‘Animal Crossing’ fan is on a mission to visit all of the game’s art in real life

Animal Crossing New Horizons allowed players to view popular pieces of art throughout history in the comfort of their own homes due to the pandemic. But one fan is on a mission ever since international travel is back on the table. Their plan — visit all the artwork and statues that were featured in the game.

Filmmaker Mayuren Naidoo has embarked on a journey to visit every piece of painting and statue that was available in the game. Nintendo Life reports that he started this mission in April 2022. The filmmaker visited a variety of museums in Europe and is currently halfway through his goal. 

While a task like this might be expensive, Naidoo ensured that he’s able to utilize his trips to ensure that he’s able to view as many art pieces as possible. He also allowed himself to see replicas if possible, considering that fake art pieces were a feature in the game. That means he doesn’t have to visit Asia if he wants to view pieces that originated there and just view copies found in European museums. Asides from planning, Naidoo has maximized his budget by flying on budget airlines and staying in cheap hotels.

“When I go just to see the art, it’s usually just for one night, staying in cheap hotels and using budget airlines,” Naidoo tells us. “Most of the time, I plan just to see the art, but there have been times where I’ve been able to do multiple things — such as when I first went to Paris, I went to Cannes after for the film festival!”

Naidoo told Nintendo Life that it could take a few more years to fully complete his mission as some artworks are available only outside of Europe. He also said that the Vitruvian Man by Leonardo Da Vinci might be the last piece of work that he’ll see since it only comes out every seven years.

“I should hopefully finish most of Europe by January and then have America, Japan and China left, but I’ve never been to America or Asia before so hoping to do [a trip] next year. The main delay would be Leonardo da Vinci’s Vitruvian man, which, although it is in Venice, is kept in a vault as it’s 500 years old and only brought out as special exhibitions every 7 or so years! So it does depend on how many replicas of the remaining arts will be used!”

People interested to view his progress can see all his entries on his social media pages, such as Instagram and TikTok. He also recreated the IRL photo in the game, proving that he has officially viewed the piece of work in person.