Animal Crossing: New Horizons Is Already Selling Out In Japanese Stores

I feel for all emergency personnel, medical providers, caregivers, and retail workers in trying times like these. Seriously, you guys rock!

For better or worse, now is the perfect time for Animal Crossing to come out. It’s too bad there’s Switch stock shortages

I will get the game on April 2020 while waiting i get salary first. 😁

What happened to people not congregating together due to the corona virus

These do not look like queues where people keep a distance of 1.5 m to 2 m each ... not all. I live in Bavaria and like an hour ago, we had declared a universal state wide curfew starting at midnight. Point being, it is kinda ... well, creepy to see people huddle together like this for a videogame of all things.

Don't get me wrong, I'm glad people get something they enjoy, and glad for the game's apparent success, but still ... just creepy. I mean Italy runs military transport at nights to get all the bodies that are literally piling up left and right cremated and in Japan, where there is from my understanding very, very little testing done possibly for political reasons, we get pictures of queues like that.

It is simply hard to understand and again: creepy to think about.

Good job there's not a global Pandemic at the moment

Got the game this morning through the post. Done the update. Waiting for daughter to come back home with mom.

Never played an Animal Crossing game before. Honestly, the series has never even appealed to me. But I'm finding myself drawn towards this one. Maybe it's the review scores. Maybe it's the fact that it's on Switch. Maybe it's the desire for a long, relaxing video game that I can lose myself in during these times.

I'm really surprised they aren't all buying this game digitally. It's AC, who wants to keep taking the cartridge in and out of your Switch every day? And dont' they have mail order service in Japan?

I guess it being a holiday maeas everybody just figured they'd go spend their day online.

My copy is on i'ts way via UPS about 15 minutes ago. Too bad the UPS truck doesn't usually arrive on my block usually until about 4PM.

More time for Labo building I guess. Airplane was fun but no gas refueling is absurd.

In times like this, you'd better go digital! Those guys will get the virus, and seriously, it's just a videogame... Not worthy.

@Ralek85 Japan just hasn’t had the level of outbreak that other countries have. That may change soon, though..

@Ralek85 I totally agree, I live in Milan and totally feel your words. All the silence probably in name of the olympic games...

@roboshort or they have omitted information due to the risk of having to cancel the olympics

@Ralek85 it's elementary my dear Watson. Get the game, get sick and you will have weeks off from work to play the game

Mine shipped but not arrived yet. Maybe tomorrow. Looking forward to it but not the number one priority right now.

@Beetoe I live in Japan. There is some omission, but it is still not that bad here. Definitely not like Europe. People started wearing masks here pretty soon after it started really spreading in China. That has likely slowed the spread I think. Cause people are less likely to spread it if they wear a face mask.

No surprises here but I have to pickup mine for Free Poster. I'll probably return the game after getting the poster because I am also getting the same from another retailer as well. Don't really need two of the same game.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons Is Already Selling Out In Japanese Stores

Already? Isn't it launch day? Must be a slow news day. What next, people are ALREADY playing Animal Crossing?

so Nintendo didn't send in enough stock for Animal Crossing of all games?

@Peshokinha That would be more amusing, if the mortality rate among the elderly were less devastating than it actually is and if Japan had ... less of an elderly population.

@roboshort It's just not entirely clear to me why Japan would be that much less affected than South Korea. It might be ... but might also not be and just not be aware - as you say - yet. The tragedy here is that by the time this crisis hits local hospital and makes people notice, it'll already be to late to stop this from becoming wide-spread and taking its toll on senior population as well as those vulnerable to it for other reasons.

I'm not expert, but those who are - the WHO chief among them - has consistenly called for PREVENTIVE measures ... Japan seems kinda of in a bubble here from what I can tell. I pray that this is not a miscalculation on their part

@Beetoe I'm neither religious nor one for empty words, but given the times: thoughts and prayers, my friend, and ... stay safe!

