Does Animal Crossing: New Horizons need crossover with other franchises to stay afloat?

It's no secret that Animal Crossing is floundering right now. What was once the most promising and profitable game for Nintendo has taken a huge hit, which is largely self-inflicted. Despite recent updates and the promise of more by year's end, the game is struggling. The update was like a Band-Aid on a broken leg.

Many players are still upset with Nintendo and the game's once massive popularity is dwindling. Other Nintendo franchises rarely have any issues like this, which makes one think, Does Animal Crossing need to crossover with other franchises to revitalize and stay afloat?

Gulliver makes a reference to The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening #AnimalCrossing #ACNH #NintendoSwitch pic.twitter.com/DzBdFi8UeK

— GOGZero (@GOGZero1) July 30, 2021

---

Crossovers in Animal Crossing

Animal Crossing already had a largely successful crossover with Super Mario, and there were rumors of a Legend of Zelda crossover, but it never came to fruition. The Mario items are still highly sought after, and many players have a Mario themed island. This begs the question, will other crossovers benefit Animal Crossing?

→Super Mario Brothers→#あつ森 #Mario #AnimalCrossing #ACNH #NintendoSwitch pic.twitter.com/TkHOLrmWro

— らじの (@rajino2011) August 4, 2021

Keeping in mind that Nintendo doesn't let its properties go elsewhere, it's safe to say that they would only crossover with Nintendo franchises. Sonic the Hedgehog is a possibility as well as a few others that aren't Nintendo owned but are prominent on Nintendo consoles. This still leaves Pokemon, Donkey Kong, F-Zero, Fire Emblem, Kirby, the aforementioned Zelda franchise, Metroid, Pikmin, Splatoon, Star Fox and Xenoblade.

Kirby. Image via Business Insider

Donkey Kong, Pokemon, Zelda and maybe Metroid would do Animal Crossing some good. So, how will these do it?

Pokemon would be a stellar way of adding new yet familiar villagers to the scene. Most Pokemon are based on animals, so they could be modeled into villagers with relative ease. Some of them, like Pikachu, Incineroar, Mewtwo, Lucario, Snorlax, would make spectacular villagers. Adding Pokeballs and other Pokemon related items while allowing players to model islands after Pokemon gyms will be wildly popular as well.

Mewtwo. Image via Sonic Pokemon Wiki

As for Zelda, it would likely go the same way as the Super Mario Crossover. Themed outfits will work as well as adding items and decor that make the island resemble Hyrule. There will likely be no gameplay features added from either The Legend of Zelda or Pokemon franchises, but fans hope that the aesthetics will surely be more than enough to keep Animal Crossing afloat in these trying times.