When artist Hari Conner got their copy ofAnimal Crossing: New Horizons, there was no question as to what their island would be called: Forest Town. “I’m disabled with a lot of mobility problems, so it’s very rare I can actually be out in nature in real life,” said Conner, whose illustrations often feature lush greenery, in an email to Polygon.
Conner quickly got to work planting trees to make their vision happen. Their friends, who knew about Conner’s love of nature, also contributed to the project by sending over forest-themed flooring and wallpaper. One pal even sent Conner an in-game wheelchair. All was going well with Conner’s theme … until they spoke to Isabelle, keeper of the game’s island rating.
While New Horizons lets you decorate your island however you’d like, behind the scenes, the life simulator is always quietly analyzing your aesthetic choices. The game judges those choices through a five-star rating system, which also gates the unlocking of late-game features like getting K.K. Slider to visit your island. While the game never outright tells you what the rules are for getting a better rating, it does vaguely encourage you to try and fill up your island with decorations from head to toe, while also reminding you to install a variety of different arrangements.
Isabelle’s verdict on Forest Town? Conner should consider getting rid of some trees, she said, because the current setup might be “too rural” for residents to enjoy. The game didn’t care that it was intentional. As far as New Horizons was concerned, the natural splendor of Conner’s island was a problem.
Based on Polygon’s conversations with a few dozen players, Conner isn’t the only one clashing with this system. Fans who check their ratings often find themselves butting heads against New Horizons’ decoration demands, which help give the game structure while also limiting what people do on their islands.
It’s a particular hindrance for anyone looking to retain some of their island’s natural beauty. Jean Ketterling, a runner who is feeling cooped up thanks to social distancing measures that have closed down her routes, was hoping to recreate the look and feel of trails she would normally enjoy. New Horizons didn’t like that.
“Isabelle was like ‘everyone hates your trees and gets lost in the woods,’” Ketterling recalled.
It’s not just a matter of aesthetics for some players. By defining a “good” island, New Horizons also makes a moral judgment of sorts. And sometimes, those judgments go against progressive gardening practices.
Ryan Gott, a player who helps manage pests at a real-world conservatory and botanical garden, was hoping to translate some of his landscaping skills to the game, which meant retaining as much of his island’s native flora as possible. He designed gardens that could encourage pollinators and invertebrates, provided old wood shelters for detritivores, and considered the best layout for waterways.
But Gott found that New Horizons didn’t initially understand his desire to “promote healthy ecological functions,” as he said, and instead diminished his thoughtful approach as yet another case of “too many weeds.”
Image: Nintendo EPD/Nintendo via Ryan Gott
New Horizons’ narrow definition of a five-star island doesn’t just reject eco-friendly islands. It also gets in the way of wider player habits and customs. The game dings you for having too much garbage, which makes sense, until you consider what falls under that category.
Turnips, which players buy in bulk every week, will lower your star rating if you drop them outside — something that players often do, because you can’t keep the veggies in storage. Since the game randomizes its DIY recipes, players often find themselves with dupes, but in the spirit of generosity, many fans keep these extras to share with friends via swap meets. Players also like to hold cataloging parties, where pals will come over to pick up and drop items they don’t yet own. These traditions are some of the best the community has to offer … but Isabelle hates all of them, too.
“I have a large trading post on my island,” New Horizons player Elise Toyer told Polygon, “which bumped my star rating down for ‘too many items laying around.’”
Creative players also like to make use of items that the game doesn’t categorize as decorative but can still be used for that purpose. Brigid Christison, for instance, wanted to build an in-game archaeological dig site, and the finishing touch on this concept meant laying down fossils and shells. When fossils aren’t “placed,” they look like bones. Perfect! Well, except for the fact that the game thought Christison was just cluttering up her island.
Image: Nintendo EPD/Nintendo via Brigid Christison
Another issue that several players flagged to Polygon is Isabelle’s love for fencing. This is admittedly my biggest personal gripe with the game — every time I check my rating, Isabelle suggests fences. But I don’t want fences. I like running around everywhere, and fences literally stand in the way of that.
The most depressing aspect of the star system is that it inadvertently encourages uniformity. While there are hundreds of items, the Nook Miles store is limited, and the game always tells you to purchase its stock to build out your island. Some players I spoke to said they wanted to make strange islands with no rhyme or reason, but felt that they couldn’t truly experiment or go wild without having the game punish and judge them for it.
“I’m deliberately not looking up how to improve my star rating,” said Twitter user @lyanporto, “but it’s frustrating that even though I love what I’m doing, the game doesn’t value what I value.”
Based on my conversations with players, most people don’t let the star rating get in the way of what they want to do. The system is unobtrusive, and players can ignore it completely (as long as they don’t mind K.K. Slider never showing up). Many fans choose to offset their “bad” choices with more decorations that the game recognizes as “good.” The funny thing is, though, spiffing up your town in the ways New Horizons asks you to doesn’t always result in a more beautiful island.
Lillian Goulston would know. Earlier this year, the mischievous Animal Crossing player found her island rating plateauing no matter what she did, but rather than giving up, she peeked behind the curtain. Using a guide, she found out exactly how the game rates islands. Broadly speaking, New Horizons likes it when you have furniture spread across the island from a variety of different sources, from shopping to crafting. Goulston decided to game the system.
