It’s been four years since the last major update for Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and fans are both surprised and ecstatic about version 3.0. We all thought Nintendo was putting all its focus into the next game in the series, but now we have more stuff to experience in the franchise’s 2020 outing, both with the Switch and Switch 2 versions of the update.

There’s a lot coming to this update, as well as the paid Switch 2 Edition, that you may not know about. It’s also confusing when trying to decipher what’s free and what you’ll have to pay for in the upgrade. To make things easier for you, here’s everything you should know about Animal Crossing: New Horizons Version 3.0 and the connected Switch 2 Edition.

When is the release date for Animal Crossing: New Horizons version 3.0?

The Animal Crossing: New Horizons version 3.0 update releases on January 15, 2026. The Animal Crossing: New Horizons Switch 2 Edition also releases the same day.

What is the price of the Animal Crossing: New Horizons Switch 2 Edition?

The Animal Crossing: New Horizons Switch 2 Edition releases for a full game at $64.99 USD, or as an upgrade to the original game for just $4.99.

What content is exclusive to the Animal Crossing: New Horizons Switch 2 Edition?

If you purchase the Switch 2 Edition full game or upgrade pack, you will get these features that are not available in the free update:

Mouse controls: Use your Switch 2 Joy-Cons in mouse mode to create custom designs or draw on the bulletin board.
Megaphone: The Megaphone tool returns from Animal Crossing: New Leaf and allows you to call for villagers in your town. It’s useful for when you don’t know where one of your villagers is.
12-player co-op: You and 11 other players can play online together on someone’s island.
Performance/resolution upgrade: Animal Crossing: New Horizons will now play at 4K resolution instead of the original 1080p. There will also be faster loading times.

What content is coming to the free update in Animal Crossing: New Horizons version 3.0?

Here is a breakdown of all the major and minor features coming to version 3.0 of Animal Crossing: New Horizons:

Resort Hotel

A Resort Hotel will appear at your once-empty pier, run by Kapp’n and his family. Just like in the Happy Home Paradise DLC, you will be able to design a limited number of hotel rooms for guests. You will now get guest villagers who arrive at your island, who will stay in one of your designed rooms and will be able to roam your island freely.

That’s not all, as you can earn Hotel Tickets for completing certain tasks, as well as completing DIY requests for Kapp’n. You can use these Hotel Tickets to purchase items at Grams’ souvenir shop inside the hotel. This also means there will be brand-new furniture and clothing items with the update.

Slumber Islands

You can now create brand new islands from scratch using the Slumber Islands feature. Visit the dream world, and talk to Luna to start a Slumber Island. You can have a total of three, and with each, you can choose its starter layout, decorate, landscape, and terraform to your heart’s content.

Slumber Islands take items from your catalog to decorate with, so you don’t need to worry about purchasing and making every item needed for these islands. Once your Slumber Island is complete, you can invite your villagers to the island, as well as your friends through online multiplayer.

Quality-of-life updates

There are a few different quality-of-life changes that make version 3.0 so worth it. You can finally place trees, bushes, and flowers in your storage, and your storage’s maximum capacity is increased. You can now upgrade it to 7,000, then 9,000 slots.

Also, you’ll finally be able to create multiple items at once when crafting DIY objects. DIY crafting will also be able to take materials directly from your storage rather than relying strictly on your inventory.

Other additions

Resetting: Mr. Resetti will show up and be able to perform a service that allows you to clear a specific area on your island. You can select the exact area, or you can tell him to just clear the beach, and even your entire island.
New Villagers: Four new villagers can become available to your island with their respective amiibos. Two from The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, who are Mineru and Tulin, then two from Splatoon, who are Viche and Cece.
Furniture collabs: New themed furniture collaborations are coming with the update. The first set is themed around classic Nintendo consoles and their games, with the player being able to play some of the classic games if they have a Nintendo Switch Online membership. The second set is LEGO-themed. The final sets are connected to the new amiibo villagers.

If you’re excited about the new Animal Crossing: New Horizons update, but are also looking for a new cozy game to get into, you should also learn more about Petit Planet.