Pokemon Pokopia Completely Surpasses Animal Crossing in One Major Way

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Since its first announcement, Pokemon Pokopia has often been compared to Animal Crossing. While the two games share some similarities, Pokopia isn’t simply a copy of New Horizons. You’ll be fulfilling requests from your Pokemon and designing homes for them, but Pokopia offers a lot more gameplay than that. Those who enjoy decorating and real-time elements in games like Animal Crossing will likely enjoy Pokopia. However, having played both, I believe Pokopia surpasses New Horizons in one significant aspect.

Let’s be real, starting a new island in Animal Crossing: New Horizons can feel like a lot of work at the beginning. The game doesn’t offer much guidance, and it takes time to unlock many of its features. This is made slower by the game’s real-time clock. Pokopia also uses a real-time building system, but it does a much better job of giving players clear and satisfying tasks to do while things progress – it’s a great improvement on the Animal Crossing formula that I’d love to see in the next New Horizons game.

Building Happens in Real Time in Pokopia, But There’s Plenty To Do While You Wait

I haven’t always loved New Horizons as much as some people, mainly because it takes a while to get going. In the beginning, there isn’t a lot to actually do each day. Many important things require waiting until the next in-game day, so unless you enjoy activities like fishing or collecting items, you can only play in short bursts. This worried me when I started Pokemon Pokopia, but thankfully, it avoids that slow start. Despite also having elements that happen in real-time, Pokemon Pokopia feels much more immediately engaging.

In Pokopia, you quickly understand what you need to achieve, and there’s a lot more variety in those goals. Professor Tangrowth gives you enough help to get started without being overly restrictive, unlike Tom Nook. You’ll be busy restoring habitats, completing Pokemon requests, and improving the environment, plus handling regular tasks from the Pokemon Center. Because of all this, building things like your house or the Pokemon Center doesn’t feel like it slows you down – there’s always something else to do while you wait.

It’s important to remember that not all construction happens instantly. Larger projects, like restoring the Pokemon Center, genuinely take a significant amount of time. However, simpler requests, such as building a windmill or small house, are usually completed within just a few minutes. This system cleverly keeps you engaged by giving you something to do while waiting for longer tasks to finish, preventing you from simply saving the game and returning later.

Pokopia Gives Players a Varied Grind Right from the Start

Okay, so playing Pokopia is a lot like getting into New Horizons – the world really opens up the more you play. When you first start, it’s pretty small, just one area with a few places to build homes for your Pokemon. But the cool thing is, as you keep playing, you unlock new stuff to do, new places to explore, and new goals to work towards. It’s paced a little better than New Horizons though, which is great. Honestly, the way the game is designed, I don’t think I’ll ever run out of things to do – it’s super engaging!

Even when you’re waiting for something to finish building or materials to become available in Pokopia, there’s always something to do. You can check on how comfortable your Pokémon are, search for rare bricks or resources, or tackle missions and goals at the Pokémon Center PC. This makes it easier to decide what to do next in Pokopia compared to games like Animal Crossing.

I still enjoy Animal Crossing, of course. Its relaxed pace is intentional, and it’s nice to have a game you can play in short bursts. However, I was pleased to see that Pokopia offers a much more diverse range of activities from the beginning. This allows you to either play in real-time or still get completely lost in the game for hours, and that’s a major reason why Pokopia has the potential to build a dedicated, long-term fanbase like Animal Crossing.

What are your thoughts on the initial progression in New Horizons? Share your opinions in the comments and join the discussion on the ComicBook Forum!

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2026-03-06 19:42