Beyond that, I sincerely hope that Abe is above downplaying a serious crisis for sake of the Olympics. I mean, it is not gonna work either way, is it? It's an international mega event, and even with 0 infections in Japan, I can't for the life of me, figure out how it could be considered a reasonable idea to go forward with it under the best of circumstances. I guess in theory, they could test every single individual coming in and going out, but .... no, not worth the risk.

Also, why not just postpone it? I get that this is a severe measure for the people affected and the tradition as well, but in the face of a global pandemic with severe economic implications on top if it, it is hardly beyond the pale.

Seriously, what could be less in taking with the Spirit of the Olympic games than putting business before health and human lifes? It would be an utter travesity, if these games led to but one entirely avoidable death!

Japan took much earlier action than most of the western nations that are suffering the worst effects of the virus. Schools have been closed in Hokkaido for the last month, which seemed pretty drastic when the “it’s just like the flu” line was still doing the rounds, but now seems eminently sensible in hindsight. Even if closing schools itself is no silver bullet, it did highlight the potential gravity of the issue, which may have spurred people into behaviour change. The state of emergency in Hokkaido came to an end yesterday, and children are due to go back to school at the start of the next term. By no means are we out of the woods yet, and a second wave is still a possibility (especially as lifestyle rhythms return to normal), but it does highlight to importance of early action and swift reaction.

@Maxz Isn't it also worth noting that, from what I read, Japan has now tested about the same amount of individuals as South Korea is roughly testing A DAY? In other words, how reliable is any infection rate reported out of Japan really?

From what I understand, it's been just over two weeks since testing in private hospital was even allowed (!?) and the costs were covered by national insurance.

I do hope the rate of infection is actually as low as it is being reported these days. Whether this is more than solemn hope is entirely unclear to me though. Given that Japan has a much higher urban population focus than other major affected areas in Germany, and more so France and Northern Itality I am very curious if early school closures can really account for the vast gulf between the infection rates.

Quite possibly, the numbers are under stated and Japan is just a week or two behind the curve, so to speak. I hope that turns out to be entirely wrong, but given what we know ... it's a worrisome situation if you ask, esp. if life is already going back to normal, as you suggest. Stay safe!

One big thing Japan did was severely restrict travel to China at the outset. Something the entire world should have done. Other affected countries like Iran should have followed (Italy's folly is probably there.)

But I agree with the above. Animal Crossing seems to have thrown the existing social distancing there right out the window. On the other hand, they're months ahead of the West in dealing with it....with China now (theoretically) past the peak, Japan might be unwinding a little while we're still approaching the peak in the West. From here my perspective is "wait until 2021 before being near other humans at minimum" - but I don't see how the world can function that way without total collapse of everything.

The West screwed up by pretending "there is no plague, it'll just go away if we ignore it and we'll keep sending 2 million planes worldwide per day!" It was "China's problem" until last Monday where suddenly it became a massive crisis, where the day before live was completely normal and there was nothing to notice.

Recall the E3 responses here where half the posters thought the E3 cancellation was a good, somewhat valid excuse mostly being used as an excuse to cancel an already troubled show. It didn't even occur to most people that a massive crisis was coming and absolutely everything was going to be shut down. There was just "a minor problem in LA that didn't affect anyone else."

From reports, Italy did the same.....it's a problem for other people....it won't get to me....I'm just going to live normally. Here, I heard people saying similar things "either I get it or I don't, I'm not going to worry about it and live my life around it." Still planning trips and outings. Even last Monday after things started really blowing up, I go by the park and see a huge crowd playing basketball. Nobody thought it was a big deal that would really affect them. It's always a problem for other people.

Maybe that's what Japan is doing here, too..... Or maybe they're really on the other side of the curve, if a curve actually exists.

I still think it's insane that Tokyo 2020 is still planned....why would Japan invite the whole world into their most populace city in the middle of a plague? And I think it's insane MS and Sony are still launching consoles in a year that the economy is going to resemble 1930 by then.

@Beetoe Its a mess over in Italy right now and its such an awful thing to happen to the kind people of Italy. I was planning to go to Rome during the spring, so I was following the news closely. I don't know how religious you are, but I'm praying for the people of Italy and wish everyone there a fast recovery. Stay safe my friend!

