The release of Animal Crossing: New Horizons today, coupled with Doom Eternal going live Thursday, pretty much sums up the something-for-everyone nature of video games.
Want to shoot aliens? Here, have some Doom. Want to befriend talking animals and fall victim to a raccoon who is also a loan shark? We've got some Animal Crossing right over here. At a time when our homes feel more like confinements, these games are a source of adrenaline, relaxation and escape, no matter your preferences.
But there are people, like me, who throw some Doom on top of their Animal Crossing. The overlap on the Venn diagram of the games is small, but it's there. Here are just a few of the things Nintendo's new neighborhood-builder has in common with a game about fighting demons with boomsticks.
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Jumping
You can pole-vault across streams in Animal Crossing to avoid making long treks to wherever the bridges are on your island paradise. How cool is that? You can also jump in Doom. Usually, you'll do so to avoid enemy fire or to pounce on the shoulders of an unsuspecting Hell Knight and beat it to a pulp. See? Similar!
Catching
The age-old pastime of capturing a variety of bugs and fish is back in Animal Crossing, and you'll have more than 110 different critters to collect. The creatures you can find will change based on the day, time and season, making it imperative for any serious hunter to check back in often with New Horizons.
Doom often involves catching, too: Your character catches these hands from various hellspawn throughout the game, including the aforementioned Hell Knight, Titans, Marauders and more.
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Decorating
No Animal Crossing game would be complete without spending tens of thousands of bells (the currency of the game) on a variety of furniture for your home. The art of feng shui comes into play, and getting the right furniture in the right spots, facing the right way, matching with the right complementary pieces is important. Exterior decoration is a must, too, from flowers to a variety of fruit trees as well as outdoor furniture.
Doom allows you to customize as well, by riddling any nearby walls with bullet holes, burn marks and other debris.
Collecting
Your old pal Blathers is back in New Horizons and ready to put together the best museum in the world with your various finds, including the ever-eventful search for fossils and fleshing out of an aquarium and garden.
There's plenty of collecting in Doom, too. As you go through the game, you'll gather new ways to dispatch and dismember your enemies, including chainsaws, flamethrowers, rocket launchers, futuristic plasma rifles and a super shotgun, because a not-super shotgun just isn't worth shooting. There's an upgrade system for your weaponry as well, which allows you to customize and improve your arsenal even without grabbing new gear.
Playing with friends Animal Crossing: New Horizons allows up to eight players to gather at one person's island in online multiplayer and gives the option of up to four people playing at the same time on the same console. This is a good way to gather goods not available on your island if you're visiting others or can help you build your community if you and friends share the same island.