So no new content?

[Steampunk Mage]

Any reason that this Animal Crossing hasn't gotten new content since the Happy Home Paradise expansion, whereas New Leaf got the Welcome amiibo expansion years after it first released?

I feel like this entry is a bit lacking in content compared to New Leaf.

 

[Dunquixote]

Any reason that this Animal Crossing hasn't gotten new content since the Happy Home Paradise expansion, whereas New Leaf got the Welcome amiibo expansion years after it first released?

I feel like this entry is a bit lacking in content compared to New Leaf.

They made an announcement a couple years ago when the last content was introduced. That’s why; the game has been done being updated for a year or more now.

 

[Steampunk Mage]

They made an announcement a couple years ago when the last content was introduced. That’s why; the game has been done being updated for a year or more now.

So, why'd they stop releasing new content then? It could have gotten them even more money.

 

[Dunquixote]

So, why'd they stop releasing new content then? It could have gotten them even more money.

Whoa chill. I’m just answering your question. Idk. I don’t work for Nintendo. I don’t know how they think. I wonder a lot about their decisions too. Like if they had handled the scalping of the amiibo packs and not limited the sales, they could’ve made more money.

 

[kemdi]

Yeah, unfortunately Nintendo made it very clear a while ago that development and updates for New Horizons was finished with update 2.0. But look at the bright side: Animal Crossing is now one of Nintendo's most popular franchises, and it's the second highest selling game on the Switch. Plus the Switch's lifetime is coming to an end, and Nintendo has already confirmed the development of the Switch's successor. All this to say that the AC developers are more likely than not currently working on the next game in the series, which will likely be released on the upcoming Switch successor console. As much as I would love to see more NH updates, I'm more excited for the potential possibilities for whatever comes next with Animal Crossing.

 

[Halloqueen]

Nintendo has 10 production groups as part of its Entertainment Planning & Development Division, otherwise known as Nintendo EPD.

According to Wikipedia:

- Production Group No. 2 oversee and produce games developed by external studios and published by Nintendo, such as the Kirby, Xenoblade Chronicles, and Fire Emblem series.

- Production Group No. 3 develops the main The Legend of Zelda series.

- Production Group No. 4 develops casual and experimental games such as 1-2-Switch, Nintendo Labo, Ring Fit Adventure, Big Brain Academy: Brain vs. Brain, Jump Rope Challenge, Game Builder Garage, Nintendo Switch Sports and Everybody 1-2-Switch!

- Production Group No. 5, with group manager Aya Kyogoku, develops the Animal Crossing and Splatoon series.

- Production Group No. 6 oversee and produce games developed by external studios and published by Nintendo, such as the Paper Mario, Metroid Prime and Luigi's Mansion series.

- Production Group No. 7 co-develops 2D Metroid games with MercurySteam and Famicom Detective Club games with MAGES.

- Production Group No. 8, also known as Nintendo EPD Tokyo, develops 3D Super Mario games.

- Production Group No. 9 develops the Mario Kart series and also worked on Arms.

- Production Group No. 10 develops 2D Super Mario games (including the Super Mario Maker series) and the Pikmin series.

- Smart Device Production Group, with group manager Hideki Konno, develop smartphone games alongside other EPD groups as well as produce games by external studios.

As mentioned in that quoted section, Production Group No. 5 develop both Animal Crossing and Splatoon.

I don't play the Splatoon series and don't really want to go do a deep dive into all the crossover amongst the Production Group No. 5 team since it's late here right now, but it can probably be reasonably assumed that focus was shifted more heavily into the development of Splatoon 3, which released in 2022.

Who knows what exactly was going through their heads over at Nintendo during New Horizons' development and post-release lifespan. It's entirely possible that what we got is all that they planned, but considering the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, we don't really know to what degree that impacted the production and release of updates. Maybe there were more things planned that didn't end up seeing the light of day. Considering that the game sold so well, becoming not only the best selling Animal Crossing game and the second best selling Nintendo Switch game, but also the best selling game of all time in Japan and the 14th-best selling game in history, maybe they saw it as their work being done, that they didn't need to add anything else. Considering that massive reception, they probably did leave a good amount of money on the table, but that probably also depends on how well the Happy Home Paradise DLC sold, as a way to see who stuck around and didn't just drop the game after a few months.

To some of us longtime fans, or even people who had jumped into the series with New Leaf, certain aspects of New Horizons do seem lacking in comparison to New Leaf. For the subset of fans such as myself who, while we might enjoy New Horizons, are still disappointed in some regards, we just kind of have to hope that the lessons they took from New Horizons' success don't alter the series' future direction too radically from what we've liked and been accustomed to. Only time will tell though, whenever the next Animal Crossing game is released.