Aside from the escapism and serenity that the small village of talking animals gives, Animal Crossing: New Horizons has been known for perfecting your very own island getaway. Fans across the world have become stressed and burnt out over trying to get their island as perfect as possible.
Perfect is never possible. It’s important to create your island in a way that brings you personal joy and comfort alone. Whether that means city lights and skylines or 10 waterfalls and The Path, you’ll start to wonder what’s next for your island once your dream theme is completed.
10 Perfect Your Villagers
So you’ve decorated and terraformed your island to infinity and beyond. Now let’s take a look at the inner workings of the island. Who’s watering the plants and using all the furniture? Everyone has their specific animal crossing Dreamys. In New Horizon it has been made possible to hand pick what villagers you want. There are still some challenges with this, but nothing Nookazon trading can’t fix. Get together a list of the 10 villagers you want most on your island and start working towards it!
9 Pay Off Your Loan
Ah, yes. Loans. Bells. Tom Nook. To ignore or not to ignore the millions of Bells you owe. With your island pretty and situated, it’s time to face this task head-on. Pay off your loan! There are multiple ways you can go about doing this. You can take the virgin route and only sell seashells, reappearing fossils, and junk furniture every day until it’s enough money. You could also invest in the stalk market of Sunday turnips which is a bargain in itself. There is also the option of selling villagers, DIY’s, and items on Nookazon for Bells. Whichever option you choose it will get you to your goal eventually! And then the next goal, and the next, until you have no more loans to pay off.
8 Complete Nook Mile Milestones
The daily Miles activities are easy ways to rack up Miles in increments, but the larger Nook Mile cards provide even more. These require grinding if you’ve already completed the first couple sections that involve things like “Catch your first fish!.” Look at these Miles cards as challenges and achievements to complete. There are plenty to keep you busy for a long while. And who knows, maybe they will add more in the future.
7 Complete Museum
Another thing you can do after your stressful focus on your island theme is taken care of is to finish donating to the museum. Donate everything! This will take up a lot of time and prove entertaining because there are four different exhibits to fill up and no villager will help you any time soon.
Digging up fossils every morning is a good way to start on fossils. You can trade fossils with other players, even, as well as art pieces! What you can’t trade, though, are critters and fish. You’re on your own for that and it will take a year if you don’t time travel since fish and bugs are seasonal. This is sure to keep you busy.
6 Visit Friends
So you’ve shared your dream address to the world and are proud of your beautiful island. Well so are your friends! Let your friends take you on a tour of their islands, discuss ideas, or simply just have fun. There are many little, made-up games you guys can play like guessing which fish someone’s about to reel in or playing a treasure hunt. Everyone wants island visitors and to feel less lonely, sometimes.
5 Trade With Community
Whether you’re using the infamous Nookazon, going on Animal Crossing: New Horizons Reddit page, or casually browsing through Tumblr, there will be people willing to trade. Many people are desperate for seasonal DIY’s they missed out on and many other things you would consider junk but that are another man’s treasure. You also get something in return for doing trades. A true win-win situation. If you enjoy helping people out or simply want some goods for yourself, try trading out.
4 Help The Community
There are many new and old players who need help. Many players will post casual game questions like where to find a specific fish or the specifics on how to villager hunt. You can take it upon yourself to be the Knowledge Nancy and swoop into these gamer’s aid.
It’s always entertaining to read about your favorite game. Browsing through Reddit or Tumblr provides funny moments and beautiful fan art along with island representatives in need.
3 Start Your AC Blog
Everyone has always wanted an Animal Crossing blog, let’s be honest. They have been a thing since the beginning of the franchise’s first releases. It can be hard to start when gathering screenshots from Nintendo devices is hard and complicated, as well as being insecure about what to post. With your island complete, it’s time to show everyone your hard work. Creating a blog isn’t just about posting the good parts about your island, though. You can indulge in the community’s antics and enjoy the game without even playing it.
2 Add A New Resident
If you’re bored with your established paradise and have unlocked every DIY and Reaction possible, why not start fresh? Not too fresh though. You can make a new resident on your island and start peacefully working towards getting all those things again, without losing your island progress or buying a whole new Switch. With a new resident means another large house to decorate for fun! Possibilities are endless.
1 Celebrate Each Season
Come back each season and spread holiday joy for your villagers. There may be no motivation to play every morning and grind anymore, but you can jump in every season and make sure to set up your island for the coming holiday or season in general. Set up that Christmas tree or plant those spring bushes. If you’re someone who lives with their parents or somewhere where you don’t have the freedom to decorate as much as you would, your Animal Crossing island is where you can do just that every season.
NEXT: Animal Crossing New Horizons: 10 Things To Do With Friends Over The Holidays
