Featured Image Credit: XD
Topics: The Sims, Animal Crossing
Animal Crossing has seemingly spawned more clones and copycats than any other game, but it has also breathed a ton of life into the cosy game genre more generally and, even if some developers are doing things in a similar way, there's a lot of ingenuity out there if you know where to look.
Heartopia is an upcoming release from developer XD that bills itself as a "highly customisable" social simulation that's set to release on PC and mobile devices at some point, though we don't have a specific date just yet.
In the developer's own words, it's "a life simulation game crafted for creativity, freedom, and peace. Build your dream home, explore a wide range of hobbies, and forge warm connections with friends in a town full of endless possibilities."
That will obviously sound immediately familiar to those who play the genre regularly, but the execution of Heartopia doesn't seem considerably deeper than a lot of their immediate competitors.
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Outside of the usual activities including fishing, cooking and gardening, you'll also be able to build your dream home, and it's there that the game moves away from the usual cosy influences and takes a step towards The Sims.
You will be able to build everything from a small cottage to a gaudy LA-style mansion, if you so choose, with the limits only being what decorative items you have available.
For those of you who are more fashion conscious, you should also be pretty delighted, as the game features more than 1000 outfits to really make your character your own.
The game features no loading screens for seamless exploration of the fairy tale town and it's also set to accommodate full cross-platform multiplayer, so you should be able to jump on with friends, regardless of how you choose to play.
Though it doesn't have a confirmed release date just yet, there are going to be plenty of opportunities to play it before it does arrive. The first is an upcoming closed betas that will see players let into the game for the first time en-masse.
Beginning on 4 November, pre-registration is now available if you want to give it a go. To sign up, you'll need to head over to the game page on either Steam, the Play Store or the App Store (depending on which platform you want to play on) and add your details.