Summary

A golden opportunity for the nextAnimal Crossinggame may have just been born fromDisney Dreamlight Valley’s recent controversy. While the news may not be game-ending, it’s still likely to have a significant impact on the game’s future. As one of the premier cozy gaming properties on the market,Animal Crossingcould be in a prime position to benefit fromDreamlight Valley’s announcement.Disney Dreamlight Valleyhas been a strong contender in the genre since it was released, largely thanks to Disney’s library of popular IPs. However, the nextAnimal Crossingnow has the chance to leap ahead.

Since emerging as one of thebest cozy games on Xbox Game Pass,Disney Dreamlight Valleyhas been attracting a lot of attention. The main draw ofDisney Dreamlight Valleyis its combination of laid back cozy gaming content with classic Disney characters. The list of classic films includes, but is not limited to:

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There are still more characters and films to be added in future updates ensuring a lot of content. The chance to interact with some of Disney’s most famous characters givesDreamlight Valleyarguably its strongest selling point.

RELATED:One Small Feature Could Fix Several Animal Crossing Problems

Animal Crossing Could Overstep Disney Dreamlight Valley By Going Free-To-Play

A recent announcement from Gameloft revealed thatDisney Dreamlight Valleywill not be free-to-play, at least not in the planned future. This was a surprise to several fans, who had been expecting such a move after the game left early access. Gameloft has been seeing some backlash to this decision, and it remains to be seen if there will be any plans to bringDisney Dreamlight Valleyfree-to-play in the future. It’s still too early how to tell with any certainty how this will affectDisney Dreamlight Valleyin the long run. However, the game will likely have to recover some lost goodwill from fans.

The latest news regardingDisney Dreamlight Valleycould be agolden opportunity forAnimal Crossingif the next game in the series adopts a free-to-play approach. It wouldn’t be the first time that a game in the series as done so, since the mobile gameAnimal Crossing: Pocket Campalready gave a take on the concept. Bringing a free-to-play version ofAnimal Crossingto the Switch or Nintendo’s next console could take some inspiration fromPocket Camp, while also trying something brand new.Animal Crossingis already well-established, and a free-to-play experience has a good chance of expanding its player base further.

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Disney Dreamlight Valleyhas been a strong contender in the genre since it was released, largely thanks to Disney’s library of popular IPs. However, the nextAnimal Crossingnow has the chance to leap ahead.

While a free-to-play approach may not be as revolutionary a move asadding other Nintendo characters toAnimal Crossingwould be, it could be the best move for the moment. SinceAnimal CrossingandDisney Dreamlight Valleyare quite similar at their cores, it’s not a stretch to think that some players could jump from one game to the other. Any players who end up disillusioned byDisney Dreamlight Valleybeing a paid game may be swayed by a similar free-to-play title. That could be an angle that could bringDisney Dreamlight Valleyplayers to the nextAnimal Crossinggame if Nintendo decides to go in that direction.

Of course, moving the series to a free-to-play format would be abig decision for the nextAnimal Crossingto undertake, but the environment may be right to make that move. If the decision forDisney Dreamlight Valleyto not go free-to-play alienates some players, then a free-to-playAnimal Crossingwould be a perfect game for them to jump ship to. Much of this is based on speculation so far, but all the pieces are there and ready to fall into place.Disney Dreamlight Valley’s latest move could turn out to be the nextAnimal Crossing’s gain.

Animal Crossing

Animal Crossing is a Nintendo-exclusive life sim franchise spread across numerous Nintendo consoles. Featuring anthropomorphic villagers, strong customization, and a real-time day cycle, the Animal Crossing series offer unique and varied gameplay.