I absolutely love New Leaf. I feel like it retains some of AC's trademark quirkiness while giving you more decoration options that older games. I wish it would have more options for interacting with villagers and that they'd be less repetitive but that and the lack of skin tones are my only real complaints.
What’s your honest opinion about new leaf ?
- Thread starter ethnicbraat
- Start date
coffeeplant
sappho's lost child. ❀˖°
I was late to New Leaf but I love it nonetheless. I love not having to micromanage everything. I enjoy waking up in the morning, turning on the game and noticing a new plot somewhere and even receiving letters from villagers who just decided to pack up and leave. I love how most of the NPCs have or will have a shop set up on main street eventually. It's refreshing to me not having to place every plot, decide where the shop goes, pick new villagers, etc. Sure I could use my amiibos or adopt a villager from someone else, but I feel like it would ruin the fun.
Long story short, I love how New Leaf allows me to relax and do my own thing without carrying the entire town on my shoulders. I love how the game stays fresh and everyday brings something - or someone - new to me. New Leaf has forced me to live amongst villagers I never would have picked for my NH island and like, that's what Animal Crossing should be about for me. Getting to know animals no matter how off-puting they are to me and maybe become their friend. In a way, it's reminding me that I shouldn't judge anyone or anything based on aesthetics and appearances only. After having played New Leaf for a while, I found myself actually wanting to let plots autofill in New Horizons or just take whoever has the personality I'm lacking at the moment. New Leaf has changed my play style and I'm grateful for it. Having nothing but cute villagers would be boring to me in the long run.
The only thing that bothers me a little is how often villagers request things from me, but that's okay. I'm having fun filling requests that aren't in New Horizons, like bringing Carmen furniture and telling Merengue how well her clothes fit her aesthetic on a scale of 1 to 10, for example. It's brand new to me and I'm having a blast. c:
(Hope that made sense, I feel like my english is even more broken than usual tonight. ^^; )
Long story short, I love how New Leaf allows me to relax and do my own thing without carrying the entire town on my shoulders. I love how the game stays fresh and everyday brings something - or someone - new to me. New Leaf has forced me to live amongst villagers I never would have picked for my NH island and like, that's what Animal Crossing should be about for me. Getting to know animals no matter how off-puting they are to me and maybe become their friend. In a way, it's reminding me that I shouldn't judge anyone or anything based on aesthetics and appearances only. After having played New Leaf for a while, I found myself actually wanting to let plots autofill in New Horizons or just take whoever has the personality I'm lacking at the moment. New Leaf has changed my play style and I'm grateful for it. Having nothing but cute villagers would be boring to me in the long run.
The only thing that bothers me a little is how often villagers request things from me, but that's okay. I'm having fun filling requests that aren't in New Horizons, like bringing Carmen furniture and telling Merengue how well her clothes fit her aesthetic on a scale of 1 to 10, for example. It's brand new to me and I'm having a blast. c:
(Hope that made sense, I feel like my english is even more broken than usual tonight. ^^; )
New Leaf is my favorite game in the franchise. I'm normally not into life-simulation games, but New Leaf intrigued me for its charm and customization options. I didn't even buy New Horizons when it was first released because the terraforming mechanics seemed overwhelming. Plus, NL has more mini games than NH, and I also like playing hide-and-seek with my villagers, which NH sadly doesn't have. Moreover, the breakable tools in NH are annoying, especially the Golden tools that should be unbreakable, so I definitely prefer NL over NH in this regard. I also love celebrating holidays with my villagers and have many fond memories spent with them, so NL is definitely the most nostalgic game in the franchise for me. There are even small things I appreciate about the game such as the music. I especially love the 5 PM and 7 PM themes, they're very sublime.
The dialogue in NL was by no means perfect but I still loved the villager personality types, especially, Lazies and Peppies. Also, I didn't mind the villagers being friendly in NL, though I think the Crankies should've been ruder and showed more anger towards the player so that they act more in accordance with their affiliated personality. However, I don't think the villagers should necessarily be as mean as they were in some of the previous entries. In GC and CF, the villagers would frequently insult the player and call them mean names for no reason. Even in Wild World, the Peppies and Jocks would scold the player for making a small mistake. It makes sense that Nintendo wanted to avoid offending players by making villagers friendlier, especially when considering the fact that there are 8-year-old kids playing this game. I just want more engaging dialogue, such as in WW where the Normals would give the player pop-quizzes every now and then, or how the WW villagers have witty conversations with each other that were both funny and charming. These aspects from previous games made me feel more connected to my villagers. In NL, the villagers in your town seldom have conversations with each other compared to WW and the dialogue gets repetitive, though it's still far more interesting than the dialogue in NH. I still find that NL has a great balance between both villager interaction and customization, which is what I admire about it. I won't keep my hopes too high about this, but I'd love to see a future AC game with the simplicity and charm that NL has.
There are a few other aforementioned gripes I have with the game such as grass deterioration and plot resetting which were nerve-wracking. Though overall, NL is a relaxing game and is one of the best in the series. Love it!
