Chapter 402: The Sudden Surge in Popularity of "Animal Forest" (Requesting Subscriptions and Monthly Passes)

As game media reviews for Super Mario Odyssey and the Switch were released, they attracted more and more players who previously had little interest.

However, being interested now was useless.

Because it was out of stock!

If you wanted to buy it, you'd have to wait for Nebula Games to resupply!

As for players who had already purchased a Switch, there was nothing more to say.

Every single one of them was busy experiencing the content within Super Mario Odyssey.

The exquisite art themes of the maps and the delightful and ingenious level designs were captivating.

As for the story, unlike Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and Red Dead Redemption, which boasted exciting plots, Super Mario Odyssey's story was just a run-of-the-mill fairy tale.

It mainly revolved around Bowser, the Great Demon King, kidnapping Princess Peach, and Mario embarking on a journey to rescue her.

Despite this, many players couldn't help but smile knowingly while watching Super Mario Odyssey's story, recapturing a sense of childhood nostalgia.

Because in the game, Bowser, the Great Demon King, utterly lacked the demeanor of a formidable overlord. In fact, his Four Heavenly Kings and the Thunder King, the giant black dragon from the conquered kingdom, felt more like true bosses than he did.

Throughout the game's story, Bowser was nothing but gentle, meticulously collecting many good things for Princess Peach.

In this process, the Great Demon King fully demonstrated the meaning of 'a gentle man is like Bowser, who loves to smash, grab, and loot to show off, yet despite all the hardships, he remains just a fallback option.'

Finally, facing Princess Peach, both Mario, who had painstakingly fought his way to the Great Demon King's castle, and Bowser, who had stooped to any means to please Princess Peach, simultaneously presented flowers, intending to propose.

However, Princess Peach merely handed each of them a 'nice guy' card and then drove off in Mario's Moon Rocket.

Only Mario was left on the moon's surface, one hand pressed against Bowser's shell, perfectly illustrating what it meant to be dejected.

Of course, like some of Nebula Games' other titles, completing the main story was just the beginning. After rescuing Princess Peach and returning to the Mushroom Kingdom, players discovered many interesting things to do.

For example, entering city murals to control a mechanical caterpillar from Tank Wars in a 2D side-scrolling world, or playing a jigsaw puzzle game.

For Super Mario Odyssey, the true importance wasn't the story, but the exploration and collection within each uniquely themed level map.

Furthermore, after the second playthrough, many maps revealed new paths, offering players a completely fresh experience.

After clearing the game, many players collected over two hundred Power Moons, feeling incredibly accomplished.

But a glance at the total moon guide revealed that they had only barely collected a quarter of them. So, they eagerly reopened the game, returning to the beginning to search for the hidden gifts scattered throughout this wonderful fairy-tale world.

Moreover, as a platformer game, Super Mario Odyssey could be quite hardcore where it counted, especially the hidden levels unlocked after collecting 250 and 500 Power Moons respectively.

These challenged players, making them realize that the game also possessed significant hardcore depth and requiring precise controls.

Besides Super Mario Odyssey, as time went on, another game, Animal Forest, quietly gained popularity.

Unlike Super Mario Odyssey, which immediately showcased infinite charm through live streams and its inherent gameplay, Animal Forest, despite being a launch title, didn't achieve the expected level of popularity initially.

But as time progressed and the second batch of Switches was released, players suddenly noticed that without realizing it,

The discussions surrounding Animal Forest gradually increased, and its popularity quietly soared. This left many players feeling bewildered.

Isn't this just a play-house game?

And it wasn't particularly popular when it was released, so why does it seem like so many people are playing it all of a sudden?

This was primarily due to the unique characteristics of Animal Forest.

Super Mario Odyssey was the kind of game where one or two levels could instantly make players marvel at its exquisite design.

Many players who enjoyed this type of gameplay were almost immediately captivated by Super Mario Odyssey.

However, Animal Forest was different; it required players to invest time. On the first day, you wouldn't even have a ladder or a vaulting pole, only being able to wander around a third of the island. It wasn't until the second day, when Blathers appeared and you donated more creatures to him, that you would receive the corresponding recipes.

Furthermore, Animal Forest itself wasn't the kind of game whose charm could be appreciated in just a day or two.

Its appeal lay in spending time with the adorable animals on your island, experiencing the joy of loving and being loved, and gradually enhancing your island's infrastructure, feeling a growing sense of achievement.

The first pot of gold for new islanders: tarantulas. And various detailed guides were slowly compiled by players. At the same time, they shared stories about the animals on their islands. Initially, players might envy the animals on others' islands, but after spending enough time together, many players grew fond of their own island residents.

In addition, there was another very important point that also contributed to the spread of Animal Forest's popularity: the game's online multiplayer feature.

Although, in essence, players treated Animal Forest as an alternative life, where no one would criticize them, allowing them to fully enjoy the happiness of being loved, and even the seemingly shrewd merchant Tom Nook would never rush them to repay their loans.

But as a simulation management game, Animal Forest sometimes did require players to grind a bit. And because the time and geographical environment in the game were aligned with reality,

Some fish could only be caught in the Southern Hemisphere, while others could only be caught in the Northern Hemisphere. This created a demand. Many players located in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres shared their respective islands with each other, each taking what they needed.

Many players who hadn't played Animal Crossing: New Horizons were equally bewildered by the game's gradual surge in popularity.

Isn't this just a simple play-house game? It doesn't seem like much, so why is it so popular?

In fact, even many players already deeply immersed in Animal Forest had this feeling. Initially, it didn't seem like much, but as time passed, and the more effort they invested in the island,

They felt like they couldn't stop. Every day, they just wanted to log on and check on their island. This wasn't a game you played for dozens of hours straight, unable to put down. Instead, it was a game you constantly thought about and wanted to revisit daily.

To this, Animal Forest players could only give the game two words: addictive!

Similarly, besides the Northern and Southern Hemisphere island mechanics, there was another crucial core aspect that led many players to the online multiplayer path.

That was a cute piglet sister in the game named Daisy Mae.

(End of Chapter) <>