Tom Nook looking to expand his business?
According to Next-Generation, reporting from sister publication Edge, the next Animal Crossing is going to be big. No, they aren’t flipping the script and reimagining the series as an epic action game set in an issolated dystopian society ruled over by one Thomas Nook, no. Instead, the game will apparently become a massively multiplayer online game. While this news isn’t confirmed by any means, Edge is a highly respected magazine, so more than a passing glance should be paid when they report this kind of news.
The MMO genre, popularly inhabited by the likes of World of Warcraft and Everquest, is a good fit for Animal Crossing, a game built around communication. Considering the DS version’s refinement of the formula, the only other logical continuation would be to open up the online aspects of the game. How open it could be is still up in the air, as currently, Nintendo’s friendcode system serves as an intentional barrier between players.
Now, if Nintendo knew what was good business, and as of lately it appears they do in fact know their business, they would release this as both a retail box game and a digital download, ala Sony’s Warhawk. Having a persistent Animal Crossing channel would finally destroy that last bit of restraint available to those wean themselves away from Nintendo’s king of obli-gaming: having to get up and place the damn disc into the slot. I know that really, that is one of the only things preventing me from booting up my old Gamecube town. Well, that, and the fear that my town’s villagers would break down my house’s door and string me up from the Wisdom tree.
No, seriously. I have nightmares.
- Rob O’Reilly
