The time has finally come. Nintendo seems to have remembered they have an insanely popular franchise – Animal Crossing: New Horizons – with a starving fanbase. Not only did they finally put out a meal, it's quite the feast. Let's dig in to the details.
This announcement comes in two courses:
- Free update for all current Animal Crossing: New Horizon players
- An enhanced Nintendo Switch 2 edition of the game
Both the free update and the Nintendo Switch 2 edition will drop on Thursday, January 15, 2026.
What comes with the Nintendo Switch 2 edition of Animal Crossing New Horizon?
Higher Resolution
First and foremost you're getting improved resolution. You'll be able to see graphics in 4k in TV mode with frame rates capped at 30 fps.
Use your Joy-Con 2 as a mouse
You'll also be able to take advantage of the Joy-Con 2 mouse controls. Use this to more easily move your decorations around indoors, create custom designs, and hand-write your own bulletin-board messages.
It's another outfit to channel all your creativity. ∙ Screenshots by Nintendo
New item at Nook's Cranny: megaphone
Coming to Nook's Cranny is a megaphone. Buy it for $3,500 bells, then use the microphone built into your Nintendo Switch 2 to call out to your villagers with your IRL voice. A bubble will appear showing that they're answering to their name. Follow it to find them. It's like an echo locater where the echo is, ya know, your villager responding to you.
I'm curious to know how well this feature will work with different accents. ∙ Screenshots by Nintendo
Party with up to 12 people
The more the merrier, right? If you and all your buddies are playing on the Nintendo Switch 2 Edition of Animal Crossing New Horizons, and you have Nintendo Switch online, up to 12 people will be able to join in. Previously, the cap was eight.
You'll be able to use Nintendo's GameChat to talk with each other. And, you can feel even closer to the crew by plugging in a compatible USB camera – like this Mario Piranha Plant camera – and having your face show in a bubble above your character as you explore the islands together.
What will be in the free update for Animal Crossing New Horizon?
Both the Nintendo Switch 2 version and the free update to the Nintendo Switch edition will include all of the following updates.
A brand new resort hotel
Just off the pier, you'll find a resort hotel run by Kapp'n's fam. Entice guests to your land by decorating the hotel's guests room & the likes. While some have pointed out that this is basically a port of the game's previous downloadable content (DLC) known as Happy Home Paradise. I'd say two things can be true aT once: this is the devs reusing previous features AND this is Nintendo's answer to the game's competitor, Hello Kitty Island Adventure (HKIA).
If you aren't familiar, decorating homes on the island based on themes in order to attract visitors is core to HKIA's gameplay. With its recent release on Switch making it fresh in people's minds, I'd say Nintendo is trying to make sure Animal Crossing can still elbow it out.
Since this feature is very much like the Happy Home Paradise DLC, it makes one wonder if we'll be seeing some of the DLC exclusive characters show up as tourists. Unfortunately, I did not see any of the characters in the trailer and Nintendo has not provided any more details on that afront. As soon as there is more to tell I'll be sure to let you know though so make sure you're subscribed to my newsletter.
Hotel tickets unlock prizes
As you complete hotel tasks, you'll earn hotel tickets. Exchange these in the souvenir shop ran by Grams for hotel items and exclusive rarities (we'll come back to what those rarities are in a bit so keep scrolling).
As a part of these tasks, you can craft island items for Tom Nook. He'll have a job board on the pier featuring requests you can complete.
You'll also find furniture & clothing in the souvenir shop. Be sure to dress up the mannequins with outfits your guests can wear for the duration of their stay – and that offer extends to both you and the players that visit your island, too!
Looking good, good looking. ∙ Screenshots by Nintendo
And that's not all! Grab your Amiibos and use them to invite guests to your island.
Reset service
Need to hurry up and tidy up your island? Use your brand new islander's, Resetti, clean-up "reset" service. You can choose the area yourself, have him clean up the beach, or have him clean up the entire island.
No longer do you need to spend hours flattening your island. ∙ Screenshots by Charmed Geek
Use his service on an area and he will either put the items he collects in storage or dispose of them, whichever you select. As far as areas you choose, Nintendo didn't share specific details as to how small or wide your custom selection could be, but the trailer does show a player selecting only the front yard to be cleaned. (7:20 second mark)
Storage upgrades will be available
Upgrade your storage two more times, allowing you to hold up to 9,000 items – previously this was capped at 5,000.
