Animal Crossing 3DS Presentation Shows Off The Game’s Town And Features

Update: Game coming to North America in 2013.

Animal Crossing for the Nintendo 3DS is upping the amount of customization you get to fiddle around with. Just as with previous games, you can design your own clothes, but you can now also share them easily with other players using QR Codes, as shown in last night’s Nintendo Direct presentation (above).

The biggest change is that you’re now the mayor, and have a hand in growing and developing the town. You can add benches and street lamps to the town, and you’ll have a secretary that aids you in running things. As the mayor, you also lay down the law, including things like setting store timings.

You’ll also be able to customize the heck out of your own home, as shown in the presentation video above. Furniture, too, can be taken to an in-game shop and modified with patterns to make it look the way you want.

The town itself has seen some changes as well. The beach area is now larger and there’s a shopping mall from across the railroad track. Additionally, crossing paths with another Animal Crossing player will let you exchange house designs with them via StreetPass. These will be situated at the edge of your town as model homes, and will be managed by Tom Nook, who returns as a real estate agent.

Animal Crossing for 3DS will be released on November 8th in Japan. The game hasn’t been announced for a U.S. or European release yet.