The dialogue in NL was by no means perfect but I still loved the villager personality types, especially, Lazies and Peppies. Also, I didn't mind the villagers being friendly in NL, though I think the Crankies should've been ruder and showed more anger towards the player so that they act more in accordance with their affiliated personality. However, I don't think the villagers should necessarily be as mean as they were in some of the previous entries. In GC and CF, the villagers would frequently insult the player and call them mean names for no reason. Even in Wild World, the Peppies and Jocks would scold the player for making a small mistake. It makes sense that Nintendo wanted to avoid offending players by making villagers friendlier, especially when considering the fact that there are 8-year-old kids playing this game. I just want more engaging dialogue, such as in WW where the Normals would give the player pop-quizzes every now and then, or how the WW villagers have witty conversations with each other that were both funny and charming. These aspects from previous games made me feel more connected to my villagers. In NL, the villagers in your town seldom have conversations with each other compared to WW and the dialogue gets repetitive, though it's still far more interesting than the dialogue in NH. I still find that NL has a great balance between both villager interaction and customization, which is what I admire about it. I won't keep my hopes too high about this, but I'd love to see a future AC game with the simplicity and charm that NL has.
There are a few other aforementioned gripes I have with the game such as grass deterioration and plot resetting which were nerve-wracking. Though overall, NL is a relaxing game and is one of the best in the series. Love it!
Last edited:
beachcrossin'
Stan 💚🐐🪕Nan!
it has its flaws like the lack of big customization ie clothing and but more importantly skin choice because im black and love collecting clothes :'') i want to fully immerse!! but the interactions/dialogue of the townsfolk is so worth the re-playablity imo!!
comingupwanameistheworst
☙Rocky❧
For me, New Leaf was the last "modern" animal crossing game that I really had any interest in, and where I think the series took a turn I personally dislike. Not to say it's bad, just not my cup of tea. I always found the whole public works thing nice to be able to customize one's town, but also extremely annoying since, unless you shared your console with anyone else, it was completely up to you to pay it off. Whenever I played the game, it always felt like those things hung over my head, and added more work/responsibility to a once very casual premise and setup. I still do like it, but, I prefer the formula of the older games more tbh.
Post automatically merged:
These are my thoughts as well! Very well put!
oath2order
#Porygon2024
It was a revolutionary turn for the series and easily my favorite.
I think animal crossing is at its best in hand held. Wild World and New Leaf feel like little shadow boxes of friends and crafts. New horizons makes dramatic changes that are better for people who want more control over customizing, but frustrate players who want something relaxing. so if you like chill animal crossing, New Leaf is peak.
Words cant describe how much i love this game, it can sound dramatic but its just New Leaf comforts me a lot, i suffer from depression and this game is like a support i dont get much from people. The villagers are like my family. The activities and dialogues are repetetive now i play for so long, but somehow i did not get tired of it. This game is amazing. 
NL was a good game. I think it kept enough of the charm of previous AC games while improving on the aesthetics and variety of "customizables" like furniture. I thought the concept of public work projects was charming. I especially liked that little box that tells you the weather forecast!
Compared to ACNH there are definitely fewer pocket spaces and design slots, but I really enjoyed working with those limitations anyways.
Compared to ACNH there are definitely fewer pocket spaces and design slots, but I really enjoyed working with those limitations anyways.
It's THE definitive AC game for me. They put in so much love and effort and even gave us a huge update years after the release. I remember being shocked at how much furniture you could customize and being eager to take new items to Cyrus. I clocked in so many hours with others playing the Island Tours.
If they made a game like NL but with NH's quality of life improvements, it would be perfect.
If they made a game like NL but with NH's quality of life improvements, it would be perfect.
themysterybidder
Devoted to Buck! (UK)
I started my AC journey with NH, so I do have soft spot for NH. After a few months, I did buy NL. I preferred the set up on the train rather than the airport and I do enjoy NL, but it's the graphics that put me off. If I had started with NL, it probably wouldn't have bothered me. But when I've seen a lovely clear image of Buck in NH I don't play NL much! I wish we could have a flower clock in NH though.
I still have my 3Ds i play ACNL, granted only on holidays as i leave it back at home since o work overseas but its still toons of fun even after haven played ACNH. Both games have their pros and cons and while i would have like that more small mechanics or small details where passed on NH, well its what it is i guess 
.
But i would say it is still 100% a fun game and i will continue occasionally playing in until my 3Ds dies on me.
There are too many small things i love about it and you all have mentioned most of them, but i have to say even though it is a super tiny detail i love when i log in and when my character exits her home during summer and starts sweating
such a silly tiny thing but makes me laugh ever time without a failure since my summers are just the same hahaha.
I would say 100% still recommended and fun game !
.But i would say it is still 100% a fun game and i will continue occasionally playing in until my 3Ds dies on me.
There are too many small things i love about it and you all have mentioned most of them, but i have to say even though it is a super tiny detail i love when i log in and when my character exits her home during summer and starts sweating
such a silly tiny thing but makes me laugh ever time without a failure since my summers are just the same hahaha. I would say 100% still recommended and fun game !
