Nintendo's latest self-developed Switch game, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, is all about chilling out on a deserted island, making it a great tool for stress relief and keeping busy. Parents might be wondering, though, if all that island fun is safe for kids to enjoy. Luckily, Animal Crossing: New Horizons is fairly harmless for children to play, as long as parents take a few precautions.
The Animal Crossing series is a sort of "life simulation" in which players create an avatar and live among a population of cartoon-y, humanoid animals. In New Horizons, that means slowly inviting more animal Villagers to a deserted island, collecting resources and constructing houses, museums, and other buildings.
The Animal Crossing series is generally regarded as an incredibly friendly one, but much of what's appropriate will be up to each parent screening the game for their children. Online play complicates things, too, so here's everything parents need to know about Animal Crossing: New Horizons' safety for kids.
Does Animal Crossing Have Violence Or Inappropriate Content?
Animal Crossing: New Horizons received an "E" ("Everyone") rating from the ESRB video game ratings board, meaning the organization considers it appropriate for audiences of any age. The ESRB notes a few specifics parents should be aware of, however. As far as violent content goes, everything in New Horizons falls under what the ESRB calls "comic mischief," meaning it's more akin to harmless slapstick comedy than actual violence. Players can "bonk" Villagers on the head with bug-catching nets, for example, and swarms of wasps and other bugs can sting players, causing their characters to have a swollen eye. If stung more than once in a row by New Horizons' wasps without taking medicine to cure the swollen eye the player faints, the screen fades to black, and the player wakes up in their house.
Parents worried about their children being scared by anything in New Horizons need only consider these creepy critters. In addition to wasps, tarantulas sometimes appear and chase players down, which could frighten those with arachnophobia. Animal Crossing's ghost-like Wisps, on the other hand, are nothing to fear. When they appear, they're more scared than scary, and they are friendly toward players. Mr. Resetti, the Animal Crossing series' cranky, save-policing mole character, is nowhere to be seen in New Horizons so far, so players needn't worry about his hostile mug popping up out of the ground and scaring young kids.
As shown in the above video by Twitter user Jesse, players can construct and use toilets. No nudity is shown when this happens, and there's no direct mention of excrement, but the player's eaten fruit count decreases, followed by the message, "And that takes care of that," as well as a flushing sound and animation. Animal Crossing: New Horizons' ESRB description mentions "comical references," most likely referring to other so-called "toilet humor," such as the line, "Whoever smelt it dealt it." Previous Animal Crossing game ratings specifically reference flatulence noises, but New Horizons' doesn't, so children most likely won't encounter anything that directly crass in the newest game.
With no real violence or inappropriate humor in New Horizons, the last boxes to check are whether there's any profanity or suggestive themes/sexual content. There's certainly no cursing in New Horizons, so kids are safe from adult language. And the closest Animal Crossing has ever come to suggestive themes were some creepy comments by the turtle-like character Kapp'n. In previous games, he would tell female player characters things like, "If I was yer father, I'd be worried about how pretty you are!" - nothing raunchy, for sure, but still a bit concerning. Kapp'n doesn't appear to be in New Horizons at all, though, so phrases like this are unlikely to be encountered.
There do not appear to be any microtransactions in New Horizons. The in-game purchases mentioned by the ESRB seem to be simply the option to purchase a Nintendo Switch online subscription within the game, if the player doesn't already have one.
Is Animal Crossing: New Horizons Online Multiplayer Safe For Kids?
The question of whether Animal Crossing is appropriate for kids gets a bit murkier when other players get involved. New Horizons allows players to create custom textures, drawing whatever they want and placing it on faces, shirts, hats, floors, and more. This opens up the possibility of children running into violent, profane, or sexual content created by other players, demonstrated by Reddit posts like ZOMBen95's, Feather_Dragon's, and megadotdoodle's. Players can also choose the name of their character and island, which could lead to joke names like Reddit user yakohemto's. Even more chances for inappropriate interactions come by way of New Horizons' in-game chat function, which allows players to type whatever they want into a text message-style chat box.
Fortunately, there are several factors preventing children from running into this kind of shady content. First, New Horizons' online multiplayer is limited to players with Nintendo Switch Online subscriptions, so a child can't access the feature unless their parent is paying for the membership. Additionally, those with Nintendo Switch Online subscriptions can only play and chat with others whom they've already added as Nintendo Switch friends or who have access to their in-game "Dodo" friend codes, meaning it's fairly easy to control who a child is able to play with. Parents can also adjust the Nintendo Switch Parental Controls settings to further limit online interaction. Finally, if children do somehow encounter inappropriate behavior, parents can report the offending player, which could result in a punishment or banning by Nintendo.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons released on March 20, 2020, for the Nintendo Switch.