It seems that Animal Crossing: New Horizons might not include DLC or microtransactions after all, as the official ESRB rating for the game has been updated to remove all references to in-app purchases. Nintendo has wholeheartedly embraced DLC with the Switch, which has included expansions for games like Pokémon Sword & Shield and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
The Animal Crossing games on Nintendo systems in the past have managed to avoid DLC or paid content. This hasn’t extended to the mobile market, as Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp has a paid subscription plan and a number of gacha elements that fans have complained about since launch. The Animal Crossing fans have been concerned that some of the sleazier mobile game tactics would make their way into Animal Crossing: New Horizons.
It was recently revealed that Animal Crossing: New Horizons would have in-app purchases, as the ESRB rating for the game mentioned them in its content warnings. The official page for the game on the Nintendo website has now been updated and the ESRB rating no longer mentions in-app purchases. The rating is still E for everyone, but it only mentions comic mischief in its content warnings.
It’s currently unclear why the ESRB rating has changed, but it does seem to confirm that Animal Crossing: New Horizons won’t have microtransactions. The in-app purchases warning has been used in the past to signify that a game will allow players to purchase a Nintendo Switch Online subscription (as was the case with Pokémon Sword & Shield) if one is needed to access the online functionality in the game. Animal Crossing: New Horizons is still over a month away, so it’s possible that Nintendo removed access to the eShop to get rid of the in-app purchases content label.
There is still a lot we don’t know about Animal Crossing: New Horizons, including its cloud save capabilities. The game is due to be released in a little over a month and there is no word on a Nintendo Direct that could reveal more about the plans for the game. Animal Crossing: New Horizons seems like a prime candidate for DLC or an Expansion Pass, but the change to the ESRB rating might have shot that idea down, at least for the time being. At the very least, it seems that fans concerned about the presence of loot boxes staining their precious village won’t have to worry.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons will be released for Nintendo Switch on March 20, 2020.
