With the July 3rd update of Animal Crossing: New Horizons, fans are finally getting a taste of what Nintendo's online content support might look like going forward. Nintendo has updated the game since its release in March, but the July 3rd update is one of the biggest yet. And yet, despite the hype and the flowering player base, the update offers little to reinvigorate the Animal Crossing experience. Although it adds a swimming function and some new characters, the real surprise in the update comes in the form of something very minor: dialogue changes.
The New Horizons fanbase is clamoring for more than just new animals to interact with. The game is in desperate need of small, quality-of-life updates. Nothing is necessarily broken, but key features such as crafting menus and customization menus need to be streamlined. Thankfully, Nintendo seems to be aware of these minor gripes, as it has finally corrected one by altering dialogue with Saharah, the traveling rug and flooring merchant.
Saharah, a camel who visits periodically to sell to the player, has always had a time-consuming dialogue tree. Saharah's lines are wordy and repetitive, but to make matters worse, players must constantly exit and reinitiate conversation with her after making a purchase. Like most of the issues in New Horizons, it's a minor annoyance with an easy remedy. Players enjoying the July update are surprised to find that a new dialogue option appears when talking to Saharah. After making a purchase, she'll simply ask the player if they want to buy another item. And just like that, a small but common inconvenience has been fixed. Why hasn't Nintendo focused more on quality-of-life changes like this one?
This has been a significant criticism of New Horizons - although the game introduces plenty of new ideas, it is brimming with small gameplay oversights. Nintendo does seem prepared to keep content flowing, even with smaller gameplay updates like swimming and new items and creatures to collect. Although those features are welcome additions, they do not feel like enough while the game still has so many minor hangups that need addressing. Hopefully, the update to Saharah's dialogue is indicative of the kinds of changes to come, because there are still plenty more to address.
Donating fossils to Blathers is a wordy endeavor, and that's an instance where dialogue can be condensed. Island development projects can only be worked on one at a time, and that limit seems to be nothing but arbitrary. Couch co-op players are especially neglected - although the mode that requires each player to sign into a profile, only one player is allowed to access their inventory and phone. Other players are forced to send items they collect into the community chest, which is such an inconvenience that it discourages co-op play all together. Keep in mind that "inconvenience" is the operative word - these issues are not game-breaking individually, but compounded, they make for a cumbersome experience.
Now, for many players, New Horizons is enough in its current state. The gameplay is already fun, and even though the game could move faster and become more rewarding, there is nothing wrong with enjoying it as is. However, the fact that Nintendo seems capable of fixing these issues but refuses to address them is infuriating for fans who are losing interest in the game. Yes, new content is all but necessary to keep players coming back, but without fixing these small, pervasive issues, the Animal Crossing player base will slowly begin to shrink.
Nintendo needs to invest in substantial quality-of-life updates if they want to keep Animal Crossing as active as it is, and hopefully, the July update is a sign of good things to come. For now, players will have to enjoy a swimming mini-game and a handful of new fetch quests. New Horizons has only been out for a few months, so surely more updates lie ahead. However, if Nintendo's content updates will consist of annoying busywork (such as the much-maligned Bunny Day update), then all die-hard fans will have to wait for are long overdue meaningful improvements for the die-hard fans.