Opinions on ACNH was "a fad"

[Rika092]

Every game has a lifecycle, where it grows to peak and then dies down over time as people move on, leaving in the end only hardcore fans who probably continue to play until the very end. ACNH’s growth to peak period just turned out to be super accelerated primarily due to global quarantine during release. Many new players were introduced to ACNH due to social media or influence from their family and friends, and the fact that the game served as a perfect outlet to offload their stress/anxiety/boredom/extra energy as a result of being locked down at home in turn helped the game to reach out to player bases that the previous AC games were never able to tap into, and all of a sudden the game exploded in terms of popularity. But with quick peak comes to the quick declinIng phase as well. Some new players probably become a part of the permanent fandom if simulation games is their thing, but those who just jumped on the hype bandwagon during initial release and are not used to the long term play style that is inherit to AC games will move on to other games quickly once playing ACNH isn’t considered cool or trendy anymore. This is all quite natural, and as much as it seemed to be a fad that comes and go quickly the phenomenon does not deviate from the typical game lifecycle curve.

Personally I could care less what other people think about the game, and I will probably continue to play the game very much into the years to come (I did that with ACNL). That said, Im also not a streamer/video gameYouTuber, and don’t have 10 different gaming consoles and a gazillion different video games at home to choose from, and a cute simulation game that allows me to collect items and exercise artistic muscle happens to be my jam. Of course, it’d be nice to convince my friends to play the game with me (yes I have a friend who started playing exactly because of the hype, and then quickly moved on to other stuff because she’s not really into the decorations stuff) but not everyone is in the same situation so it is what it is. This is also why I’m on the TBT forum because I know there are still a bunch of active players here.

 

[maria110]

I first heard about ACNH on Twitter. I think it was Chrissy Teigen whose tweet I saw. I wondered why she was talking about an island. And then other people I follow were tweeting jokes about turnip prices. It was everywhere! So I was curious about it. I think it was kind of a fad back last spring but some of the people like me who followed the fad stuck with it, so it now has a bigger permanent fan base, probably. Of course, some AC fans don't like ACNH so it might have lost some fans also, but probably it's had a net gain.

 

[Kuroh]

I feel like a lot of people had waited so long for a new Animal Crossing game, that when ACNH came out, they were so into it that they didn't have a balance for how long they played. Especially with the immense hype around the game, people being home from quarantine, and outdoor customization being a major improvement. These aspects resulted in becoming burnt out from either hundreds or 1000+ hours within a short time.

It's true that people do move on from things relatively fast, however, I did notice that New Leaf seemed to keep people's attention for several years. For example, TBT was extremely active back in New Leaf days (for many years before becoming inactive) and became more active again with New Horizons. However, I noticed a lot of sections on TBT became more inactive around September 2020 when everyone started feeling burnt out from New Horizons. I joined TBT 3 years after New Leaf's release date and this site's community was more active then than it is now, I'd say!

(*All of this is just my personal take on it based from observations, I don't think there is a right or wrong answer!)

 

[JKDOS]

I don't think it was a fad. It has just fallen short of what it should have been. Tools breaking is unexpected, and is really a bummer that they didn't limit it to flimsy tools only or at least let gold tools not break since we do have to work hard to earn those.

It's sad Nintendo seems to be purposely holding content back from us. Example, rather than have Leif in the game from the start, they waited until Nature Day. For diving, they waited until summer. They waited until August to give us the August Firework shows, and so on.


It sucks that we have to wait so long to get the rest of the main/base features in the game, but when all is said and done, it will be water under the bridge. Just hope 2021 is the final year for getting the base features and we don't have to wait until sometime in 2022 to get the rest of the base features. Since Nintendo does seem to be purposely holding things back, I do believe by the time we reach the game's anniversary, we will have everything, leaving the rest of the game's life open for QOL and new feature updates.

However I have no faith that Nintendo will ever fix things like Dodo airlines dialogue, multiplayer loading screen, Able Sisters shopping, bulk crafting, or breaking tools. These will just have to be things we put up with.

 

[Kattea]

I mean I'd have to say it was a fad, since everyone I know irl who played it have stopped now. But that just means those of us who are still playing it really appreciate the game for what it is, a slow paced and relaxing game.

 

[RedPanda]

I definitely think this game had a moment where it was peaking and trending. There was even a late night TV show that used the game’s social component to host guests and stuff. Like famous ones. It was pretty much THE game for a hot minute.

But that isn’t the typical fan base for this game. As others have said, the buzz attracted a lot of curious people who wanted to see what all the fuss was about. They played for a bit and moved on.

There will always be a core base that will remain interested in this game for the long run. I am among those people; I played New Leaf and maintained my town for several years. Granted I didn’t play ten hours a day but the game isn’t meant for that. I took daily sips - mostly on the metro to work and back. It was fun. A little moment of zen. And that is exactly why I will keep playing New Horizons in 2021 and 2022 even. Probably not as much as I did during the insanity of 2020, but a little here and there.