Animal Crossing New Horizons Switch 2 version assessment – small worth, sm | Gaming | Entertainment | EUROtoday

Six years on from the launch of Animal Crossing New Horizons, we’ve entered a model new technology of Nintendo {hardware} with the Switch 2. Instead of launching a model new title within the collection designed for the up to date console, Nintendo has as a substitute launched an improve package deal that barely modernises 2020’s sport in a couple of refined methods.

After spending a couple of hours enjoying each the brand new and unique variations of Animal Crossing New Horizons on the Switch 2, it’s a difficult one to suggest for even essentially the most devoted of gamers. With a lot of the thrilling new content material for 2026 arriving at no cost, the advantages from the paid improve package deal really feel remarkably skinny compared.

Still, with a comparatively small entry charge, there are a choose few gamers that I believe the Switch 2 improve is for.

When Nintendo has issued paid upgrades for Switch 2 video games up to now, they’ve felt fairly substantial. Zelda Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom having their body charges leap to 60fps made them really feel nearly like fully new video games.

Throw in rays of sunshine bursting by means of tree canopies with the HDR implementation, and the expertise of enjoying these video games on Switch 2 feels tangibly completely different. It definitely made that £7.99 price ticket go down so much smoother.

I point out this as a result of it’s finest to maintain your expectations in verify when contemplating upgrading to the Switch 2 model of Animal Crossing New Horizons.

In phrases of graphical adjustments, the one main enchancment is to the decision. Handheld mode goes from 720p to 1080p, whereas docked goes from 1080p to 4K.

Yes, the extra sharpness is noticeable – however not gamechanging. Animal Crossing’s artwork model is just not one thing that advantages from ultra-sharp realism, so whereas it is good to have, I can’t say it’s one thing I felt I observed vastly when swapping from the outdated model to the brand new.

While I reckon the Nintendo Switch 2 is greater than doubtless able to operating a sport like this at 60fps, the brand new model is bizarrely caught at a decidedly last-gen feeling 30fps. If I had been to guess, I reckon the sport’s engine is prone to blame for this with its time-based gameplay mechanics stopping the body fee enhancement, but it surely’s irritating to see all the identical.

The result’s a sport that feels nearly precisely the identical to play whether or not you’re on the outdated {hardware} or the brand new. Unless you place each variations operating aspect by aspect, I wouldn’t have stated it made an enormous distinction to the gameplay expertise.

The different main addition you get with the Switch 2 is a brand new Megaphone merchandise. This utilises the Switch 2’s microphone, permitting you to name out a villager’s identify and summon them to your location in a pinch.

I do like this new addition, because it’s a sensible use of the trendy {hardware}’s capabilities. It’s additionally equally true that that is very a lot a ‘nice to have’ reasonably than a necessity.

I additionally assume the Megaphone is sort of antithetical to the vibe of Animal Crossing. There’s a tangible sense of politeness and neighborhood that trying to find a particular villager brings versus screaming their identify into the void to summon them.

The crux of it’s, the overwhelming majority of what makes Animal Crossing price enjoying in 2026 arrived within the 3.0.0 replace – and that’s out there at no cost as a part of the unique Switch sport.

Kapp’n’s Resort Hotel is a incredible new strategy to spend your time adorning rooms to a particular theme. Slumber Island can be a enjoyable time, letting your creativeness run wild with limitless numbers of things you’ve already encountered.

But in case you already personal a duplicate of Animal Crossing New Horizons, you personal all of that content material already.

If something, I’d say the primary motive to contemplate the improve to the Switch 2 model of ACNH is for the advantages to multiplayer. Instead of internet hosting as much as eight gamers on an island without delay, the upgraded model can deal with 12.

This is prone to be an enormous deal for many who use Animal Crossing as an everyday place to hang around with associates on-line. They’ll additionally doubtless admire the combination with the Switch 2’s GameChat function, which might show digital camera footage of every particular person’s face above their villager for realtime reactions.

So, is it price upgrading to the Switch 2 model of Animal Crossing New Horizons?

If you repeatedly play Animal Crossing New Horizons as a multiplayer sport and have discovered frustration with the earlier customer restrict, then the entry charge is probably going price springing for.

But if it’s visible upgrades you’re trying ahead to most, I believe lots of gamers are prone to be disillusioned. The lack of a body fee enhance, whether or not it’s for technical causes or not, ends in the sport feeling barely completely different to the model that got here earlier than it.

At the identical time, the improve charge is comparatively low, no less than in comparison with what Nintendo is charging for different packages. At £4.19, it’s priced about as excessive as I’d be keen to pay for an improve of this nature.

While the worth is low sufficient that you just would possibly overlook about it in your financial institution assertion fairly rapidly, I believe you’ll doubtless additionally overlook in regards to the upgrades you’ve gained in an equally speedy timeframe.