creativity that allowed for the player to design the island with furniture and building layout, leading to a "true representation of the player who created it." Eurogamer Deputy Editor Martin Robinson stated that, the game has some very impressive improvements which allowed for a much clearer and more defined structure overall that gave the game play a better feel and cohesion than ever before. Critics from GameSpot and Game Informer praised the creative freedom and control offered by the game, such as being allowed to choose where buildings and bridges are placed. In particular, the Island Designer App was lauded with its ability to create natural structures, although there were minor complaints about how the player could not expand the island and could only reshape it. GamesRadar+ appreciated the retaining of old characters and concepts with the addition of new gameplay mechanics. Slant Magazine's Steven Scaife was more critical of the game, arguing that "By consolidating so much power in the hands of an individual player, New Horizons threatens to upend the Animal Crossing vision of community living." Many had complaints about time restrictions in the early phases of the game. Since the game runs in real-time, most of the resources available replenish the next day, and reviewers were left with little to do in the beginning. IGNs Samuel Claiborn refused to time travel in prior titles, but ultimately was tempted into putting the system's clock ahead 15 days in when more tools were unlocked and to begin what he believed was when the game had faster pacing. 4Players enjoyed the lack of time-related pressure and the option to time travel if preferred. Outside of gameplay itself, New Horizons received acclaim for the timing of the release, coming out just as stay-at-home orders were being fortified. Reviewer Louryne Strampe of WIRED found that the game was exactly what she needed for her mental health and added that she and her colleagues find solace when visiting each other's respective islands. Due to online multiplayer options, it also gave critics the opportunity to play with friends during quarantine. The downloadable content expansion, Happy Home Paradise, was well received. Lisa Segarra of Kotaku found the prompts for designing villager homes to be "exhilarating" and that it "sparked inspiration". She found that the update brought "so much new life into the game". Kate Gray of Nintendo Life described the new content in both the