Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp is closing – and being reborn offline

But for once, an “end is nigh” announcement isn’t the whole story. Fans of the cutesy life sim who’ve been tending to their campsites for the past seven years — and game historians worried about the future preservation of online games — can rest easy: Pocket campand players’ saved data will live on in a new form.

Nintendo has said that a new, paid, offline version of the game will be released. Players will be able to transfer their save data and continue playing the game well into the future.

In an accompanying FAQ, Nintendo explained that the paid version of Pocket camp will have the same “core gameplay and controls” as the current game, but will allow players to use all of the included features for a one-time purchase price. It will not have any in-app purchases and will not support the Pocket Camp Club subscription service or the Leaf Tickets microtransaction currency. It will work offline, but will not Pocket camp‘s online features, such as gifts and visiting other players’ campsites. Game saves are transferred between versions of the game by linking them via Nintendo Accounts.

Nintendo hasn’t revealed how much the paid app will cost, but as long as the price is reasonable, it seems likely that many Pocket camp players will benefit from the ability to keep playing, or just keep their saved game. Perhaps the paid app will attract new players who were previously put off by Pocket campThe freemium model of.

While many players expressed their disappointment over the closure, many left an appreciative comment under the post from the game’s official X account. “Most mobile games eventually die, this is just the best case scenario for such an eventuality,” one said. “When Dragalia Lost closed and I lost EVERYTHING… I was devastated. This deserves sincere respect because it doesn’t have to be this way,” another posted.

from Nintendo Pocket camp The shutdown strategy wouldn’t work for every online game; like other Animal Crossing titles, Pocket camp has social features but is focused on solo gameplay, and players can still enjoy their collections in an offline context. Still, it’s heartening to see a developer pull the plug on one of their games in a way that respects both their own creation and the investment players have in it. Hopefully others will take this to heart.