I Thought I Was Done With Animal Crossing, And Then I Played New Leaf

The Animal Crossing franchise has always held an important place in my heart, with Wild World on the Nintendo DS being my introduction to it. The idea of life sims has always appealed to me, largely because it’s fun to escape from my own life, and Animal Crossing, up until Stardew Valley dropped, was the poster child for the genre. It absolutely embodies that cozy feeling players have been chasing, that warm welcome that no other game really gives, that peaceful complacency that makes everything feel like if only for a moment, it’ll be okay.

As I’ve gotten older, my relationship with video games has changed. Importantly, I used to love settling down and whiling away the hours in The Roost in Wild World, but now it has begun to feel like cozy games have lost their effect on me. This became more true when I first played Animal Crossing: New Horizons, which, despite being touted as one of the best Animal Crossing games, never gripped me. I had thought my love of both Animal Crossing and cozy games had all but disappeared. That was, of course, until I played New Leaf.

Animal Crossing: Wild World Was The Best Cozy Game Growing Up

It Was A Truly Formative Experience

I remember the day I got Animal Crossing: Wild World like it was yesterday. It was my birthday, and I was eager to get all the celebrations out of the way, so I could sneak off with my thick-as-a-brick DS and play some Animal Crossing. I climbed up my rickety bunk bed ladder, got cozy under my Thomas the Tank Engine covers, and began playing. Immediately, I was drawn in by the music, the 4 PM jingle ushering me into my new village as I was greeted by the various villagers I’d spend the next few months with.

Every day I’d check my village, hang out with my newfound friends, and try desperately to catch a K.K. Slider show. Some nights, I would sneak my DS into bed, hide under the covers and play, wandering around the mostly lifeless village as the other villagers slept before heading to The Roost for a coffee. There was something so peaceful, so quiet and beautiful about playing Wild World at night that the memory of it has become ingrained into my mind.

Now, there’s a good chance that nostalgia plays a role in my love for Wild World, but it is unquestioningly a beloved entry in the series. While it lacks the bells and whistles of later entries, and certainly doesn’t have as much stuff to do as New Horizons, there is enough going on to make it one of the best cozy games ever made. The unique personalities of each villager, the iconic music, the range of items to decorate your house with, and the way it weirdly introduces kids to mortgages like they’re no big deal. What a beautiful game.

It’s funny looking back on my time with Wild World, a game that made me fall in love with its fictional characters and their tiny town, as it felt like, no matter what, I’d be playing it forever. Childhoods are like that, a time when the concept of impermanence is a faraway notion, where friends feel like they’ll be around forever, and where anything feels possible. I eventually moved on from Wild World, abandoning Chevre, my favorite villager, and my bro, Cesar. Still, I always felt like Animal Crossing was for me, I just needed the next best one.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons Made Me Fall Out Of Love With The Series

It Felt Far Too Gamified

Sadly, the older I got, the lonelier I became. Friends moved on, university proved to be an exceptionally challenging time, and I realized that I had been, for a long time, depressed. Animal Crossing remained a fond memory, and every so often I’d buy a copy of Wild World, try again, fail to get into it – or more accurately recapture the magic – and sell it. I missed out on the Wii and 3DS eras, only getting to experience them at someone else’s house, so I never played New Leaf or City Folk growing up.

However, when Animal Crossing: New Horizons was announced, it felt like my time to get back into the franchise and reignite my wavering love for the cozy game genre had arrived. It looked set to fix a lot of the issues I had with Wild World – lots of things to do, more customization of the island – and I was excited. Animal Crossing: New Horizons reviewed very well, and so, feeling incredibly lonely and in need of digital friends, I bought it.

Unfortunately, as I had found many times before, I struggled to get into it. Firstly, it was the lackluster villagers who didn’t have quite as strong personalities as those in Wild World. Then, there were all the things that didn’t make sense in New Horizons: the frustrating gameplay loop and the gamified island management. Finally, I realized that, despite wanting to play it to relieve myself of my loneliness, I had escaped to a place that felt just as hollow as my real life.

So, I moved on, selling my copy, and deciding that Animal Crossing simply isn’t for me. In fact, I declared that the whole genre of cozy games wasn’t for me, and despite wanting to love games like Natsu-Mon: 20th Century Summer Kid and other games like it, I really struggled. That was back in 2020, and up until 2024, it remained that way. I felt lonely, broken, and had lost the one genre that gave me the warm fuzzy feeling that reminded me of a better time.

Animal Crossing: New Leaf Fixed My Love Of The Franchise

It Restored My Love Of Video Games

Don’t panic, this story ends well. I’ve recently discovered the magic of the best 3DS games, which there are a surprising number of. I’m not sure why I originally ended up skipping the 3DS, but I’m luckily now reaping the benefits of a console well past its lifespan. Of course, one of those incredible 3DS games is Animal Crossing: New Leaf, a game that is largely regarded as being better than New Horizons.

I’m not sure what compelled me to give it a go, but I’m grateful I did. New Leaf is a better game than New Horizons, with its plethora of differences giving it a significant leg up. For example, its villagers are more varied with their dialogue not repeating after just a few days. However, more importantly, New Leaf doesn’t feel like a game, it feels like a home. As corny as that is to say, it’s true, with it feeling more like the warm and welcoming cozy life sim experience that Wild World offered than New Horizons’ series of chores.

New Leaf
is a better game than
New Horizons
, with its plethora of differences giving it a significant leg up.

New Leaf offers me a world to genuinely get lost in full of characters that I actually want to talk to. Sure, it’s limited in its scope – villagers only really say one line at a time – but there’s a wonderful sense of being and place in New Leaf which Horizons lacks. It hasn’t quite cured my loneliness, but it has been there for me during difficult times, offering a safe space to delve into.

Animal Crossing: New Leaf reassured me that it’s not that I don’t love cozy games nor that I’ve fallen out of love with Animal Crossing. What’s more likely, is that nothing, in my opinion, ever reached the same heights as Wild World and New Leaf. I can understand why New Horizons went in the direction it did as it appealed to those that wanted more to do in Animal Crossing. However, the warmth of a friendly villager and the quiet calm of wandering around a small town will always far outweigh the busy gameplay of Animal Crossing: New Horizons.

Source: Games Home/YouTube, Reddit/Daeymieh, Nintendo of America/YouTube