Storage can also now hold trees, shrubs, and flowers.
Luna's new dream world: Slumber Island
Think of this as your island within an island. Players with a Nintendo Switch Online membership (starts at $3.99/month) can design and save up to three islands. Select the size and layout of the island, build and design it.
Three additional islands in what's essentially sandbox mode? Pretty neat. ∙ Screenshot by Nintendo
You can access your inventory and decorate, plus invite residents from your home island as well as your online friends. Work together and:
- Widen rivers
- Place plants and trees
- Set up bridges and inclines
- Select time of day and weather
It's Nintendo inception: play Nintendo games inside a Nintendo game
Okay, so remember those rarities you could get using hotel tickets that I brought up before. I hope you saved room for dessert because we are about to eat.
Some of the items that will be available to claim at the souvenir shop using your hotel tickets include Nintendo classics like:
- Ultra Hand
- Famicom (the first version of the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES)
- NES
- Game Boy
- and even a Nintendo Switch 2.
Collect these virtual systems and use your Nintendo Switch Online membership so you can play select classic titles in-game.
Nintendo hasn't stated which specific classic games will be available to play, but, from the trailer, I could identify:
- Ice Climber | 1985 | this is a vertically scrolling platform game that was released for both arcades and the Famicom and NES systems where you scale 32 ice-covered mountains in order to recover stolen veggies.
- Clu Clu Land | 1984 | Play as a female balloonfish that swims around a maze trying to uncover all the golden Ingots. It looks a lot like PacMan.
- Dr. Mario | 1990 | Your favorite plumber is now a doctor. Match tiles to eliminate viruses by dropping colored pills on them.
Collaborations
There are three collaborations coming with this update:
- LEGO®
- Zelda x Amiibo
- Splatoon x Amiibo
LEGO® items
Alongside that megaphone we discussed earlier, you'll find LEGO®'s items in your Nook shopping area. Confirmed items include:
- Sofa
- Table
- Wallpaper
- T-shirt
Nintendo promises that there's more but the rest is being held close to the belt.
The Legend of Zelda x Amiibo collab
Link is linking up with Animal Crossing for this update. You'll be able to use select The Legend of Zelda amiibo characters to invite certain characters and unlock items like:
- ID Crest
- Triforce
- Other furniture and fashion items
Nintendo isn't sharing which Amiibos will be compatible but both Tulin and Mineru were confirmed to be able to visit and be invited to come live on your island.
They're so cute in 3D. ∙ Screenshots by Nintendo
Splatoon x Amiibo collab
Two animal versions of your fave Splatoon characters will be able to visit your island by utilizing your Amiibos: Cece and Viché will be cosplaying Shiver and Frye. There will also be plenty of Splatoon decor at your whimsy.
Note: Amiibos tend to range in price from approximately $20-$40.
Will there be any new dialogue or villager updates?
That remains to be seen. The announcement only covered more decorating and some additional in game items. Now, that doesn't mean there won't be any new dialogue or updates to your villagers.
There are two months before the release of this update which means there will likely be at least one more trailer shared between now and then. In good marketing spirit, Nintendo isn't going to spill all the tea on the very first update, right?
Gotta save room for dessert.
How much will the Nintendo Switch 2 edition cost?
The game will cost $64.99 at launch. If you already own the Nintendo Switch version of the game and would like to simply purchase the Nintendo Switch 2 upgrade, you can purchase the upgrade pack for $4.99.
Pre-orders for the paid upgrade pack are available starting today.
How much is the Nintendo Switch edition?
Animal Crossing: New Horizon is available for $59.99.
How much are the Nintendo Switch systems?
Here are the current retail prices for all the Nintendo Switch base systems (not including any discounts, deals, or bundles).
- Nintendo Switch Lite: $229.99
- Nintendo Switch: $321.99
- Nintendo Switch OLED: $349.99
- Nintendo Switch 2: $499
How players feel about the update
Most players who commented on the trailer posted to Nintendo's YouTube channel seem happy to just have any update at all. The last word we heard from Nintendo was four years ago, in which they said it was going to be the last update we received about Animal Crossing New Horizons.
However, there were still some naysayers who were wanting more from Nintendo, calling this a "lazy update."
What about you? Did you have any more questions about the upcoming Animal Crossing New Horizons update? Comment below and I'll get them answered for you.
