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Preview Animal Crossing: New Horizon in Pocket Camp’s crossover event

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Players can get a preview of Animal Crossing: New Horizons with a new crossover event in Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp that’s tied to the Switch exclusive. In the crossover, users of the free-to-play mobile game can experience a lighter version of Tom Nook’s upcoming deserted island getaway package until the limited-time event ends on April 2. Players can visit an island-like setting, compete in a fishing tournament, and unlock various log-in bonuses tied to the upcoming console release.

There are two log-in bonuses for Pocket Camp players to enjoy. The first is “On To New Horizons,” and it will only be available until March 20, when New Horizons comes out. The other bonus lasts through April 12 and allows players to claim 20 leaf tickets.

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The Nook Inc. representatives have arrived! Timmy, Tommy, and Tom Nook are ready to treat you to a sneak peek at the Deserted Island Getaway Package here in Pocket Camp! pic.twitter.com/gaHJYKtnuc

— Pocket_camp (@Pocket_Camp) March 12, 2020

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Fishing is a big part of island life, and that’s no different in the Pocket Camp collaboration. Not only can players take part in a fishing tourney called Island Excursion, but they can also buy a Fishing Tourney Support Pack in the store. Both the tourney itself and the support pack are only available through March 19, although the trophy players can earn from Island Excursion will be available until March 20.

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That’s not all that Tom Nook has to offer players, though. His nephews Timmy and Tommy, who are both heavily featured in New Horizons, will help players unlock two pieces of special furniture, the Timmy’s Nook Inc. and Tommy’s Nook Inc. banners. As a bonus, both Timmy and Tommy will wear Hawaiian shirts when hanging out around the player’s campsite, to fit in with the new island theme of New Horizons. These bonuses are available the longest of all the tie-in features and will be present until May 11.

Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp originally released on iOS and Android in November 2017. The mobile game allows players to perform tasks to increase their relationship with other villagers and live on a campsite rather than a town. New Horizons will be the first mainline entry in the popular life simulation series since 2012’s Animal Crossing: New Leaf on Nintendo 3DS and, as mentioned previously, will see players living on a deserted island.

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Tyler Treese
Tyler Treese
Former Digital Trends Contributor
When not playing or writing about games, Tyler Treese serves as the Senior Editor at Wrestlezone. An experienced writer that…
Animal Crossing Halloween event: costumes, items, dates, more
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While this isn't the first Halloween players will experience in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, it is the first since the 2.0 update added a ton of new features and items. This makes this year's Halloween festivities the biggest yet. If you're a fan of all things creepy and spooky but always in a fun and adorable way, here are all the events, costumes, and items you can look forward to picking up during the Halloween event in Animal Crossing: New Horizons.

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Disney Dreamlight Valley and Harvestella make one critical farming mistake
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Thanks to games like Stardew Valley and Animal Crossing: New Horizons, farming and life-simulation games are back in fashion. They've also dominated September, as Disney Dreamlight Valley launched earlier this month and games like Harvestella, Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life, Fae Farm, Rune Factory 3 Special, and a brand new Rune Factory title all got segments in the latest Nintendo Direct. Harvestella even got a demo after the September 13 Nintendo Direct -- one I immediately downloaded to get my farm on early.
Getting into it though, I found that Harvestella already has a problem I've noticed in many titles that are part of the genre boom, including Disney Dreamlight Valley: they don't get to the farming fast enough, damnit!
While that might seem obvious, recent games in the genre have had long-winded opening before the player has any farming tools in hand. As players come to these games for the farming and simulation elements, developers looking to join in on the trend may want to take some pacing cues from games like Stardew Valley by trimming down their front-heavy lore drops and getting players to the fields sooner.
Let's jump into it
Part of the beauty of Stardew Valley is how quickly it immerses the player in the game's core concepts. The indie hit lets players loose to farm or build within 10 minutes before slowly expanding systems outwards and letting players get more invested in the game's world and story. You'll know whether or not you'll like Stardew Valley within 10 minutes of playing, and will already have crops that give you a reason to stick around if you do like it. 
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Shortly after, I checked Harvestella's demo out after it dropped during the September 13 Nintendo Direct. I expect I'll end up playing more when it launches, as I'm intrigued by its world and mix of action RPG and fantasy sim. That said, I found myself trudging through the demo as I had to deal with lots of exposition and simple "walk to" objective gameplay before I could actually get to any farming or RPG elements. While I'm glad I didn't stop playing the demo, I almost did due to the glacial pacing.
I wish Harvestella had more quickly gotten me into its gameplay loop before then dumping its intriguing lore on me. That's not to say the story isn't important in these kinds of games. Some of the most memorable parts of Stardew Valley and Animal Crossing: New Horizons are getting to know the residents that you live alongside. The sim elements are what draws the most players in, as well as what will get them into a routine that they can get hooked on.
HARVESTELLA - 2nd Trailer
Devoting over 30 minutes to an hour of extra playtime in a game that can last dozens of hours may seem like arguing over semantics, but the first few moments of the game can make or break an experience. And when you're in a genre with so much competition these days, players can easily move on to something equally as interesting if they aren't immediately hooked. The best simulation experiences cut the fluff, get players right into the action, and save the deeper elements for later. Future farming and life simulations game should take note if they want to potentially take off as Stardew Valley did. 

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Nintendo’s mobile gaming efforts kicked off in the mid-2010s. Niantic created the AR game Pokemon Go, which quickly became a smashing success in 2016. In the six years since, the game has generated around 678 million installs and $6 billion in player spending, according to data from Sensor Tower.
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While watching Fire Emblem Engage’s reveal during the latest Nintendo Direct, it became clear that Nintendo’s mobile games have quietly become influential forces in the company's console games. Nintendo has slowly plucked the best ideas out of them and brought them into Switch games without extra monetization. While the future is cloudy for Nintendo's seemingly stalled mobile push, I hope the company can still find a place for its games on mobile, using the platform as a space to experiment with its beloved series.

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