Animal Crossing: New Horizons and DOOM Eternal are critically acclaimed sequels to long-running franchises, and both hit shelves on March 20. As if by some divine coincidence, this was right as social distancing protocols started to gear up around the world. Many gamers snagged their copies just in time and are now stuck inside, with plenty of time to indulge in picturesque island life... or an adrenaline-fueled romp through hell. For two wildly different games, they sure do have a lot in common -- and anybody lucky enough to grab one or both has a great experience ahead of them. They both provide incredibly methodical, therapeutic, and time-consuming experiences, even if they look like polar opposites.

Obviously, they're different genres: one is a social simulator and the other is a first-person shooter. One is kid-friendly and whimsical, the other is adult-oriented and incredibly gory. One is slow and meant to be played over the course of years, and the other is so fast that it can make players dizzy. However, Animal Crossing New Horizons and DOOM Eternal satisfy many of the same cravings -- cravings that are especially prevalent during social distancing.

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It's no secret that quarantines and social distancing measures have disrupted everyone's lives. Right now, everybody is looking for reliable entertainment -- not just stuff to keep them busy, but experiences that are time-consuming and require lots of investment. Naturally, social distancing is depriving people of their social lives, and so they're looking for experiences that can help with that too. They're also searching for some semblance of control, and in gaming, those are games that are easy to pick up and harder to master. With more time on their hands than ever, people want something to invest in -- Animal Crossing and DOOM Eternal check those boxes perfectly.

Both games require a lot of time and mastery. Animal Crossing's mechanics are simple, but it takes a while to learn the game's nuances. Even then, it takes longer to earn rewards via the game's slow-burn progression system. New Horizons is all about making money -- or, bells -- and it plays in real-time by tracking the date and time of the player's console. It must be played at least once a day for players to progress consistently. Thankfully, most people now have plenty of time. With this kind of structure, Animal Crossing is quickly consuming lives, allowing users to take a relaxing stroll on a virtual beach when they're not permitted to leave their homes.

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New Horizons is a social experience as well. Although the real meat of the game is single-player, it's easy to jump online and visit friends, even if the gameplay has little more to offer than a virtual hangout session -- and some trading to earn those sweet, sweet bells. And while the game is about making bells, the currency is used to improve the player's island. This roots the entire experience in methodical planning. Whether its resource management, crafting, or even some literal urban planning, New Horizons' leisurely pacing is balanced by dozens of objectives for the player to juggle and prioritize. Animal Crossing allows for some satisfying decision-making that makes players feel productive and efficient. That's a feeling everyone is craving right now.

DOOM Eternal is all of these things as well...but for a very different kind of player. The game is fast-paced, action-packed and relentless. Naturally, with more aggressive gameplay comes a much higher skill ceiling. The opening hours are mechanic-heavy and simplistic, but the game is incredibly difficult. While Animal Crossing takes time to progress, DOOM Eternal takes time to master in the most literal sense -- players will agonize over timing the perfect attacks, jumps and dodges. Eventually, players will learn the high-flying, violent ballet of DOOM's combat.

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Eternal is a different kind of investment than New Horizons and yet incredibly similar, as resource management and prioritizing goals during a fight (targets, in this case) are core to the experience. It might look like mindless violence, but players know that the game is incredibly methodical. Every combat encounter is full of split-second decisions that pile up and make DOOM Eternal feel more tactical than most self-serious first-person shooters on the market. DOOM Eternal also has a multiplayer mode, but like Animal Crossing, the single-player campaign is where the best content lies. Of course, their online components are opposites -- Eternal's is a highly competitive multiplayer mode -- but the option for social play is there for players who want it.

Managing resources, prioritizing objectives, and investing plenty of time: these are the basic principles that these very different games both live by. They're both repetitive and incredibly therapeutic, just for different kinds of people. Animal Crossing is low-energy and soothing -- it's the kind of game for those looking to lounge around. Meanwhile, DOOM Eternal for those who want to let off steam. Like Animal Crossing, one would need to work at it for hours, but eventually, players will end up in a relaxing flow-state, unless they crank up the difficulty and the volume.

These two aesthetic opposites are treated like siblings in the video game community, both holding audiences over while social distancing in all the right ways. That's because Animal Crossing: New Horizons and DOOM Eternal are both great games in their own right, but also they both scratch itches that everyone wants scratched right now. They require time, planning and the mastery of a decent learning curve.

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