Nintendo relaunches Animal Crossing on iPhone as paid game with no in-app purchases

Nintendo has released a new game for iPhone today, Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp Complete. The title brings back much of the experience in its predecessor, but with new content and perhaps most interestingly, a pricing experiment.

Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp Complete available now

Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp Complete uses a business model Nintendo hasn’t tried recently, and frankly that most App Store games have moved away from.

It’s available as a one-time up front purchase on the App Store. Currently, the price is $9.99, but that’s only an introductory rate that will climb to $19.99 on January 30.

Nintendo has had mixed reception to previous titles that were available as free downloads with in-app purchases in the past. As a result, it will be interesting to see how this Animal Crossing experiment is received.

Here’s more of what to expect from the app:

From Business Wire:

This new, one-time purchase app is packed with many of the items and events that were released in Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp over the course of seven years, along with newly added content. Exchange Leaf Tokens for in-game items, create and collect (via QR Code^®) personalized player Camper Cards, check out the new Whistle Pass location and experience a variety of returning and new seasonal events throughout the year, to name a few examples.

Plus, the ability to import Custom Designs makes its debut in the new app! Players can create designs in the Animal Crossing: New Horizons game for the Nintendo Switch system, then enter the Custom Design IDs in Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp Complete to bring their designs to the app.

If you’ve played the previous version of Pocket Camp, you can bring over your save data via a linked Nintendo account, so you won’t have to start from scratch.

9to5Mac’s Take

Games on the App Store are often riddled with ads. Or else designed to incentivize making in-app purchases. Apple Arcade is one alternative option to those patterns, but it’s refreshing to see a big title from Nintendo buck the trend too.

If you’re interested in Animal Crossing, be sure to download the app before the introductory period ends January 30. $9.99 is a big enough ask as it is for most App Store users.

Are you interested in the new Animal Crossing iPhone app? What do you think of the pricing? Let us know in the comments.

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