Both Fire Emblem: Three Houses and Animal Crossing New Horizons are walking high and proud with several of the highest honors during the closing of the Tokyo Game Show 2020. This year’s Japanese gaming convention has gone digital and has just ended yesterday, with a handful of awards being handed out during its closing events to commend various Japanese development studios and games for their excellence and countless contributions to the game industry.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons launched the last march, right before the coronavirus pandemic started to spread across the world which forced people to stay inside their homes. The game was an instant success when it was launched and has broken countless sales records, becoming one of the best-selling games of all time in Japan. The game is still continuously launching free new content every now and then to celebrate the current season of the year.
On the other hand, Fire Emblem: Three Houses didn’t have the same popularity outburst as Animal Crossing but the game was still critically acclaimed by both game analysts and players alike. In Japan, it was the best-selling titles during the first week of its release, selling over 140,000 copies in the country alone.
Following a highly successful year for both games (or just six months for Animal Crossing), they were each congratulated at the Tokyo Game Show 2020. Based on media reports, Animal Crossing New Horizons was awarded Game of the Year by the show.
On the other hand, Fire Emblem: Three Houses also achieved similar high praises via the Award for Excellence prize. The developers of the game issued videos after the awarding which were interpreted by Fire Emblem-dedicated website Serenes Forest.
Nintendo’s EPD Genki Yokota said:
“Thank you very much for such a great award for us. Fire Emblem has a long history — for 30 years, people have been enjoying the games. We had felt pressure and anxiety developing this new content for TV screen, but thanks to all the members’ hard work, the title has been favorably accepted by the gamers, and we are so happy about the result. With this joy in our heart, we will be challenging to make a better title. Please support us and keep enjoying the Fire Emblem series. Thank you very much.”
Both titles brought rejuvenating enhancements to their respective franchises and their efforts have been appropriately rewarded. For Fire Emblem: Three Houses, its episodic storyline and tactical RPG gameplay hastily became a focal point of the series for fans of the franchise. This year’s new DLC Cindered Shadows only included more of what every fan already adored, securing the title’s highly acclaimed status.
For Animal Crossing New Horizon’s case, the relaxing and easing nature of the game, combined with its timely launch, helped develop an innovative and enthusiastic fan community which made it one of the biggest titles of the year.
While the hype encompassing the game may have dwindled slightly, the records Animal Crossing New Horizons have set so far is already in the books, and there is reason to believe that the new expansion will rekindle new life into the beloved simulation game.
