Release Time & Date For Version 2.0 Animal Crossing: New Horizons Update

3 years ago

The highly anticipated Version 2.0 Update for Animal Crossing: New Horizons is almost here! Learn exactly when we expect this free update will arrive for download on your Nintendo Switch.

The Version 2.0 Update for Animal Crossing: New Horizons including brand new characters, items, features, and more is scheduled for release on Friday, November 5th according to Nintendo!

However, the company didn’t specify an exact release time in the official announcement, which always leads fans to wonder exactly when they’ll be able to download and enjoy these new features in New Horizons. Based on past precedent though, we have a highly likely exact release time!

Animal Crossing: New Horizons Version 2.0 Update Release Time

With every past major update for Animal Crossing: New Horizons, the update has been consistently released for download at approximately 10AM Japan Standard Time on the date announced by Nintendo — in this case, that’d be 10AM JST on Friday, November 5th.

UPDATE: Ahead of our anticipates schedule, the Version 2.0 Update for Animal Crossing: New Horizons is available RIGHT NOW! Learn more here.

However, Nintendo frustratingly didn’t include that specific time detail in the announcement page for the Version 2.0 update this time around, so we can’t consider the time to be 100% absolutely confirmed… but it’s highly likely given past precedent.

If the release time pattern holds up, then that Japanese time converts to 6PM Pacific Time or 9PM Eastern Time on Thursday, November 4th! That’s notable because it means the update will likely arrive around half a day earlier in some parts of the world than Nintendo advertised for English audiences.

Here’s a comprehensive list of likely Animal Crossing: New Horizons Version 2.0 Update release times around the world, based on the estimated Japanese release date and time:

Thu, November 4th at 6PM Pacific Time (PDT)
Thu, November 4th at 7PM Mountain Time (MDT)
Thu, November 4th at 8PM Central Time (CDT)
Thu, November 4th at 9PM Eastern Time (EDT)
Fri, November 5th at 1AM Greenwich Mean Time (GMT)
Fri, November 5th 12PM Australian Eastern Time (AEDT)

Once again though, we must caution that these times are based on an estimated release time assuming that the previous pattern with all previous major Animal Crossing updates holds true. There’s a small, but unlikely, possibility that Nintendo chooses to operate differently this time around.

We’ll update this article later if any further official confirmation is released by Nintendo about a release time one way or another.

So if you’re excited to get your hands on the Version 2.0 Update for Animal Crossing: New Horizons as soon as possible, be ready and waiting at your Nintendo Switch for a release at the times listed above! Keep in mind you will likely have to manually trigger the update, which we’ll detail in the section below.

How To Download Version 2.0 Update For Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Your copy of Animal Crossing: New Horizons should update automatically for you, but if for some reason it doesn’t, you’ll be able to manually trigger any available updates by pressing the + button on the Animal Crossing: New Horizons home screen icon, selecting Software Update, and hitting Via the Internet.

Your Nintendo Switch system will then check for all available Animal Crossing: New Horizons updates when you do so and download the Version 2.0 Update if it’s been released yet.

Note that it can sometimes take an extra five minutes or so for Nintendo to get the update fully pushed out though, so don’t panic if it doesn’t work immediately on the dot!

Animal Crossing: New Horizons — Happy Home Paradise Release Time

While we do have a pretty solid understanding of when the Version 2.0 Update for Animal Crossing: New Horizons is likely to release, the paid expansion Happy Home Paradise DLC is potentially a bit more complicated.

Typically, most games on the Nintendo eShop that have a pre-order and pre-load option — like Animal Crossing: Happy Home Paradise — are released at Midnight ET for North America and Midnight local time in European countries. However, it’s possible this doesn’t happen since Happy Home Paradise is technically a DLC, not a new game release.

Plus, given how intertwined the Version 2.0 Update and Animal Crossing: Happy Home Paradise are to each other, we can’t help but wonder whether Nintendo might make an exception to normal procedure here by unlocking the DLC whenever the Version 2.0 Update is released.

In conclusion… we really don’t know exactly what to expect for Happy Home Paradise’s release time, but we’ll be sure to update this article as soon as any further information is released.

More Animal Crossing: New Horizons Version 2.0 Coverage

Stay tuned to Animal Crossing World for everything on Animal Crossing: New Horizons, including our extensive Guides section here. Our most popular pages include Prepare For Version 2.0, 16 New Villagers, Happy Home Paradise DLC, Series 5 Amiibo Cards, Version 2.0 Update, Mushroom DIY Recipes, New November Critters, Redd Art, and Sea Creatures.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons News Version 2.0 Update

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