Source: Sensor Tower
Hey Hive!
So this is a new-ish series of posts I will be starting where I write about games that I've played; what they're about and my experience playing them! I'll try my best to keep these posts short and sweet, hence the name; it's a reference to Games Done Quick (GDQ) - a charity speedrunning event.
But first, a quick update/preface!
It's been quite a long while since I last posted a game review (2 years actually!), but since tasteem is still on hiatus, I thought it'd be a good time to revive this series! Actually the reason why I stopped this series way back when was because there are probably thousands of game review posts out there; millions if you count videos on youtube. Which is why I started my OST of the Day series instead.
But since I just discovered this Hive Gaming community, I thought I'd give it a shot again. I don't really have a format for these posts yet though, so do forgive me.
Source: Nintendo Life
Anyway, seeing as Animal Crossing: New Horizons is getting a lot of attention these days (and I'm currently obsessed with it too tbh), I thought it'd be cool to start with an Animal Crossing game! But perhaps not the one everyone knows about.
This is Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp! The only mobile version of Animal Crossing, and the only one that is free to play AND free of ads!
Source: The Verge
If you're familiar with the Animal Crossing series, you'd know that 1) you are the only human in a world full of talking animals, and as a result, 2) you are thrown into doing a job you never signed up for! Yay!
So in Pocket Camp, you're tasked with managing a campsite (and subsequently cabin)! You can invite your animal friends over to party or just chill out in your campsite. And just like in the main Animal Crossing games, you can decorate the campsite with all sorts of furniture that you can craft/buy!
Source: Animal Crossing Pocket Camp Wiki
Not only can you customise the campsite area itself (the foreground), but there are also amenities you can build to place in the background, and you can also alter the greenery around the campsite! The customization options are practically endless! No two campsites will be the same that's for sure.
Source: reddit
Other than arranging your campsite and entertaining guests, you can also visit different areas to pick fruits and catch fish and bugs!
Source: pinterest
Seasoned players of Animal Crossing will know that catching fish and bugs can be tough, but Pocket Camp makes it super easy, so not to worry! You just need to tap the bugs you want to catch and your villager will automatically sneak up to it!
Source: TouchArcade
Fishing is really easy too, since the fish sense your line as long as you cast in front of it. There are even on-screen icons telling you to tap the screen to reel in/catch the bug!
Pocket Camp has a surprising amount of content for a free mobile game. There are also quite a few seasonal events that come with free updates.
Source: Animal Crossing World
I think the main aspect of Pocket Camp that makes it a mobile game is the waiting periods. Whether it be for crafting furniture/clothes, for fruits to respawn, or during events, there's always some waiting to be had. But I guess that's the idea - they need to make it such that you keep coming back to the game.
Of course, you can always pay to waive the waiting period, with leaf tickets! This special currency grants you access to exclusive furniture and clothing items, and you can skip any crafting period. But, they are quite hard to come by unless you use real money to buy them, which is where the in-app purchases come in.
Of course, this is entirely optional. And they don't bombard you with advertisements about it so it's not bad. You might miss out on some cool-looking clothes and furniture items, but oh well.
They also recently announced a monthly subscription called Pocket Camp Club, where you can access to special fortune cookies (which are basically a blind box of themed furniture), and a Happy Helper; where you can get an animal friend to help you during events. Again, this is entirely optional, although they do offer a 1 month free trial.
Source: Clark Chronicle
Anyway, I think you get the idea of how Pocket Camp works. It's a really neat way of mobilizing Animal Crossing, and I was hooked on it for a while when I first started playing it. I'm not really one for mobile games but I couldn't resist when I saw the screenshots. The visuals are just as cute and colourful as any other Animal Crossing game!
I think Animal Crossing was a good choice for one of Nintendo's first mobile games, since it's a very chill game that can be played anytime. And the results are pretty clear; Pocket Camp has done very well since launch; shooting to the No. 1 downloaded app spot on the US app store when it first launched and now still sitting among the top free games on both iOS and Android.
Source: Pocket Camp
If you're unfamiliar with Animal Crossing and want to see what all the hype is about without the cost, definitely check out Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp!
Thanks so much for reading!
To find out more about me, check out my intro post here!
