The Animal Crossing series is one of the most popular of the life sim genre, and Animal Crossing: New Horizons pushed the series to become the most popular entry in the franchise yet. As tried and true as the typical Animal Crossing formula is, the series really needs to go big in the next entry if it's going to top Animal Crossing: New Horizons. The next logical step for the series would be to transcend the confines of the life sim genre and incorporate elements from others, and MMO-like features could be a perfect fit as the series evolves.
A trend seems to be emerging for historically non-MMO franchises adding online functionality similar to an MMO without fully becoming one. Diablo 4's MMO elements are a great example of this phenomenon with players being able to see others in the overworld and participate in events with them without having to be in a party together. A similar approach to online multiplayer could be just what the Animal Crossing series needs to up the ante after Animal Crossing: New Horizons' multiplayer system.
Animal Crossing Could Incorporate MMO Elements in its Next Entry
For how much Animal Crossing: New Horizons emphasizes playing with friends, it takes a pretty bare-bones approach with how it lets players connect with one another. The requirement to open the island's gates to let friends in or utilize a Dodo Code already makes it somewhat of a hassle to visit a friend, but once they're on the player's island, there isn't much to do that warrants the hassle. Instead of having to stop whatever task the player is in the middle of to visit or host a friend, the next Animal Crossing should find a way to allow players to see each other building their own towns simultaneously.
A necessary step for this type of online functionality to be possible is for the next Animal Crossing game to go open world. This type of game could revolutionize the series if it allowed players to travel around the map before settling in a spot where they want to start building their town. Much like how Animal Crossing: New Horizons let players go on Mystery Island Tours, players could then venture outside their established town to collect resources, recruit new villagers, or even visit special areas like the City from Animal Crossing: City Folk.
This type of gameplay loop creates the perfect opportunity for MMO-like cooperation among Animal Crossing players as they could be able to encounter one another while exploring outside the limits of their individual towns. It would be a fun change of pace to see other players going about their own business, chopping down trees, digging up fossils, fishing, etc. without having to specifically invite them into the player's own town and risk having them upset the landscape they've carefully constructed.
With this system, players would have the chance to see others out and about during their adventures, but could still restrict who is able to come into their town to their friends. A change like this would require Nintendo to overhaul their approach to online play in the Animal Crossing series, but it could be for the best as it would help the game feel more alive and give the world a sense of scale outside the player's quaint little town.
This type of game wouldn't have to fully embrace the MMO formula as even being able to see other players within the same instance of a world would be enough to make it feel more alive and add a reason for players to venture outside their home village. A game of this scale might be a massive undertaking to pull off, but the popularity of the Animal Crossing series after the success of New Horizons warrants it.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons is available for Nintendo Switch.
