Longtime Player - Just Making Myself Known

TN4U

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Hi. I'm Trevor. I'm a 23-year-old guy with some social anxiety that has an unhealthy obsession with this game series ever since I've watched Twitch streamers play New Leaf.

I highly doubt a lot of users go through and read this part of the forum, but I wanted to kind of introduce myself a little bit so that other people out there at least know how much I play this series in my free time (especially New Horizons). The first game in the series I got was City Folk, and when I was a kid, I only played it very occasionally. I was more into racing games, and I wanted to pursue bad guys in a cop car more than talk to animal villagers on a daily basis. It wasn't until I watched someone's massive playthrough of New Leaf that I was all like "I want to play this, too", so I went to my local mom-and-pop game resale shop, picked up a New 3DS XL, bought a copy of New Leaf Welcome Amiibo, and that's officially where my love for Animal Crossing truly started.

However, I never revealed to any of my real-life male friends how much I've grown to love the series, because in my mind, I always assumed that it's mainly tailored towards girls, and was basically a little embarrassed to tell them that. I've definitely heard of non-fans and haters of the series labeling this as being a "child's furry game", and that's what I was afraid my friends were going to label me as (the series definitely has fan art that's questionable in content, but I try to filter that out of my thought and sight when I can). It wasn't until the massive success of New Horizons that I felt much more comfortable telling some of my friends about my love for the game, as some of their girlfriends have even gotten them to play it at one point!

When New Horizons first came out, I was in a major social slump for obvious reasons (I won't even mention the "C" word because I get a little sick to my stomach every time I hear or see that name, or see people or characters wearing you-know-what) and could only really talk to people at work. I graduated high school two years earlier, lost many of my friends who refused to talk to me anymore, and had just dropped out of college due to me not being able to make new friends, as well as my major going absolutely nowhere. This game was such a major therapy tool that helped me out through those depressing times, and even though I knew that the little animal friends I spoke to everyday aren't real, I was very happy to be able to play something that kept me entertained for many, many hours. I loved the game so much, that I even made a promise to myself to play it every single day (365 days) for the next year. Safe to say, I kept that promise all the way through the game's one-year anniversary.

For over three years, I've kept quite a few screenshots on my Switch that showcase some of the events I've encountered while playing the game, which I may show off eventually. If the hour counter went above 590, I would easily say that I've put at least 3,000 hours into the game, barely showing off my work to anyone. It wasn't until earlier this year that I decided to make my love for the game known to a lot more people. Very late, yes, but after seeing and talking to other fans of the game in the so-far short experience I've had, I've come to realize that the Animal Crossing community in general has, without a doubt, some of the most friendly, interesting, and unique people I've ever met. I can't think of another game series community that's as good as this.

Of course, like everyone else, my interest in playing the game daily is dying off, but I know now that my love for the series never will. After discovering this forum, I thought to myself, "why not share my own thoughts and opinions about things in a game I know a whole lot about?" so here I am. I'd love to be able to have conversations with other fans, so hopefully I'll feel accepted here.

I love this game. It makes me feel like a happy kid all over again.
 
Hey there, Trevor! This was really insightful to read, actually.

I also identify as a male with he/him pronouns and have played the Animal Crossing series since the GameCube. I've been apart of this forum since the New Leaf days. One thing I want to say is to never let other people dictate your love for something just because it may seem catered to another audience. I'm really glad that the series has brought so much joy into your life. While there are more female players of the game, it's definitely something people like us can enjoy too.

Anyway, I have to ask, who are your top five favorite villagers?

And if you need any assistance with the forum and how it works, feel free to ask any of us here! We would be glad to help out. :giggle:
 
Hi Trevor! Welcome to TBT!

I'm a girl in my late 20s who loves this game and series. The game's been out for a while now and popular interest has seemed to die out but I'm still playing the game here and there. My interest fades and then I won't touch it for months, then play a bit, then drop it again. It's random lol. I'm back in the interest phase and have plans to redo my entire island into a cottagecore theme!

Sorry that you're struggling a bit irl. AC is a nice series to relax to in the meantime. I do hope it all gets better for you. I also have social anxiety so I feel for you. I've always like things that are unpopular in my area irl such as anime, video games (with girls), writing fanfiction, etc so I'm used to hiding my interests as default when meeting people since I know there's a huge chance they won't understand it anyway. It sucks. But you will find people eventually, even if it's just one or two.

