This morning, October 15, 2021, Nintendo gave fans a look at a large amount of upcoming updates and paid DLC in an Animal Crossing: New Horizons Direct showcase. The new content and paid DLC, Happy Home Paradise, are planned for release on November 5, 2021. Among the many surprises in this showcase were that the Happy Home Paradise DLC, which costs $25 on its own, will be part of Nintendo’s upcoming Expansion Pack to its online service, Nintendo Switch Online.

The first half of the presentation was focused on a large amount of free updates coming to the base game of Animal Crossing: New Horizons. In addition to The Roost, the coffee shop add on to the museum, shown off in Nintendo’s September Direct showcase, we learned about numerous other additions and customization options coming. Animal Crossing series staple Kapp’n will be docking at the pier and available to take you on boat tours to islands with different seasons, times of day or different flora. Harv’s island, previously restricted to photography, will now allow for permanent shops from regular island visitors such as Kicks and Sahara. Other Animal Crossing characters such as Katrina and Tortimer are also returning to the game.

In addition, there will be a group stretching mini-game where you can utilize motion controls if you wish, the option to enact ordinances to have villagers awake at different hours, more customization for your house and a storage expansion. Another large addition to the game is that of crops and cooking. There will be new fence recipes, the option for more bridges and inclines, an updated camera mode, more hair styles, reactions and the return of gyroids. This presentation was packed with updates for this game, and it was stated that version 2.0 releasing on November 5, 2021, will be the last major update for the game.

However, also releasing on November 5, 2021, is the paid DLC Happy Home Paradise. In this expansion, players will be able to build dream vacation homes for characters in an archipelago, working with Lottie to design houses on the various islands with whole new levels of customization, new furniture, and more. The DLC also allows you to take some of these customization options to your own island, and the possibility of villagers on your island requesting vacation homes, and even allowing you to modify their houses on your island. While this paid DLC is $25, it is also part of the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack. The price was briefly shown on screen for this Expansion Pack as $50 a year for individuals and $80 a year for the family membership.

There was so much announced in this Animal Crossing: New Horizons Direct that it might have been easy to miss that Nintendo is releasing the 5th series of the Animal Crossing Amiibo cards, which includes new cards and also is available on November 5, 2021.

What did you think of this jam packed Direct showcase? How do you feel about the paid DLC and cost of the Expansion Pack for NSO? Let us know in the comments below or join the discussion on the Boss Rush Discord.

SOURCE: Nintendo