How To Invite And Add Friends On Animal Crossing New Horizons

Welcome to the most fun game on Nintendo Switch! If you are new to Animal Crossing New Horizons, you may be wondering how to add friends so you can show off your island or get building ideas by visiting other islands. If that’s what you want, this guide will show you how.

What you need to invite friends to your island or visit an island?

Although Animal Crossing New Horizons can be played offline, you’re going to miss a big part of what makes the game really fun, and that is playing with your friends. If you’re content with thriving in your own island alone (which is really sad), then you can go ahead and do it.

However, if you plan on going online and enjoying the game with family members, friends, and even strangers, you’ll need to have an active Nintendo Online subscription. To get that, you’ll have to use the Nintendo Switch eShop. Depending on your choice, you can either use an individual subscription or a family subscription.

When can you invite friends to your Animal Crossing island?

Once you’ve signed up for a Nintendo Online subscription, you can then go ahead and start the game. At first, you won’t be able to add friends on Animal Crossing New Horizons right away and you’ll need to wait for one full day after you’ve created your island. This is because the airport won’t be operational within the first 24 hours.

If you want to hurry this up and you’re desperate to add friends, you can use a “cheat” to time travel. This is done by changing the Nintendo Switch time and date manually on your console. So, for example, if you started playing the game at 12 in the morning of August 1st, you simply have to move the date and time forward for at least 24 hours to trick the game into thinking that the 24-hour period had lapsed.

Once airport is up and running, you should be able to visit your friends’ islands or invite them over to yours.

How to add friends on Animal Crossing New Horizons?

There are two ways to add friends on Animal Crossing. One is by going through the usual way of adding friends in Nintendo Switch and the other is by using a Dodo Code. The latter is a way to invite other players and is specific to Animal Crossing New Horizons only.

What is a Dodo Code?

The Dodo Code is a more effective way of inviting players to one’s island. It offers you more control over invitees although it can also be abused. It’s not unheard of that many people who invite people over their island complaining that some of their items were stolen, flowers were crushed, among many other unsavory things.

If you are careful though, it’s a sure way of enjoying the game even more.

How to use the Dodo Code?

To use a Dodo code, you simply have to visit the Dodo Airlines Airport on the second day and speak to Orville. Then, when asked whether to invite visitors locally or online, you want to select online play.

If you already have Nintendo Switch friends who played Animal Crossing New Horizons, you will then be given the option to open your gate for them. Once you’ve done that, they can be allowed to come over your island.

Should you wish to invite others who are not your Nintendo Switch friends, you can use the Dodo Code. Just click on Invite via Dodo Code option and when Orville asks you who to invite, just select The more the merrier.

Selecting this option won’t automatically mean that anyone can then discover your island and visit. You still need to share your Dodo Code to Animal Crossing New Horizons community via social media sites of your choosing to spread the word around.

If you want to open your island to strangers, make sure that you click on Yeah, invite anyone option. Once that’s finished, your island’s gate will be opened.

Difference between Best Friend and Friend in Animal Crossing New Horizons

If you are new to Animal Crossing New Horizons, you may discover that there are two types of friends that you can have — Friend and Best Friend. The difference between the two is important and must not be overlooked. Friends can visit your island and take a look around but they can basically do nothing much that will make you regret later on.

Best Friends have more freedom when visiting and they can potentially cause havoc if you’re not careful. They have access to a shovel or axe so they can basically destroy things. If you don’t trust a person, don’t make him or her your Best Friend.

To unlock Best Friend is easy as you only need to play online once to make the Best Friend app available in the NookPhone.

What are the benefits of visiting islands of your friends in Animal Crossing?

Playing with others, even only in a virtual world such as that of Animal Crossing New Horizons, can have personal advantages. It makes the game more fun to play and it keeps the grind of looking for resources interesting. Of course, it’s also not a surprise at all that there are now millions of players enjoying this game around the world so playing online also boosts the community in general.

For me personally, I simply like the idea of earning more Nook Miles when I visit friends. That’s it, plain and simple.