Animal Crossing: New Horizons won't allow cloud saves at launch, Nintendo has confirmed.
However, it also revealed that there is a system in place to let you transfer data should your Switch suffer a terrible accident or go missing, that will launch some time after the game's launch.
During the stream, an answer to an FAQ said "Animal Crossing: New Horizons does not support the save data cloud feature. However, we're planning to operate a service for recovering backed up save data from the server in certain circumstances, like console damage, or loss."
While it's a shame that we won't be able to easily transfer data across consoles, this provides a handy backup in case of emergencies. Hopefully, you can rest slightly easier tonight knowing that your island paradise won't be lost even if the dog eats your Switch/it gets nabbed on a busy commute/some other awful fate befalls your console.
However, small print in the Direct did confirm that you'll only be able to recover your save data once.
Update Feb. 24: Nintendo has since swapped out the small print in the original Direct video with revised copy: "More details on save data recovery functionality will be shared at a future date." That doesn't mean Nintendo has necessarily changed its mine about only allowing one save recovery per game, but it's a good sign that it's listening to fan feedback.
Original story resumes: Cloud saving on Nintendo Switch was introduced with the Nintendo Switch Online subscription, and it allows players to upload save data and download to a different console. It's incredibly useful if you're looking to change your machine or back up saves.
There's been plenty of new info on Animal Crossing's Switch debut revealed during today's Direct, from the introduction of the Nook Link (don't worry, it's not another way to scam you out of those precious bells) to the planned free updates post-launch.
On top of that, we've also spent a couple of hours setting up our own perfect island getaway. Check out our Animal Crossing: New Horizons preview here.
