about how popular it is is how many people think cottagecore = cluttered. you can do a cottagecore style without making the game drop under 10 fps
Mine is nautical themed, but I also have a few wooded areas with campsites and the like. The main colors I use are orange, blue, yellow, and white, but I'm also sprinkling in some other colors here and there.
I just don't like The Path because I get frustrated with custom paths in general. I feel like it just looks artificial, and I get sad when I can no longer hear the little clack-clack sound of my feet walking on different textures with it! So that's why I refrain.
For a hot second I thought I'd do this sort of theme, but I decided not to. But I like the look of like a natural / vintage countryside vibe. I do agree with everyone else on being frustrated with the whole -core thing but I think this is just a way to describe it more efficiently, and a term that spread like wildfire I suppose. But I've always been confused by it too so I understand haha.
i don't use The Path but i do think it looks wonderful!! in previous games i went with a more natural look because that was pretty much the easiest thing to do with what was available (especially pre-new leaf). this wasn't the point of your post, but i think this kind of sums up an issue i have with new horizons?
in previous games we didn't have a ton of options for making the town look special without going wild with patterns... we DID, however, have a wide variety of furniture styles, so our houses could be completely unique. in new horizons we now have the ability to put furniture ALL OVER our dang islands which opens so many possibilities!!!! but they made the weird decision to not include a ton of old furniture and instead replace it with more natural looking stuff? so i feel like i'm still pretty restricted to a few select looks, mainly this forest/natural/cottagecore style. i feel like its hard to really get my island different from others, and by extension my house. this didn't really feel like as big of a problem in past entries because of the limitations we had, but now that we have this outdoor furniture feature AND the removal of old furniture it's a lot more glaring. the natural look isnt BAD and new horizons is beautiful i'd just really like more options... SORRY 4 GOING ON A TANGENT IN YOUR THREAD IT JUST GOT ME THINKING
Mine is probably fairycore and I never really used anyone else as inspo or anything. Idk if it will be considered as "original" or not, lol. I did know from the beginning that I wanted an enchanted forest vibe.
I really like the look of The Path but personally I can't stand how easily custom paths are wiped up in this game. I wish they made them like other paths where they could only be removed if you're in island designer mode. Because of this I don't think I could ever use a pattern path across my entire island. I also don't like how footsteps don't make sounds on pattern paths. However, I have embraced cottagecore in other ways on my island, although I suppose I was never really trying to avoid it.
I have embraced loose themes rather than strict themes. I've had fairy tale, medieval/renaissance, gothic, Japanese, and now woodsy. They're all sort of -ish. I'd like someday to go with a bright theme island and have the superhero villagers and I'd like to have a more modern, urban town maybe someday. Maybe modern and superhero together.
I love The Path and the variations of it since it allows for curvy paths that look natural. The in-game paths drive me nuts and I don't love how they show up on the map. Right now, I have some little flower beds with in-game dark dirt and it looks wonky. Whenever I've made patios and market areas, I think the map looks yucky. I wish we could have an on/off toggle when laying path that would let you choose whether to have it show on the map. I'd like my map to show buildings and roads and trails but not patios and flower beds.
Mine is probably fairycore and I never really used anyone else as inspo or anything. Idk if it will be considered as "original" or not, lol. I did know from the beginning that I wanted an enchanted forest vibe.
I know my opinion is worth little to nothing but my view on originality is if you do something that someone else has done, but you haven't been taking ideas from them, it's an original work.
If you see something online and take inspiration from it but don't try to copy it exactly, it's still original. Can't be expected to purge all thoughts of things you've seen from your mind.
If you looked up a guide on what items, villagers, layouts etc are x core, it's unoriginal and boring.
Thats why cores annoy me so much as they are so copy paste. Everyone has the same items and villagers in the same layout doing the same job.
It can make dreaming very repetitive.
My island is heavily inspired by cottage core islands and I have to say... it is a deceptively difficult theme to get right. Like, I knew it would be complicated setting the path and accounting for space for tree placement but dear lord, I'm still trying to "finesse" my island and it's... a lot.
