Animal rights organization PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) is using the Nintendo Switch game Animal Crossing: New Horizons as a way to protest animals being kept in aquariums.As in previous Animal Crossing installments, the character Blathers encourages players to catch bugs and fish, as well as dig up fossils, in order to fill his museum and contribute to the cultural endeavor of the island. PETA, however, was having none of it, as seen on a Tiktok video uploaded to PETA's official Twitter and captioned "A cultural reset".RELATED: PETA Petitions Taika Waititi to Make Thor Vegan in Love & Thunder

The video features eight players' avatars, all wearing black "PETA" shirts, protesting how fish are captured for the museum. Players displayed signs outside reading "Fish belong in the ocean," before storming the building. They surrounded Blathers and ran through the museum, their text bubbles reading "EMPTY THE TANKS" and "Fish are friends," many using the encouraging reaction learned in the game.

Afterwards, all eight protestors stood behind their signs. The video ends with text saying that "Blathers encourages villagers to take fish out of their natural habitats so he can trap them in tiny tanks - CANCELED" and "#Blathersisoverparty."

This is not the first time PETA has criticized the museum. In a blog post titled Vegan's Guide to Animal Crossing, PETA argues that while the fish don't feel pain, "tearing the wildlife right out of their ocean homes so that you can 'donate' them to Blathers for museum exhibits is not only cruel but also bad for the environment." The post also mentions that catching bugs, collecting clams and hermit crabs, and wearing certain clothing is also cruel.

PETA encourages players to try vegan friendly activities, which include raiding "a friend’s island to protest their museum for keeping fish captive."

New Horizons is the latest game in the Animal Crossing series by Nintendo. During the pandemic, it has provided hours of comfort and kept communication open between friends.

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