Phil Spencer, executive vice president of gaming at Microsoft and head of the Xbox brand, is going to do an interview inside Nintendo's beloved life simulation game Animal Crossing: New Horizons. The game released in March and sold phenomenally. Much of its success has been ascribed to its viability as an escape mechanism during the quarantine imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has kept many people from socializing and interacting with friends and relatives in person.
The quarantine has had far-reaching effects, not just in peoples' social lives but in just about every branch of the world of entertainment. Movies were delayed, sports were shut down, and even popular trade shows like E3 have been cancelled entirely. Talk shows are one of many victims of the new lifestyle imposed on society this year. These programs found their studios closed and their guests only able to talk over video conferencing software like Zoom. In an effort to make up for this critical disruption in the talk show scene, English screenwriter Gary Whitta has devised a truly bizarre new program called Animal Talking. Animal Talking is in most ways a perfectly conventional talk show in a very typical talk show studio, but there's a key difference: the studio, the host, and every single guest are inside Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Whitta and his guests interact through player avatars in the game.
Animal Talking has been a considerable success since it aired, and it's attracted some very high-profile guests, like Selena Gomez, Brie Larson, and Danny Trejo. But next week's episode, set to stream on August 12th, features perhaps the most surprising guest yet: Phil Spencer, head of noted Nintendo rival Xbox, as spotted by TheGamer. Spencer will be joined by Dylan Sprouse, who recently proved his status as an Animal Crossing fan by sharing a birthday cake inspired by the game with his twin brother Cole. Singer-songwriter Lisa Loeb will also appear as a musical guest.
It's a bit odd to see Phil Spencer appear on one of his competitor's most successful titles. One can probably expect him to discuss this incongruity when he appears on the program. It's unclear what else he'll talk about, though; it's unlikely that he'll share any major Xbox announcements outside of an official showcase. He might tease an upcoming event where such announcements could be given, or just talk about what it's like to develop a new console. One of the most egregiously absent pieces of information about Xbox's upcoming console is the price, so if Phil is going to share anything about the Xbox Series X, fans would probably like it to be that.
Animal Talking is a strange and delightful concept, and a very creative way to bring some semblance of normalcy back to a world struggling with a terrifying pandemic. There's a lot to admire about Gary Whitta's program. It uses the systems of the game it's set in marvelously, and it's evident from even a brief clip that it was made with a lot of heart. Seeing the show get such a following, and pick up so many famous and truly surprising guests like Phil Spencer, is a wonderful thing. It's evidence of how much freedom and creativity abounds in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and it's sure to make for a truly fascinating interview when Phil Spencer makes his appearance on August 12th.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons is available now on the Nintendo Switch.
Source: TheGamer, Gary Whitta/Twitter
