Nature Day rewards green thinking in Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Earn Nook Miles by keeping your island green and pristine.

April 27, 2020

In a recent update, Nature Day came to Animal Crossing: New Horizons and with it, the return of Leif! The beloved, endlessly cheerful sloth will begin occasionally setting up a gardening stand stocked with shrub starters and flower seeds not found at Nook’s Cranny. He made sure to show up on the first day of Animal Crossing’s Nature Day celebrations running from April 23rd through May 4th.

Nintendo

And it’s a good thing, as Tom Nook has rolled out limited time Nature Day activities for the Nook Mile+ program, the first of which encourages players to plant shrubs sold at Leif’s stall. Everyday throughout the event, a new Nature Day activity will be loaded onto players’ Nook Phones, encouraging island reps to plant seeds and elevate the island’s natural beauty. The animal neighbors also comment on the event with lines expressing how “everyday should be Nature Day” as we preserve the world we all live on. It’s a very light environmental message — and one which involves the acquisition of company script through the same company’s app on said company’s phone — but it’s cute nonetheless. Oh, and you even unlock a hedge fence for completing a Nature Day activity!

It’s also a step up from the Nature Day celebration in New Leaf. In that entry in the Animal Crossing series, Isabelle would be stationed at the town square to wish you a “Happy Nature Day,” pass you a globe for your home decor, and encourage you to pose behind a Nature Day-themed cardboard standee.

Nintendo

Trust and believe, I hold no grudge against Isabelle for working 24 hours a day, essentially running the town by herself, and making time to stand in the town square all day with a gift. However, Nature Day in New Horizons feels more like a more engaging and rewarding event by a long shot. I’m happy the celebrations were rung in with Leif returning to talk about how happy his seeds are.