Visit Sentosa Island Virtually On Nintendo's Animal Crossing: New Horizons

By now, the words “stay home” would have long been ingrained into our heads, and while we may miss the company of our friends and the freedom of heading outside, it doesn’t mean that things have to be boring. As some necessary cheer during these unprecedented times, Sentosa’s presenting a novel approach — you can now visit Sentosa Island in the popular Nintendo Switch game, Animal Crossing: New Horizons. From 9 May (Sat) onwards, their sunny island is now only a short Dodo flight away!

Fans of the game would delight in this digital reimagining of Sentosa, which took two weeks of intense terraforming and sourcing of items by the team in order to come up with, frankly, some very faithful recreations of Sentosa’s iconic spots. You’ve got the serene beaches complete with deck chairs and coconut drinks, actual beach clubs such as FOC Sentosa and Rumours Beach Club, as well as the luxurious private dwellings of hotels Capella Singapore and Le Méridien Singapore. Romantic spots, such as a hidden beach set-up, or a rose-lined aisle fit for a wedding, are enticing photo ops as well.

The launch also marks the first Animal Crossing: New Horizons island getaway to be developed by a Singapore brand.

How to register for a session

From 9 May till 1 June, Sentosa Crossing is open for play at three timeslots a day: 10am to 12noon, 2pm to 4pm, and 6pm to 8pm. Each two-hour window features three sessions of 30 minutes each, while each session will be limited to four visitors for the best experience.

1. First, register here for a chance to visit Sentosa Crossing!

Players will be able to register for any of the subsequent three days. Eg. On Monday, registrations for play between Tuesday and Thursday will be open.
Slots are limited to four players per half-hour session.

2. Answer the question of the week correctly in order to get a chance to be one of Sentosa’s virtual visitors.

The four players who successfully register for each game session will receive an email confirmation. They will also receive another email containing a Dodo code 15 minutes before their slot.

3. Visit the “airport” on your island, key in the Dodo code and you will be transported to Sentosa Crossing!

Note: Visitors must have a Nintendo Switch online subscription to be able to fly in.

OUR VIRTUAL TOUR

We visited the island on a media tour earlier today, for a feel of the land. The verdict? It’s pretty well done! Island-proud players — especially those who play the game without time-travelling — will appreciate the sheer variety of items and custom designs the Sentosa team went into detail to create, while I also loved how they captured both the sprawling, spacious feel, and the small, hidden enclaves of Sentosa. Not to mention, all those iconic landmarks! You may view some of our screenshots below.

But first, some island-visiting tips.

Bring along all your nice outfits! The Magic Wand tool is highly recommended for this so you can change in a jiffy — recommended outfits include beachwear, hiking gear, loungewear, and a fancy party look.
Bring a net — you never know what rare spawns you might catch!
Do note that visiting etiquette applies: do not pluck or trample on flowers, ruin someone’s selfie shot, or try to steal things off the island (you can’t).