In recent weeks, major free updates for well-known games have become increasingly common, which is no longer the norm for long-standing projects. This time, Nintendo took the step, releasing large-scale free patches for its hits - Animal Crossing: New Horizons and Splatoon 3.
The updates were released after the launch of the new generation of consoles and significantly revived interest in these games.
Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa commented on the decision during a Q&A session at the company's financial results presentation. According to him, free extended updates help maintain contact with current players and bring back those who have taken a break. At the same time, this is part of a soft transition strategy between console generations, allowing users to switch to a new device at a convenient pace.
The company notes that after the release of a major update for Animal Crossing, there has been an increase in activity and an influx of new players on the modern platform. A similar situation is observed with Splatoon 3, which received significant improvements and new features. Nintendo emphasizes that regularly updating key games extends their life cycle and simultaneously supports the launch of new hardware.