@Ralek85 This is all true and very much worth bearing in mind. This is no time to ease up, and testing should be really carried out with similar levels of rigour to South Korea (this applies to many other countries too).

Though the call for nationwide school closures has come to an end, individual regions are extending it (I believe Osaka is continuing until early April). Now that the seriousness of the virus is apparent and the scale of measures necessary to tackle it clear, my hope is that people will be able to react swiftly and collectively on a local
level to any signs of resurgence, while continuing to refrain from unnecessary longer distance travel and practicing caution on a nationwide level. I’ve already postponed a set of interviews I had in Hyogo prefecture, because making the journey from Hokkaido feels pretty irresponsible at the moment (especially as Hokkaido was considered a black spot for a while due to spread after the Sapporo Snow Festival in February).

It’s worth pointing out that, although total cases will be potentially significantly higher than confirmed cases, Hokkaido was already considered a ‘blackspot’ when the confirmed cases were in the low double digits. If my memory serves, I believe the first day of school closures where I live was on the 5th of March, when (according to the official figures there were 83 cases confirmed. When the number crept over 100 (over a period of about a month), it was seen as a sign that things had become pretty extreme, but looking at other cases around the world where figures rise by more than that not monthly but daily, it seems right to have been fearful of the virus even when you could count new cases on one hand.

But yeah, we all need to stay vigilant... obviously, wherever we are. The one thing that can be said now is at least we’re much more on the same page.

Here in the States we are so screwed.

Two words. Digital copy.

@Ralek85 i was thinking of you comments here yesterday when i saw the "outside"for the first time in a week. I think you'd be appalled if you saw it here. I'm in state that's supposedly on pseudo lockdown. Not quite to Italy's level but most things are supposed to be closed etc. I had to go out to the supermarket for the first time, expecting a scene from fallout. Instead, what did i find? Gridlock. The roads look practically normal, in a bad way. Maybe rolled back to the way they were 5 or 10 years ago before they packed as many people as possible into this once nice area. But it was still gridlock and long waiting to find an opening to get through. The supermarket is of course packed like it's the week before Christmas, not exactly distancing.... Cramped. And with the artificial did shortages that are now real due to the panic buyers, there's limits on food essentials so that where I'd normally only food shopping once a week anyway, now i have to go multiple times a week or go to multiple different stores.... So it's effectively worse than if they'd just pretended there was no disease and kept going as normal.

Restaurants are dead even with pickup running, and the lots there were empty, so there's that. But all those people on the road were certainly going SOMEWHERE. standing by the road you would assume everything is normal. The mood in the supermarkets is though it's just a normal day albeit with empty shelves

It's infuriating, because these are the same people that joyrode across the world that created the problem to begin with, and their continued ignoring of the situation is gambling with not just my existence but the economy itself for their convenience. That makes this a very dangerous place when so much of the populace is clearly disregarding the situation.

It's also a reminder of the kind of people i am surrounded by at all times: people to whom their own whims and conveniences are all that matters even if they leave death and economic collapse in their wake. What a lovely people to be surrounded by. Another virus by a different name.

@NEStalgia That does sound like a dangerous mix of ignorance and unintended consequences, that rear their ugly head. I do think that the "cosmopolitan generation" probably played a part in spreading the virus, as did the cheapness of going by plane in general (which has been raising questions ever since the word carbon emissions was ... well, a thing), but on the other hand, there is no denying that we live in a globalized world and no virus is going to stay in one place for long in this world. It's not something I can really lament though. It's good that the world is connected. It's our one best shot at not just a peace, but also technological, societal and cultural progress. We are less prone to shot each other, if we know and understand each other, if we learn from each other and if that relationship provides benefits for everyone involved. I'm certainly someone who is glad he gets to enjoy the cultural output of the world at large from Japan to U.S. I cannot imagine a world without all of that.

I think this whole crisis is - like all crisis probably are at heart - a huge opportunity for us. It could be an opportunity to realize that not ALL globalization is necessary or even good. That some trading we do, causes more harm than good (an issue we saw give rise to Trump among others long before this virus struck). But also what work we value in what way.

