Summary
Animal Crossing: New Horizonswas a huge hit with cozy game players, releasing for the Nintendo Switch at the same time cottagecore was taking over TikTok and Pinterest feeds. Considering the overlap of the two audiences,there’s no shortage ofcottagecore island designideas online, showcasing islands filled with trees, bushes, crops, and more. But despite much ofNew Horizons' core fan base looking for ways to bring nature vibes to their designs, utilizing custom designs and relevant furniture items, players still struggle with the island rating system.
As pointed out by Reddit userslyyris,players who fill their island with trees to give it a woodsy feeling are penalized for it.Cottagecore and forestcore players are finding Isabelle’s feedback focusing on the “overabundance of trees” on the island, suggesting the player remove some of them to increase their island’s rating. “I would like to petition for the end of this,“slyyris said in their post,“Why can’t I have 5 stars AND the cozy forest island of my dreams?!?”
They’re not the only one who feels this way. The comments on the post are fromother nature-loving players who have struggled to achieve the perfect five-star islandrating while executing their ideal designs. “I feel like the whole island rating system is kind of incompatible with the decoration aspect of the game,” user BloblobberMain13 stated. “The island itself is huge, empty, and bland so that you decorate it and build it yourself. But when you decorate TOO much the island rating goes down.”
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A Five-Star Island Needs More Than Just Decorations
How The New Horizons Island Rating System Works
InNew Horizons,an island’s rating is determined by development and scenery points. Development points are determined by the various buildings, bridges, inclines, villagers, and furniture items placed around the island, while the scenery points are focused on DIY items and plants. Players need more than 665 development points and more than 450 scenery points toachieve a five-star island. But just placing items willy-nilly won’t be helpful.
The rating system deducts development pointswhen players place too many of the same item in one area. For example, players with more than six of the same item in one eight-by-eight area will be deducted half a point for each duplicate item, while those with 11 or more in the same space will be deducted by 0.75 points per item. It seems this is also the same for scenery points, considering Isabelle’s warnings, but the exact formula for those deductions isn’t as obvious.
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Obtaininga five-star island is the only way for players to receive the elusivelily of the valley flower, but it requires a balance between development points and scenery points. Though this is clearly done to encourage players to find a balance in their island designs between infrastructure and greenery, it really puts a damper on many well-developed island designs. Oftentimes, players will do what’s needed to get the five-star rating before tearing it all apart to get the island they wanted.
Of course, cottagecore players aren’t the only ones playingAnimal Crossing: New Horizons,and the game has plenty of options available for those looking to explore other themes in their design process. But for those who are looking for an island that goes heavy on natural influences, don’t expect to get a five-star rating while doing it.
