Play of choice: Animal Crossing

Emily Powell, 27, London

“They say that hunter gatherers are the happiest people on the planet because they have one task to fulfil a day and, trust me, it’s true. I know because there’s a virtual world where I do exactly that. On Animal Crossing, I spend my time blissfully meandering, collecting shells, harvesting trees and chatting to my landlord, who also happens to be a very cute raccoon.

Gaming was a big part of my childhood. I have visceral memories of hanging out with my brother in our parent’s house in Wales – him 10, me 13 – playing Animal Crossing and being super close. It wasn’t until we were separated because of the pandemic, and I had no idea when I would see him again, that I felt pulled back to that time, and I wanted to relive it. My boyfriend at the time had a Nintendo Switch and I quickly downloaded the game. Soon, I was in a world where life was much, much simpler and it seemed everyone else was enjoying this escapism, too. A bunch of my colleagues and I began sneaking end-of-day meetings in the diary to visit each other’s islands like naughty children. I still play it after a stressful day, and as something that transports me back to my childhood, why wouldn’t I indulge?”

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