Animal Crossing: New Horizons is a game popular with children for the Nintendo Switch. In this part of the game series, the animal characters are transported to a beautiful island.
In Animal Crossing: New Horizons, a popular part of the Animal Crossing series, players start a new life with their own character on a colorful, peaceful island world. There they explore the island with its towns and rivers, mountains and beaches. They build their own house, plant gardens and come into contact with their animal neighbors, who gradually move in. There is a lot to discover and do on the game map. For example, players can go fishing, catch insects or help other islanders.
The play money on the island is called Sternis and is used for many things. Players can earn staris by completing tasks such as searching for shells or collecting branches or selling things. All players have their own house, which they can gradually expand with up to five additional rooms and equip with furniture and decorations using the in-game currency. If you want to share or download additional content such as outfits with others, you will need a paid subscription – but this is not necessary for the fun of the game itself.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons runs in real time – this means that the times of day and seasons change just like in real life. A kind of time travel function allows children to change the date and time on the console in order to progress faster in the game. The game can easily be played offline; an internet connection is not absolutely necessary. This means that children can also play locally with others and explore neighboring islands. For online connections, however, the paid subscription is required, which allows them to play together with up to eight players via the internet.
The game is friendly and lovingly designed – with lots of cute animal figures and a colorful, child-friendly environment. It offers children the opportunity to immerse themselves in their own little island world, which they can design as they wish. They playfully discover things from real life, for example how farming works, how to handle money or how to look after animals. New tasks and options are gradually unlocked. This keeps the game exciting without being overwhelming – ideal for children who do not yet have much gaming experience. The controls are also kept simple so that children can quickly find their way around and play independently. Animal Crossing: New Horizons promotes diversity by allowing players to choose and change pronouns, looks and outfits at any time, free from gender roles.
Simulation games can be very engaging for kids because they want to keep progressing. Many tasks are designed to be repeated daily – this can lead to regular play and habitual behavior.
When the Nintendo Switch is connected to the internet, functions such as chat or the store can be used. This poses further risks in the game, such as unwanted contact from strangers.
Nach Alterskennzeichen und pädagogischer Empfehlung ist das Spiel frühestens ab etwa 6 Jahren geeignet. Begleiten Sie Ihr Kind beim Einstieg und lassen Sie es anfangs nicht allein spielen. Sie können auch gemeinsam spielen und mit eigenen Spielfiguren die Insel erkunden und so besser nachvollziehen, was Ihrem Kind daran gefällt. Mehr Informationen zum Spiel bekommen Sie auf der Webseite des Spieleratgeber NRW.
Please note the following points:
Use playtime together to clarify questions and understand what fascinates your child about play.
