In the latest Nintendo Direct, a new Animal Crossing title was (FINALLY) announced and it will be accessible, at all times, right from our pockets! Rejoice, because Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp is hitting the small screens of our iOS and Android smartphones come late November!
Pocket Camp seems to be nothing like the much despised “train wrecks” Happy Home Designer and Amiibo Festival. The game actually plays like a traditional Animal Crossing only this time you won’t be managing an entire town like in A New Leaf, but rather a campsite! You won’t be decorating houses and sculpting town landmarks in Pocket Camp, no sirree, now you’ll be working on trailers and campgrounds as the new camp manager.
When it comes to getting furniture, you won’t be hitting up the store or shaking trees for now you must get your hands dirty by crafting it with materials that you collect by visiting places called Recreation Sites. You earn these materials through rewards achieved by helping out the villagers there. The collectibles are then given over to a familiar-looking, blue alpaca blacksmith by the name of – you guessed it – Cyrus, who will create the pieces in the blink of an eye.
He can also build different amenities (Public Works are back!) for the campsite, such as a pool, but not in the blink of an eye. Nope, he takes his time for these projects…unless you have Leaf Tickets. Leaf Tickets can be traded for materials or to pressure Cyrus to work faster. You get them from completing in-game quests or in exchange for real money.
Yes, Pocket Camp has micro-transactions, giving you the ability to be in debt to Tom Nook for real. The good news is our favorite evil raccoon shows face in Pocket Camp and only face (he’s not in the game, hehe) and the bad news is you will be in debt to a bunch of penguins this time. However, Nook’s legacy in the form of his nephews Timmy and Tommy will return and so will the Able Sisters, as well as Kicks who is still kicking.
Pocket Camp is multiplayer, as it should be, but only by adding each other’s exchange ID numbers (Friend Codes, lol) and visiting each other’s campsites, with the option of giving pointers on how to improve. And when your campsite looks good, it pays off. There is a new Friendship Level feature implemented in Pocket Game; players can tell how much an animal likes them – something we Animal Crossing fans have longed for. Also, we can catch use fishing nets to catch multiple fish at a time now – another one!
Additionally, the season system along with seasonal events will be in full effect but in real time! So, when Santa Claus is coming to town shortly after Pocket Camp‘s launch, you can expect beautiful snowfall and decked halls in the game as well.
Last but not least, they launched an official website for the game too – and it’s absolutely adorable. There, you can pre-register to be notified exactly when Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp goes live – like you and I aren’t already mashing the refresh button every second.
Until then, you can watch the original 15 minute long Nintendo Direct here, or check out the trailer below! Excited for Animal Crossing’s first ever venture into mobile gaming? Will it be a regular in the Games folder of your smartphone, or will it be something you think you’ll delete shortly after?