Animal Crossing's Museum: Making Science Part Of Your Daily Play
It seems silly to state something as well known amongst game lovers as "Animal Crossing is a beloved series," but it's true. Animal Crossing was one of the few games I played as a child, before my Gaming Golden Age (happening now) as an adult.
For the uninitiated, I will explain: Animal Crossing is a life simulation game where the player takes on the role of themselves moving to and living in a town otherwise populated by adorable talking animals with various personalities. The game runs on a clock; an hour in-game is an hour in real life. The main activities are talking to your neighbors, buying or selling in the few animal-run shops available, paying off your mortgage, decorating (yourself or your house), fishing, catching bugs, digging up fossils, and visiting your town's museum. The museum won't fill itself, though.
That is up to the player. Players may, if they choose, have fossils evaluated, and then donate them to the museum. Likewise, fish, bugs, and works of fine art can be donated as well. This can be a difficult choice for some because rare fossils, fish, bugs, and art can fetch high prices and help you pay off your house.
Recently, I have, for the first time in my many years playing Animal Crossing installments on and off, finally finished the fossil exhibit of my town's museum. It's wonderful.
Here I am, basking in the natural history of it all.
Animal Crossing is a fairly simple game. There are no time limits other than the opening and closing of stores and when certain villagers or bugs or fish appear; there are no requirements or bosses, unless you consider Tom Nook the ultimate capitalist villain. The game is just about living your little life in your little village. Just as integral to that life as stores or wandering or making friends, is, according to the game developers, a museum. Art, history, nature, science, and the appreciation thereof available to all.That is key to any growing population. (And a friendly coffee shop. Can't forget that.)
So, thank you to Animal Crossing, its creator, Katsuya Eguchi, the team behind it, and Nintendo, for making science part of my daily life by making it part of my daily play.
