So, fellow Nook fans, are we ready to speculate about a new Animal Crossing game? After Nintendo ended service on Animal Crossing: New Horizons, we’ve been feeling a bit down and out about our future villagers and town building, but leaks and rumors are here to give us hope about the next game, likely releasing on the Switch 2.
For some upcoming games that we do have information about, here are the best new Nintendo Switch games. If you’re heading back to your island, we can help with our ACNH flower breeding guide, ACNH art guide, and a list of every Animal Crossing amiibo card.
Is there a new Animal Crossing game in 2025?
Currently, we don’t know whether there’s a new Animal Crossing game coming in 2025. However, as Nintendo has announced that the Nintendo Switch 2 will arrive in 2025, there’s a chance we may see a new game on the (new) horizon. However, Nintendo didn’t announce New Horizons until two years after the original Switch’s debut, with the game releasing a year later in 2020, meaning we may have a while to wait.
As for the most recent Animal Crossing game, December 2, 2024, saw the release of a ‘Complete’ version of Animal Crossing Pocket Camp on iOS and Android, after the shutdown of the online services in the game.
While it’s not a fully new Animal Crossing game, it offers the ability to play Pocket Camp on the go without an internet connection, and without any in-game transactions, so it’s great for a quick AC fix.
Are there any new Animal Crossing game rumors?
Back in March 2024, leaker @NWeedle posted this tweet appeared to X claiming that a new Animal Crossing game is in development and is an “ultimate version”. Obviously, this set the community ablaze with speculations, but let’s dive into this leak and take a realistic look at what it could mean.
Firstly, the leaker has a good track record, having previously announced the Baten Kaitos remaster, Metroid Dread, and other titles, so this isn’t a totally random finding.
I believe the ‘ultimate’ part is a descriptor, not the name of the actual game, and likely points to the content in the game – like an advert describing it as “the ultimate Animal Crossing game”, mostly due to the fact that Animal Crossing Ultimate sounds like a fighting game.
The leak suggests that there’s a large city with skyscrapers. Personally, this does not feel like Animal Crossing, unless it means a city hub like in the Wii’s Animal Crossing: City Folk, and has some larger buildings in the background. An actual city setting goes against a lot of the franchise’s core values about taking your time and immersing yourself in nature. The leak also states that you can control vehicles. Does this mean that we can drive Kapp’n around and use the bike items? Only time will tell.
Next, the leak says there are ‘adventure missions, puzzles, and mini-games’. In previous titles we did get mini-games – not just playing cards with your villagers for a piece of cruddy furniture – that you could play and were different from the main Animal Crossing experience. Animal Crossing: New Leaf had Desert Island Escape and Puzzle League which people expected to come back in New Horizons, however, they sadly did not.
Of course, at this point we presume that ‘Ultimate’ likely relates to the Complete version of Pocket Camp, though.
What will the next Animal Crossing game be like?
Each iteration of Animal Crossing builds on the last, adding a bigger base world, more customization options, more villagers, and usually some new shopping opportunities or venues to visit.
The next game could take place in a new setting, though it’s likely to retain the peaceful woodland feel with a town or city as a destination that you can visit. We might get new transport options akin to the Mario warp pipes in New Horizons, and we’re sure to get more multiplayer options and things to do with our friends. Similarly, we might see more smartphone usage that builds on the Nintendo Switch Online app’s Animal Crossing section and brings in features from Pocket Camp.
It’s also highly likely there will be plenty of new villagers to meet and make friends with, along with some NPCs working at the town hall equivalent and in the stores we frequent.
Obviously, it would be amazing if we did get a new Animal Crossing sooner rather than later, but keep your expectations realistic. In the meantime, there are new Star Wars games and new Pokémon games to look forward to.