Animal Crossing Plaza
Developer(s)Nintendo EAD
Publisher(s)Nintendo
Producer(s)Aya Kyogoku
SeriesAnimal Crossing
Platform(s)Wii U
ReleaseAugust 7, 2013
Genre(s)Simulation
Mode(s)Single-player

Animal Crossing Plaza was a free to play social networking service developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii U. A spin-off of Animal Crossing: New Leaf of the Animal Crossing series, Plaza was released as a tie-in to Miiverse, Nintendo's now-defunct social networking service. The application is no longer actively supported by Nintendo, and was removed from the Nintendo eShop on December 22, 2014.

Gameplay edit

Animal Crossing Plaza allowed users to interact with other players of the Nintendo 3DS game Animal Crossing: New Leaf. The application was similar to Nintendo's Wara Wara Plaza,[1] and allowed users to post messages for other players, receive news and updates about New Leaf, and participate in polls.[2] The game connected with New Leaf via SD card, allowing players to post and archive New Leaf screenshots, and share in-game clothing designs using QR codes.[3] Users could also upload Plaza posts directly to Nintendo's Miiverse social networking service.[4] The game's overworld was populated by non-player characters from the Animal Crossing series, who users could interact with.[5]

Development edit

Animal Crossing Plaza was announced in a Nintendo Direct on August 7, 2013, and was released digitally on the Nintendo eShop that same day.[6] Plaza was planned as a limited-time application, with Nintendo stating in its announcement of the application that it would only be supported through the end of 2014.[2]

On December 8, 2014, Nintendo released a statement confirming that it would cease ongoing support for Plaza. The application was removed from the Nintendo eShop on December 22, 2014, and the ability to create new posts within the application was removed on December 31, 2014.[7] Plaza remains accessible to users who downloaded the application prior to its removal from eShop, though its social features are no longer usable.[8]

References edit

  1. ^ Sakar, Samit (7 August 2013). "Mii-like Animal Crossing Plaza now available on Wii U". Polygon. Archived from the original on 8 August 2013. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  2. ^ a b Fahey, Mike (7 August 2013). "Animal Crossing Comes To The Wii U With Animal Crossing Plaza". Kotaku. Archived from the original on 1 February 2020. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  3. ^ Workman, Robert (7 August 2013). "Animal Crossing Plaza Open for Business on Wii U". Prima Games. Archived from the original on 1 February 2020. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  4. ^ "Nintendo Launches Animal Crossing Plaza on Wii U" (Press release). Redmond, Washington: BusinessWwire. Hanabee. 7 August 2013. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  5. ^ O'Brien, Lucy (7 August 2013). "Animal Crossing: New Leaf to Get its Own Miiverse Community, Plaza". IGN. Archived from the original on 1 February 2020. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  6. ^ Suszek, Mike (7 August 2013). "Animal Crossing Plaza community launches on Wii U". Engadget. Archived from the original on 12 April 2016. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  7. ^ Doolan, Liam (8 December 2014). "Animal Crossing Plaza Service Stops At the End of This Month". Nintendo Life. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on 30 October 2020. Retrieved 1 February 2020.
  8. ^ "Animal Crossing Plaza". Nintendo.com. Archived from the original on 1 February 2020. Retrieved 1 February 2020.

External links edit