I got a Switch Lite in 2020 during the pandemic and it was a huge source of comfort. I had played one of the other Animal Crossings, one that was on my phone and I eventually deleted it because it was taking too much of my time. At some point in 2020 I had to back up my island and move it to another switch and I thought I lost the save data and I cried. In front of my kid. Since then I have started a bunch of new islands. This newest one is called Eschscholz and my character is Poppy, obviously.
I am at the point in my island where I have most of my villagers and am already crapping up my layout.I need to get this thing under control so I have made a bubble diagram.
Key Elements/Areas
Shopping/Commercial District by the airport
Housing areas - mainly the suburbs, a beach community, and my personal estate.
Secondary housing areas - Hermit in a woodland swamp that leads to my cheesy Florida Beach Motel.
National Forest and camping area with a large lake. I might add an island in the middle that you can access using the Mario pipes.
The River Anduin that leads through river valley to The Argonath and Mount Doom where I will attempt to create a rock circle.
Why, you may ask yourself, is an adult obsessed with this kinda silly-seeming decorating game? Because it's awesome, that's why. It's a cozy, low-stakes game where all my cute little animals are happy to see me. I can decorate their houses and yards to match their personalities, and I can terraform and breed flowers to my heart's content.
Moving people through space and 'decorating' that space is what landscape design is all about, after all. We're constantly thinking about circulation patterns, sightlines, and spatial hierarchy. Where should paths lead? How do you create inviting gathering spaces? What views do you want to frame or conceal?
While the flower colors and textures are limited, breeding them is fun, and so is experimenting with color combinations and accessories for the gardens.
Personally, I think this is a perfect video game for landscape designers.
I should do a post about flower combos at some point!
