The fun-loving, furry friends of Animal Crossing: New Horizons are a fairly tolerant crew of critters, but apparently there’s one thing Dodo Airlines won’t let fly: politics. Earlier today, Nintendo published a blog post titled “Animal Crossing: New Horizons Usage Guidelines for Business and Organizations,” which outlines the rules organizations must observe “to preserve the experience for the millions of people enjoying the Game recreationally.” This post comes just after the 2020 Presidential Election, in which President-elect Joe Biden utilized the game in his campaign strategy.
The guidelines listed express businesses may use Animal Crossing: New Horizons to provide custom designs and/or Dream Addresses to other players, invite players to their island, and upload screenshots and/or game footage to family-friendly websites and social network services. However, companies are prohibited from engaging in activities that go beyond the game’s rating, using the game as a marketing platform, seeking financial compensation for in-game designs or items, or creating anything within the game that is considered vulgar, discriminatory or offensive—including politics.
If Nintendo spots activity that does not comply with these guidelines, or is “having bad influence on the [Animal Crossing: New Horizons] community,” representatives may reach out to ask the user to stop engaging in such activities, or take appropriate actions against them, including prohibiting future business usage of the game. The post concludes with a note that these guidelines are subject to change, and will be revised as the community grows. Don’t know about you guys, but running for president has never felt less worth it, and it was already pretty low to begin with.