Plus I like the more "cluttered" looking islands i've seen and there are only so many times you can place barrels/clotheslines/log benches on your island before you start to feel really restricted with the furniture available in the game.
Honestly, I think I'm just bad at decorating lmao.
I initially decided to go for this theme because my previous island was very suburban and I just got fed up with it. I had so many decorated areas (a bike parking place/cafe/kids park/flea market/swimming pool) and I realised I didn't even use them (and of course, neither do the villagers) and the spaces just seemed pointless and lifeless.
I totally understand the desire for originality, but ultimately, it's best to go with what you like. If what you like happens to be popular, so be it. It's probably popular for a reason
Also, I don't understand the -core terminology either, but I just shrug my shoulders about it lol. It seems to be Gen Z slang, so I don't have to understand it. I'm sure that Millennials have some weird slang too in the eyes of older generations.
My island...I don't think it has any particular theme, but there is a forest area that might be "natural". I like how unorganized old Animal Crossing's towns were so all of my houses are spread apart like that, so...maybe that's my "theme", classic.
With the update that added more design slots, I finally started using The Path, though it's only mainly in the forest area, using built-in paths everywhere else.
I have to agree with others here; That theme would be fine, given it isn't so cluttered with objects that it's hard to navigate, and doesn't cause framerate drops.
I use the path in a lot of areas around my island and genuinely love the way that it looks. It's a good looking path, which explains why it ended up being so popular. If you like something you shouldn't let its popularity stop you from enjoying it. Anyone who judges you from doing something you love and that is entirely harmless isn't worth listening to in the first place.
I think the cottage/country/rustic style is very cute because of how natural it is. I think it's hard for there to be very many styles at the moment due to the limitations of the furniture selection so far, so you shouldn't feel bad about being "original". There's only so much any of us can do with what we have.
For me personally, I decided to go with a kind of rusty, old sailing town theme with some horror elements. It's been a lot of fun!
What is "the path"? I feel really out of the loop.. ^^" personally I have different areas on my island.. a tropical beach festival.. a secret pear forest, a small town centre and a concert venue.. a lake with a resort area. .. im planning on making all the patterns myself. ^^
My island has a blue brick path that I really enjoy that fits with my favorite color. Of course the design is not from me I got it from a download from someone else using the Kiosk. If you want to see the design I have a dream address in the signature to check it out if you're curious.
Anyways I wanted to make my island look like a town and I've I put a lot of homes to make it look like a village or like neighborhood so thats why I have them grouped together on Layer 3. Of course it has a theme going for it that its based off of my favorite game Kingdom Hearts and you will see a special design that I managed to find that fits so well with it.
I also have this liking to glowing items in the night so when its nighttime my island looks beautiful. I mean I was even impressed with myself how I managed to make it work so well.
Just to let you know don't stress too much about how others do their island. You just make whatever you feel stands out to you.
i mean i was already aiming for cottagecore before but i really didn't want to use the path cause i felt like everyone is using a different variation of the path but when i tried it out and used it myself i changed my mind about them and became a fan on how the path looks lol
I personally went the natural look. "X" -core islands, in my opinion, sacrifice game functionality for visuals. Grabbing balloons, navigating around, fishing, bug catching, and pretty much anything else is more of a hassle to do in them.
I don't have an overall theme for my island, though I see the appeal of having one. I like the idea of having a little bit of themes/furniture sets that I like, so my island is a mesh of multiple sections, each with a theme. The hardest part of doing this is figuring out how to seamlessly transition from one section to the next.
My residential area takes up the most space, but it gives me the flexibility to let a bit of each villager's personality shine through. I decorate their yard with flowers of their favourite colours and furniture that represents their hobby or goal.
The Path and its variations look nice, though I personally don't use it because I love hearing the sound of footsteps with the in-game paths. It's also an annoyance when I go to pick up something on the ground and accidentally erase the custom path. xD
