FREE Animal Crossing Halloween update on the way: Recipes, costumes, more

As part of Nintendo’s continued effort to provide its player base with a constant string of free content, today we are getting our first look at the new Animal Crossing Halloween update for New Horizons. Earlier this month, Nintendo issued the fall update with new creatures to catch, materials to craft, and trinkets to collect, and, as expected, next month is all about pumpkins, costumes, and a special trick-or-treat event. Head below for the Animal Crossing Halloween update trailer and more details.

Animal Crossing Halloween update:

The Animal Crossing Halloween update is a completely free one that will be available to download later this month, just in time for you to start decorating your island for Halloween. The new update introduces players to the pumpkin patch where you can collect resources for new DIY recipes like spooky decorations, new custom costume creations, and Jack, the czar of Halloween.

Nintendo wants folks to get serious about their Animal Crossing costumes this year as well as collect candy through the month to be ready for the in-game Halloween night event.

Animal Crossing trick-or-treat!

All of the Halloween fun culminates in a sort of trick-or-treat in-game event that kicks off on October 31 at 5 p.m. when Jack, the czar of Halloween will make an appearance. Players can hand out candy to their neighbors while checking out everyone’s costumes, but according to Nintendo, you will get pranked if you don’t give your fellow islanders some treats. You can also score some in-game rewards if you share some goodies with Jack, the czar of Halloween.

The NookLink app is getting an early October update as well. These include the ability to trigger new spooky, Halloween-themed reactions from your smartphone.

The new Animal Crossing Halloween update is scheduled to go live on September 30, 2020, as a free download for anyone who owns the game. Nintendo will be gifting those who download and install the update a virtual Ring Con controller trinket for their home gyms as well:

A Ring Con item from #RingFitAdventure will be sent as a gift for all users that download the #AnimalCrossing: New Horizons Fall update! pic.twitter.com/bIkzywiYD4

— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) September 25, 2020

9to5Toys’ Take:

While Nintendo’s 2020 lineup hasn’t been overly exciting thus far, it is great to see them pump new free content into one of the most successful titles of the year (full hands-on review of New Horizons here). The fall updates haven’t been quite as substantial in terms of new gameplay as the summer overhaul, but they certainly keep players engaged and introduce some new fun elements to the experience, almost every month now.

Swing by today’s game deal roundup for offers on Super Mario 3D All-Stars and many more Switch games, as well as the SEGA 60th Anniversary eShop sale from $6.