It is strange but part of the news that break my heart the most is seeing picture of italian nurses collapsed from exhaustion. These people do a rough job EVERY damn DAY of the year. Now, the do an impossible job, but rough? It's always rough. I spend my social year working as a caregiver in an elderly living facility, and that changed my outlook significantly. These people provide essential services, their job puts demands on their body and psyche that are often extreme under normal circumstances, yet they get no respect in society, like zip - definitely outside of Sunday sermons - and they get payed close to nothing as well.

Then there is public service. An area that has been bled dry of personell for years on end now. Local public health deparments were understaffed years before this crisis hit. They were barely able to fulfill their legal obligations as it were. Obviously they are by and large overwhelmed by this stuation.

The idea of a "slims state", not just effective but efficient, less people, doing ever more tasks, has already reached a breaking point, but this crisis works as kind of focus lense to bring into sharp focus the shortcomings of our societies structure. If and when the dying starts for real here, as it sadly has in Italy, this contrast will become even more stark.

Then there is like nature. Amazing pictures of cities free of smog. Wildlife return to Venedig ... Satelite image showing parts of Europe almost free from emissions by comparison with weeks before. People work from home and some might realize that it is not necessary spending two hours a die driving back and forth by car ... It's not all bad, is what I am trying to say.

From what I can tell, most people around here actually adhere to the curfew and restrict themselves to the base necessities. People are barely any more concerened with "personal space" than they were before. There are plenty of examples of individuals that go the extra mile, like providing support to elderly neighbours for instance, but also police reports of "teens" (some of them like laaaaateeee teens sadly) intentionally "coughing" at seniors citizens while screaming Corona. And no, I am not kidding.

I share your anger and in fact, from what I can tell, deep resentment at folks who STILL haven't caught on now. Who still behave as if they are not just invulernable but in fact an island, unable to hurt anyone else. No man or woman is an island though. The lack of empathy and just common decency a part of the population is displaying, and has been displaying for like two weeks now (that made this curfew necessary in the first place) was sadly not surprising, but still very much unsettling. Seeing young police officers being yelled at by citizens because they are told to ... well, get lost, or even worse in a way, seeing supermarket staff being yelled because there is no toilet paper left ... what can I say, I had experience that made me question folks humanity und a very fundamental level. I mean.. don't yell at people that keep your markets stocked, but people who do it these days? How about a "thank you"!!?? I wouldn't want to work in a supermarket, not ever, but defintely not now.

Some people are obviously beyond morally bankrupt. They have zero empathy and no sense of responsibility beyond their immediate social circle. They might still be loving fathers or mothers or whatever, and care for their parents and friends, but boy, anything beyond that circle is apparently barely even human as soon as the going goes even a bit rougher.

It is disgusting, and the fact remains that we might face worse pandemics or other comparable crisis yet to come so.... what to do? What do we do about people that will still ignore all public health advice when the next virus hits, that might not kill 2% of infected, but 40%?

Then these ***holes might quite literally be the death of us all. I have no real answer, but what I said above about the things that are hopeful, makes me think that this might demonstate to a democratic majority of folks that we need to find a different way of dealing with life outside of a crisis, so that we are better prepared for a life within a crisis. Like how we need to foster and train empathy on a daily basis, because it does not just suddenly appear out of thin air, when it is needed most, in times like this, within weeks or even just days.

And I do feel that might have to go down the uncomfortable road of setting examples. Nobody wants to do that. But when I read news about a company like Gamestop ordering their employees to stay open because they "provide essential services", I do feel like action has to be taken. Like severe action, within the legal framework of course. People that make these kind of decisions, putting thousands of lifes at risk for very little reason other than a very shortterm economic gain, need to be REPONSIBLE and in a pubilic manner.

Social control only works, if people have the knowledge to "enforce" it. That at times demands that some examples be made.

As Thomas Mann has once written so famously: "Tolerance becomes a crime once applied to evil".

There gotta be limits to the publics patience, and ignoring all public necessity for ones own selfish enjoyment, is certainly a form of evil. We ought not tolerate that, we really ought not.