Whole heartedly think it’s the best animal crossing game. new horizons felt like an improvement but took so many steps backwards as well. New leaf with new horizons graphics would be perfect, but no turned into into less of a life sim and more of a building game. New leaf and the Town aesthetic will always feel more comforting to me atleast
VanitasFan26
I'm just a ghost.
Okay what I am going to say something maybe very controversial but I am going to say it. New Leaf is not much better than new Horizions. Hear me out. While New Leaf has great features like Tortmier Island, Variety of Shops, and Furniture Sets it feels very dated compared to New Horizions. With that said after you played New Horizions and try go back to New Leaf you find that the experience is so different. You cannot place objects outside and have to rely on Public Works Projects, The Villagers seem to often repeat Tutorials that you heard so many times, while asking for favors is more apparent in New Leaf than New Horizions there is not much variety of them weather its like a villager asking for fruit or if they borrowed something another villager and deciede to not return it relying on you to do it.
The Decorating aspect in this game is so limited and the storage space is also very limited. Since you cannot change much of your character since you have to reply on a questions system to choose how your character is going to look like. Same thing goes for the hair style when you go to Harriet to change your hair. Now with that being said New Leaf has a charm to it that seperates it from New Horizions. The Hourly music is great, the Main street is very lively when you see your past villagers visiting, and of course the feature to work with Brewster is really great. Its a shame none of this was brought back in New Horizions, although Brewster was brought back it just felt like a downgrade from what Brewster used to be in New Leaf.
Overall Animal Crossing New Leaf may have been the greatest game at the time, but if your first AC game was with Animal Crossing New Horizions it can be hard for new comers who have never played New Leaf to understand why it was beloved in the first place which can make it frustrating for them. I have to be honest if I played New Leaf before New Horizions maybe I would be more thrilled to play it. Not trying to say its a bad thing, I am just being brutally honest.
The Decorating aspect in this game is so limited and the storage space is also very limited. Since you cannot change much of your character since you have to reply on a questions system to choose how your character is going to look like. Same thing goes for the hair style when you go to Harriet to change your hair. Now with that being said New Leaf has a charm to it that seperates it from New Horizions. The Hourly music is great, the Main street is very lively when you see your past villagers visiting, and of course the feature to work with Brewster is really great. Its a shame none of this was brought back in New Horizions, although Brewster was brought back it just felt like a downgrade from what Brewster used to be in New Leaf.
Overall Animal Crossing New Leaf may have been the greatest game at the time, but if your first AC game was with Animal Crossing New Horizions it can be hard for new comers who have never played New Leaf to understand why it was beloved in the first place which can make it frustrating for them. I have to be honest if I played New Leaf before New Horizions maybe I would be more thrilled to play it. Not trying to say its a bad thing, I am just being brutally honest.
AgentBlade
Proud member of the Crystal Ballers
New Leaf has to be my favorite game not only cause it was my first but because it’s more simple with out terraforming however I still wish it had outside furniture
Firesquids
⛧Roxie of Avalar⛧
It was my fist Animal Crossing game and I think it may be the pinnacle of the series, I definitely enjoyed it more, and for longer than NH
TheThomas5252
Senior Member
New Leaf is easily my favorite Animal Crossing game for feeling like a perfect evolution of the previous games as well as introducing a ton of new elements while still keeping to the spirits of Animal Crossing
It's still a beloved game to me. The music is amazing, the online features are really fun and there are so many little details that add to its charm. Most of my favourite furniture items are in this game. I had so much fun playing alone and online with other people.
When I go back and play it it's admittedly a lot clunkier than I remember with regard to QoL and I'm really grateful for the upgrades we got in NH. I also remember getting stressed out by plot resetting and walking around my town a million times to make sure none of my villagers were trying to move out. Things like that mean I probably wouldn't go back to playing the game consistently, but overall I still think it holds up and it's clear why it's such a well-loved game. I still check in sometimes and remember all of the good times I had with it.
When I go back and play it it's admittedly a lot clunkier than I remember with regard to QoL and I'm really grateful for the upgrades we got in NH. I also remember getting stressed out by plot resetting and walking around my town a million times to make sure none of my villagers were trying to move out. Things like that mean I probably wouldn't go back to playing the game consistently, but overall I still think it holds up and it's clear why it's such a well-loved game. I still check in sometimes and remember all of the good times I had with it.
Last edited:
I still love it, I have actually been playing a lot of it lately (along with New Horizons) and I have been making a lot of good progress on it so far. It is hard to say whether this or New Horizons is better because they both have their own charm. New Horizons did a lot of things New Leaf didn't do, but New Leaf did a lot of things that didn't carry over into New Horizons. I've played all five, and thanks to Dolphin, I can play all five mainline games, and they are all good in their own way, but New Leaf and New Horizons are where it's at! <3333
rocketspruggs
Believe it!
I love it, I still play the game now and then.
Similar threads
