Hokko Life is basically Animal Crossing for PC
And that's no bad thing.
We've only got a little while to wait until Animal Crossing: New Horizons lands on Switch - a little over a month, in fact - but what if you want to get in on the fun with a PC? Well, it now seems there's an alternative for you, as indie village sim Hokko Life is launching later this year.
Developed as a one-person project by Robert Tatnell, who previously worked for Lionhead and Sony, Hokko Life is a "creativity-filled community sim" for PC. It's pretty easy to see the similarities to Animal Crossing titles: there's a bunch of animal villagers, fishing and bug-catching, for one thing. But Hokko Life seems to be putting its own spin on the formula by asking players to be more creative, introducing a workshop editor and painting functions so players can customise individual pieces of furniture, wallpaper, floors and clothing. These can be crafted with resources found by mining, chopping wood and collecting flowers. And there's also some farming, should you need some fresh air after assembling your furniture.
While there isn't yet a set release date, the game is due to arrive in early access sometime in 2020, and the Steam Store page is certainly worth a look purely for its charming collection of gifs. I do love a good gif.
In a year when Pokémon-like MMO Temtem's servers buckled under sheer demand, it seems indie takes on big Nintendo IPs can do rather well - and Hokko Life certainly looks like it could attract Animal Crossing fans looking for more creative freedom. Or the attention of Nintendo's lawyers, at least.