Two Weeks in Aurora: Lockdown and Animal Crossing
- JB
- Apr 6, 2020
- 4 min read
Updated: Apr 19, 2020
When I wake up, I can hear the waves on the shore, just a few paces from my house. Occasionally I hear the splosh of a fish leaping out of the water. Shaded by a grove of peach trees on one side, my room is cool and dark as I get up and potter about. I go to my tape player and rifle through my slowly amassing collection of music; KK Surf is my choice for the day. Grabbing a net, a slingshot and a shovel, I head out my door. It’s a new day, and the island is rife with adventure.
At least, this is what my mornings are like in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. In real life right now, all I’m really doing is pottering around my house, writing, walking the dog and playing video games. As I live in a rural area, though the fear is definitely present, it almost feels like when I was on summer holiday from school; both of my parents worked, so I was locked to the house or the local area for most of the day with nothing much to do but wait. Very well timed with everyone being stuck inside, Nintendo’s newest addition to the Animal Crossing series, New Horizons, has dominated the gaming conversation for the last two weeks. The adorable life sim, famed for it’s cute aesthetics and relaxing nature, has sold incredibly well (with 1.8m units sold in the first 3 days in Japan (Famitsu)) and twitter lighting up with peoples discoveries, interactions and designs within the game.
I named my island in Animal Crossing: New Horizons Aurora, going for something pretty and mystical rather than what I did in New Leaf (which was go for humour, my town was called Dickles) I set down my roots right on the beach, just in front of the western river mouth. I like the sunsets especially over on that side. My outside space is currently cluttered with the egg madness of bunny day, but I’ve got a flower garden where I’m attempting to propagate some interesting new colours. There’s a rocky outcrop just in front of my place where I’ve set up a wooden lounger, but I’m rarely there. Occasionally I’ve caught Lyman having a nap, but I don’t mind. At the other end on the western beach is Renée’s house. I’ve set up a bonfire and picnic area there too, but I think it’s far enough away from her front door she doesn't have any issues with it.
Renée and Lyman are day 1 residents, like me. Renée sleeps late so I only ever see her in the afternoon, but she’s sweet. Lyman is big into fitness, or at least he talks about it a lot, but I never see him using any of the gym equipment I’ve made for him… Since then we’ve been joined by Ozzie, who talks to the bugs on his floor all the time, and Nibbles, an aspiring pop star. Nibbles is super into video games too, so we’re planning an Aurora games night. Our fifth resident is called Aurora, and though Tom Nook says it’s a coincidence that she moved to an island with the same name, we all think it’s a sign she belongs here.
Aurora is slowly becoming tamed by my efforts, though I am leaving sections heavily wooded and unpopulated. My favourite wilderness is over on the north eastern side of the island, where there are two sets of cliffs to scale before you reach a high bamboo forest. The cliffs fall away to a steep drop to the beach, and sometimes I see a shipwrecked bird there. I help him if I can, though I don’t think he’s that great of a sailor considering how often I find him.
After the first two weeks on Aurora, I’m just passing the point where you usually start in Animal Crossing, with the shops open and villagers increasing in numbers. Though it’s been a very different beginning to other games in the series, the effort to get to this point has been rewarding.
Animal Crossing has always held a magic quality about it. The reward loop for doing menial tasks is almost perfect, and always draws you back in and rewards you for your effort. Now in New Horizons having the ability to control the majority of aspects of the island means that you can finally sculpt everything to how you want it, rather than just dealing with where the game placed buildings and landforms. With our new normal and the deeply disturbing news coming in from around the world, Animal Crossing offers a gentle solace. It offers the ability to run around with your friends outside (virtually) and instils genuine joy for bugs, fish and plants. Friends that have the game text me to see what fruits and flowers I’ve managed to find, and we’ve got a trade network of different islands. If there’s a new DIY recipe to be found, the word gets out and we all go visit. My experience with the multiplayer hinges around trading and joy for nature; I don’t think I’ve ever sent so many messages about oranges or tulips.
With the times that we are living in currently, I am glad that I have somewhere safe and quiet to go, and I’m also glad that Animal Crossing is doing for so many others what it does for me; create an outlet for creativity and discovery. Self care takes a variety of different forms, and for me, a big part of that right now is setting aside an hour or two for Animal Crossing. The feeling of achieving something, of getting to explore, run and talk to my friends, so valuable in normal circumstances, is even more so currently. For anyone who’s still on the fence about it, have a think about Animal Crossing: New Horizons.
Well, that’s enough writing for now: time to get back to Aurora.
Sources:
All images taken from my own copy of Animal Crossing: New Horizons
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