Animal Crossing: New Horizons was the second-best-selling game on the Nintendo Switch (right behind Mario Kart 8 Deluxe), and so it’s really no surprise that Nintendo has decided to move forward with a Nintendo Switch 2 Edition of the game. Animal Crossing: New Horizons – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition brings the beloved cozy game to Nintendo’s newest console, though the upgrade isn’t free. Anyone interested in upgrading to Animal Crossing: New Horizons – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition will need to shell out $4.99.
For most people, $4.99 isn’t going to break the bank, but some may still be curious if the upgrade is worth the asking price. After all, the Switch 2 Edition of Animal Crossing: New Horizons coincided with the release of the big 3.0 update, which is what really has had fans buzzing. Animal Crossing: New Horizons‘ free 3.0 update adds a hotel to the island that players can decorate, various quality-of-life improvements, secret new features, the Slumber Islands, and crossover content with LEGO, Zelda, and more. It’s the meat and potatoes of the New Horizons resurgence, and since it’s all free, it’s understandable that some Switch 2 owners may be scratching their heads about what they’re paying for.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons Update 3.0 Is Officially Live A Day Ahead of Schedule
Update 3.0 for Animal Crossing: New Horizons drops on Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2 today instead of its planned release date of January 15.
As it turns out, not much of anything. The Switch 2 version of Animal Crossing: New Horizons includes a higher resolution, but I played the two versions of the game back-to-back and didn’t notice that much difference. The Switch 2 version features slightly faster load times and seems to run better in general, so if that’s important to you, then the $4.99 may very well be worth it. Otherwise, you could skip the upgrade and not lose sleep at night.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons Has Switch 2 Exclusive Features, But They’re Not That Big of a Deal
Besides the expected graphical and performance boost, the Switch 2 version of Animal Crossing: New Horizons has some exclusive features, but they’re nothing to write home about. The Joy-Con 2 mouse controls can be used when making designs and decorating your house. People that are really into making designs will likely appreciate this new functionality, but for those that don’t, the mouse controls won’t be a selling point.
There’s also a new megaphone item that’s exclusive to the Switch 2 version of New Horizons. After buying it for 3,500 bells from Nook’s Cranny, you can use it to call out villagers’ names and more easily find them on the island. You have to literally call out their names using the Switch 2 microphone, and it was surprisingly accurate in my experience, except for one villager. For some reason, the game wouldn’t recognize that I was saying “Pecan,” and yes, I tried every pronunciation I could think of. Otherwise, the megaphone feature works as advertised.
The last big difference between New Horizons on the Switch 2 and the Switch 1 version of the game is the 12-player multiplayer sessions. I do not even know 12 people in real life that own a Switch 2, so I couldn’t test this feature. It’s cool for people that like to get in big groups to play Animal Crossing, but otherwise probably won’t get much use.
Switch 2 Upgrade is Neat, But Not Essential
Still, added functionality is added functionality, and I think there are some Switch 2-exclusive things that are neat, like the megaphone. $4.99 is a relatively low asking price, but since all the best new stuff is free, you could skip getting the upgrade and still have a perfectly fine time returning to your Animal Crossing: New Horizons island.
- Released
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January 15, 2026
- ESRB
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Everyone / Comic Mischief, Mild Fantasy Violence, Users Interact, In-Game Purchases
- Developer(s)
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Nintendo EPD
- Publisher(s)
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Nintendo
- Multiplayer
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Online Co-Op
