Animal Crossing New Horizons Free Summer Update
Animal Crossing New Horizons Free Summer Update

Dive Into the Animal Crossing: New Horizons Summer 2020 Update

Free summer update brings swimming, diving, pirates and more!

A major update released on July 3rd will allow players to truly make a splash in Animal Crossing: New Horizons this summer. Swimming and diving, which was first introduced in Animal Crossing: New Leaf, will open up a whole new way to experience island life. Before you dive in, here are some things you should know:

Swimming and Diving Gear in Animal Crossing: New Horizons

When you first update the game, you will receive a Snorkel in your mailbox. You will receive one of six available colors. Even though the snorkel is not an essential tool for swimming, it is a fun accessory. Keep an eye out for this item at Able Sisters in order to explore different colors!

Nook's Cranny in Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Nook’s Cranny in Animal Crossing: New Horizons

In order to enter the water, you will need a wetsuit. You can find the Horizontal-Striped Wet Suit from the cabinet at Nook’s Cranny for 3,000 bells. Meanwhile, the machine at the Resident Services building carries the Leaf-Print Wet Suit for 3,000 bells under the Nook Shopping section. Each of these wetsuit styles comes in different colors that vary from day-to-day. You can also redeem your Nook Miles to purchase the Nook Inc. Snorkel for 500 miles and Nook Inc. Wet Suit for 800 miles. Once you have your wetsuit, you can equip it from your inventory. This wetsuit will be worn over any equipped clothing.

Animal Crossing New Horizons Diving Gear
via yuecrossing

Swimming and Diving in Animal Crossing

Once you have equipped your gear, you’re ready to go! You can press A to dive into the ocean from virtually any point of entry — the beaches, the dock, or even a cliff overlooking the water. To cliff dive or to do a flip from the dock, sprint in the direction of the water from a distance and press A as soon as you reach the edge. Once you are in the water, you can press A repeatedly or hold it down to swim. Unlike in New Leaf, you won’t have to worry about any pesky jellyfish swimming offshore waiting to sting you.

Exploring the Animal Crossing Oceans

As you explore the oceans, you will come across shadows in the water. Press Y to dive under the surface and see what’s there. There are 40 new creatures you can collect by diving, and some will be harder to catch than others as they try to swim away. You can also collect pearls, which are not classified as a sea creature but can be used for DIY recipes from the Mermaid set. You can unlock these recipes by encountering Pascal, the nomadic otter who you may be familiar with if you’ve played previous installments in the Animal Crossing franchise. When you catch a Scallop, he will appear and offer you a recipe in exchange for it. Be sure to take advantage of this opportunity as he will only appear once per day. When you accept his offer, you can also follow him as he swims away to catch a glimpse of him enjoying the tasty snack you’ve provided!

Pascal, the red sea otter
Pascal, the red sea otter, loves scallops.

In addition to these encounters, you may come across Pirate Gulliver, also known as Gullivarrr, on your shores. Whereas the original Gulliver quest requires you to dig up communicator parts in the sand, Gullivarrr’s quest requires you to search for parts by diving in the ocean. Rather than rewarding your help with souvenirs, Gullivarrr will reward you with pirate-themed furniture and clothing.

Gullivarrr the Pirate Gulliver in Animal Crossing
Gullivarr (Pirate Gulliver) brings pirate-themed rewards.

These, along with the Mermaid and seasonal Summer Shell items released in June open up a whole new world for players to explore this season.

 

 

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