New Leaf Might Be The Best Animal Crossing Yet

Nintendo has been dominating the news all day, thanks to their semi-annual financial results briefing for investors, plus their latest Nintendo Direct for all their hardcore users.

In the case of the latter, some new trailers were released, and perhaps the most noteworthy of the batch one was for the upcoming 3DS version of Animal Crossing. First, it revealed a brand new subtitle for the US version: New Leaf. The Japanese one, btw, is Jump Out. It's also everyone's first taste of the game in English.

There are many reasons why the 3DS edition of Animal Crossing is high on many people’s list. First, it’s Animal Crossing! But second, it’s the first installment that might truly catch on, as much as the original for the GameCube did.

The one thing missing from that version was interactions between players. The sequels for the DS and Wii both added online connectivity, but due to Nintendo’s rather draconian infrastructure in that regard, it was never fully realized. One could argue that if enough people had actually played those games in the first place, the story would have been different. But everyone was so convinced that it would be frustrating or lacking that everyone just passed.

But Nintendo has been making great strides as it pertains to online play. Just ask anyone who plays Kid Icarus Rising. Animal Crossing: New Leaf promises online play, but most importantly, seems to do it right. We hope. That and how the visual style looks custom fit for 3D. The game arrives early next year.