The term "beta" applies to a point in the creation of a video game. Today, we'll look through five of the most notable beta updates the game underwent to get to this stage, including early beta screenshots of Animal Crossing New Horizons and the game's very first teaser, which contains some very interesting information.

Although there is no doubt that Animal Crossing: New Horizons is a stunningly gorgeous game with a modern style in comparison to previous games, this was not always the case. We've crossed the nine-month mark since the launch of Animal Crossing New Horizons, and the culture around the game continues to flourish, which is fantastic news because ACNH Katrina implies new players are entering daily. ACNH underwent many adjustments during production, with the game initially being completely different. With so many exciting additions, deletions, and updates to graphical info, here are 5 Animal Crossing New Horizons beta changes you didn't hear about (shared by famous Youtuber Crossing Channel and Mayor Mori).

Early Graphics for the Game
This screenshot is interesting at the moment since it reveals a very unusual and early version of New Horizons; the visuals resemble anything even similar to Animal Crossing New Leaf, but it seems as though some of the key models, such as the player character, cities, and plants, resemble what we have in the final game. Certain structures, such as the town hall, almost have a deliberately simple vibe. This screenshot depicts a drastically different New Horizons, one that might have ended up looking more like an Animal Crossing New Leaf port. If the theme had persisted from that game, it's a good thing the visuals were overhauled, as ACNH looks that much nicer as a result.

ACNH Bells were initially planning to discuss a far more conservative clock style identical to the one in New Leaf in this screenshot. Indeed, it is almost identical in the final game. We have a lot more simple style that blends in with some of the other game features, such as the clock design from New Leaf and the amount of personality and association with previous AC games. This was most definitely a placeholder before they found out the look they wanted for the game. As a result, it was almost certainly never meant to be used in the final game. You will potentially claim the same thing regarding the bottom mini map, which is still very different from the final game. As you can see from this mini map, the island on which the team is playing to take these screenshots seems to be quite incomplete, most definitely only loaded with test items to aid in the game's creation. It'd be interesting to learn what other novel features were considered at this early stage, especially significant ones like terraforming. As we can see from this scene, outdoor furniture was already considered at this stage, which makes sense given that it was launched and used in happy home designer and even pocket camp; the team most definitely took influence from those games and decided to incorporate it into a mainline Animal Crossing title.

E3 2019 was the first time we saw ACNH; we realized the game was coming thanks to a trailer back in 2018, but we didn't have any gameplay video. However, when we received the game's second trailer in September, only a few months after E3, one improvement was abundantly obvious the lawn. The game did not improve significantly between this first trailer and release, although this one change is extremely visible. Due to the brief time span between this and the subsequent teaser, in which the game seems almost similar to the one published in March, it definitely paints a curious image of how the production team continued to strive to improve the game's visuals. As the months passed, this first teaser revealed an intriguing aspect that was later omitted.

Picket Fence in White
Another intriguing aspect that was introduced as late as the preview trailer that was initially streamed during E3 when ACNH was revealed was the white picket fence that surrounds this village's garden area as the player races by it. As someone who has seen a multitude of fences in the island is aware, the white picket fence is not currently included in the game and seems to have been omitted from the public release. Additionally, if we glance at this screenshot from a very early beta edition of New Horizons, we will see an even earlier idea for the picket fence, one that is not dissimilar to the dream scene surrounding the houses in the initial Animal Crossing. Thus, it seems as if they were aiming for a more conventional look during the production of ACNH. However, during the transition from beta to general release, the white picket fencing was scrapped or replaced with a plain wooden fence. It's a subtle adjustment.

Patches of Dirt
If we glance at another screenshot from a beta edition of New Horizons, we will see a noticeable difference that isn't entirely common. Near examination of the grassy areas reveals a handful of what seem to be soil deposits. Now, dirt patches were an iconic aesthetic from the original Animal Crossing, but they were later renamed grass deterioration, a mechanic in which the grass deteriorates over time, revealing the dirt underneath. With it being a beta version or earlier, the lack of detail is to be expected, but it seems that dirt patches existed for some time during the development. Another idea is that these dirt patches were an early prototype for the path tool or for what became the path tool but were modified or substituted for the public edition of the game, similar to the picket fences.