A talented Tolkien fan has built the Eye of Sauron from The Lord of the Rings within their Tolkien-themed Animal Crossing: New Horizons island. Nintendo's social simulator lets players customize their own island village, complete with a community of non-player animals. While the game featured a host of different tools at launch, Animal Crossing: New Horizons' DLC and 2.0 update recently added even more resources to help players bring their ideas to life.
Known for its open-ended design, Animal Crossing: New Horizons gives players the freedom to choose how they build their unique island community. Gamers can collect natural resources across the island, like wood or rocks, which can then be crafted into useful items. Eventually homes can be built by the player, which attracts neighbors and slowly establishes a thriving community of anthropomorphic settlers and shopkeepers. Using Animal Crossing: New Horizons' customization options, which were expanded in the Happy Home Paradise expansion, many gamers have centered their villages around a specific theme. For example, one Animal Crossing fan's Peter Pan build gives their home an aerial view of a miniature London.
As part of an island themed around Lord of the Ring, Reddit user thelordofgifts has built the Eye of Sauron within Animal Crossing: New Horizons. The great and terrible eye represents the watchful gaze of the Dark Lord Sauron, who longs to regain his former power by reclaiming the One Ring. Sauron's massive tower and flaming eye serve as important icons of J.R.R. Tolkien's fantasy saga and essential landmarks of the evil land of Mordor. The Animal Crossing creation brings this dark obelisk into a cartoonish island paradise, with thelordofthegifts apparently basing their entire island on the franchise.
The dreaded Eye of Sauron has been brought into Animal Crossing: New Horizons by thelordofgifts, and other fans have also created their own Lord of the Rings tributes. One player's Animal Crossing Hobbit island design also pays tribute to Tolkien's work by adapting an iconic, and more lighthearted, fantasy setting. The player's island is based on Hobbiton, the peaceful land of rolling hills where Bilbo, Frodo and their kin reside. Many landmarks and scenes are included, like Farmer Maggot's crops and Bilbo's birthday party, making it an excellent companion to thelordofgifts' Mordor recreation.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons gives gamers the tools to create all manner of tributes, and the popularity of The Lord of the Rings makes it a perfect subject of homage. Using the game's tools, thelordofgifts has brought Sauron's massive tower and flaming eye into the cartoonish social simulator. With the Dark Lord's gaze upon them, thelordofgifts' neighbors should remain vigilant against the armies of Mordor.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons is available on Nintendo Switch.
Source: thelordofgifts/Reddit