I hope you enjoy this forum!
 
Welcome to the forums Trevor! ✨

It was really interesting to read your experience with Animal Crossing, and I'm sorry you felt that you couldn't share your love of AC with people for a long time. Given that we were all brought here because of AC in some way, I think we can all share that love with you. 😊
 
Heyo, welcome here! (❁´◡`❁)

I agree with everyone else, your post was very interesting to read. Thank you for sharing your experiences with us. I get where you're coming from, I've definitely felt the need to hide whatever I was into from my friends and loved ones before.

From what I understand, Animal Crossing has helped a lot of us through hard times. It also does have a very welcoming and diverse community. I've been here for over a month now and I can confirm that everyone I've talked to has been nothing but friendly. c:

Here's a question for you, because I'm curious : who's your favourite Animal Crossing NPC?
 
hi! welcome to the forums, trevor! i hope you’ll enjoy it here! this community is truly one of the kindest, most accepting communities i’ve ever been a part of; we’re happy to have you!

i always enjoy hearing about people’s experiences with animal crossing and why the games are special to them, and yours was so lovely to read; thank you for sharing! i’m sorry that you felt you had to hide your love for animal crossing in the past, but i’m so glad that you feel more comfortable talking about it now! animal crossing definitely isn’t just for girls or kids; it’s such a comforting series for people of all ages and genders, never let anyone make you feel bad for enjoying it 🫶

new horizons helped me a lot during the pandemic as well. playing and trading with the lovely people on here was pretty much my only source of socialization then, and playing helped me cope with all the stressful stuff going on in the world, as well as in my home. i’m happy that new horizons was therapeutic for you as well, though i’m sorry you went through such a rough time. i hope things are better for you now 💗

do you have a favourite out of the ac games you’ve played, or do you like them equally? have you thought about playing any of the games you haven’t yet?
 
hi Trevor! I quite literally just also joined. I really enjoyed reading your post! I relate to so much of what you said. I took a break from NH for a bit, but lately I've been playing NL/NH redoing my town and villages. That running joke about AC being therapy is ringing super true for me right now LOL
 
Thank you everyone for making me feel welcome. The fact that a lot of users here care about a quiet soul like me says a lot, really. I feel like I'm fitting in well (over 800 posts and counting!!!).

Oh, and over four months into the forums, and I haven't even answered some of the questions I was asked! Considering that I feel much more comfortable communicating with all the forum users, I'll finally share my answers now:
Anyway, I have to ask, who are your top five favorite villagers?

And if you need any assistance with the forum and how it works, feel free to ask any of us here! We would be glad to help out. :giggle:
I've previously explained my list in depth here, but as it stands right now:
  1. Bob
  2. Dotty
  3. Lopez
  4. Tom
  5. Cherry
I'm pretty tech-savvy with internet forums, but I'll definitely ask if I need any assistance!

Here's a question for you, because I'm curious : who's your favourite Animal Crossing NPC?
Rover! I love encountering him, considering that he only appears occasionally (excluding City Folk; he appears every day in the beginning loading screen). Rover is such a nice and easygoing character, and I love his appearance, too. I wish I could encounter him more often.

do you have a favourite out of the ac games you’ve played, or do you like them equally? have you thought about playing any of the games you haven’t yet?
Well, considering the amount of hours I've put into New Horizons - and the fact that its customization features blows every game out of the water - it's my favorite by far. Don't get me wrong, I do like New Leaf for its nostalgia factor, and City Folk is a nice revisit, though not daily these days. The only mainstream game I haven't played is Wild World, and I heard it's somewhat different than most of the later games. I'm not sure if I'll ever have an interest in playing it, but if my mom picks it up randomly at a garage sale (my parents run an internet resale shop), I'll definitely give it a try.

One final note - I'm just going to mention that this forum is fantastic. It's well-moderated (I got warned last week for sharing a sound-only video with a bad word in the title, LOL my mistake), full of friendly users, and still sees quite a bit of activity despite a lull in new Animal Crossing content lately. I haven't fully participated in any forum events yet, but maybe that'll change soon.
Go Space Whales!
 
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