“I figured out the most resource and space-efficient objects I could craft and buy,” Goulston said. She ended up placing 50 campfires, 20 stone stools, 15 log stakes, and 10 streetlamps across her island. Then, she haphazardly put down cheap fencing in silly formations, because Isabelle is obsessed with fencing. Goulston topped all of this off by tapping into her storage, pulling out stuff that she knew she was never going to use.
“Whenever I needed guidance, I ran back to Isabelle for an island evaluation, following her advice [as] ridiculously as possible,” Goulston said.
She got the coveted five stars and a golden watering can for her trouble. And her island looked horrible.
Implicit in this experiment, Goulston said, is the question of whether a video game can truly judge something as subjective as beauty.
“What I did wasn’t enjoyable, it was tedious,” Goulston said. “A big part of Animal Crossing is in self-expression. A mechanic that incentivizes checklist completion runs counter to the fun of the game.”
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The federal government is ordering the dissolution of TikTok’s Canadian business after a national security review of the Chinese company behind the social media platform, but stopped short of ordering people to stay off the app.
Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne announced the government’s “wind up” demand Wednesday, saying it is meant to address “risks” related to ByteDance Ltd.’s establishment of TikTok Technology Canada Inc.
“The decision was based on the information and evidence collected over the course of the review and on the advice of Canada’s security and intelligence community and other government partners,” he said in a statement.
The announcement added that the government is not blocking Canadians’ access to the TikTok application or their ability to create content.
However, it urged people to “adopt good cybersecurity practices and assess the possible risks of using social media platforms and applications, including how their information is likely to be protected, managed, used and shared by foreign actors, as well as to be aware of which country’s laws apply.”
Champagne’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment seeking details about what evidence led to the government’s dissolution demand, how long ByteDance has to comply and why the app is not being banned.
A TikTok spokesperson said in a statement that the shutdown of its Canadian offices will mean the loss of hundreds of well-paying local jobs.
“We will challenge this order in court,” the spokesperson said.
“The TikTok platform will remain available for creators to find an audience, explore new interests and for businesses to thrive.”
The federal Liberals ordered a national security review of TikTok in September 2023, but it was not public knowledge until The Canadian Press reported in March that it was investigating the company.
At the time, it said the review was based on the expansion of a business, which it said constituted the establishment of a new Canadian entity. It declined to provide any further details about what expansion it was reviewing.
A government database showed a notification of new business from TikTok in June 2023. It said Network Sense Ventures Ltd. in Toronto and Vancouver would engage in “marketing, advertising, and content/creator development activities in relation to the use of the TikTok app in Canada.”
Even before the review, ByteDance and TikTok were lightning rod for privacy and safety concerns because Chinese national security laws compel organizations in the country to assist with intelligence gathering.
Such concerns led the U.S. House of Representatives to pass a bill in March designed to ban TikTok unless its China-based owner sells its stake in the business.
Champagne’s office has maintained Canada’s review was not related to the U.S. bill, which has yet to pass.
Canada’s review was carried out through the Investment Canada Act, which allows the government to investigate any foreign investment with potential to might harm national security.
While cabinet can make investors sell parts of the business or shares, Champagne has said the act doesn’t allow him to disclose details of the review.
Wednesday’s dissolution order was made in accordance with the act.
The federal government banned TikTok from its mobile devices in February 2023 following the launch of an investigation into the company by federal and provincial privacy commissioners.
— With files from Anja Karadeglija in Ottawa
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.
LONDON (AP) — Most people have accumulated a pile of data — selfies, emails, videos and more — on their social media and digital accounts over their lifetimes. What happens to it when we die?
It’s wise to draft a will spelling out who inherits your physical assets after you’re gone, but don’t forget to take care of your digital estate too. Friends and family might treasure files and posts you’ve left behind, but they could get lost in digital purgatory after you pass away unless you take some simple steps.
Here’s how you can prepare your digital life for your survivors:
Apple
The iPhone maker lets you nominate a “ legacy contact ” who can access your Apple account’s data after you die. The company says it’s a secure way to give trusted people access to photos, files and messages. To set it up you’ll need an Apple device with a fairly recent operating system — iPhones and iPads need iOS or iPadOS 15.2 and MacBooks needs macOS Monterey 12.1.
For iPhones, go to settings, tap Sign-in & Security and then Legacy Contact. You can name one or more people, and they don’t need an Apple ID or device.
You’ll have to share an access key with your contact. It can be a digital version sent electronically, or you can print a copy or save it as a screenshot or PDF.
Take note that there are some types of files you won’t be able to pass on — including digital rights-protected music, movies and passwords stored in Apple’s password manager. Legacy contacts can only access a deceased user’s account for three years before Apple deletes the account.
Google
Google takes a different approach with its Inactive Account Manager, which allows you to share your data with someone if it notices that you’ve stopped using your account.
When setting it up, you need to decide how long Google should wait — from three to 18 months — before considering your account inactive. Once that time is up, Google can notify up to 10 people.
You can write a message informing them you’ve stopped using the account, and, optionally, include a link to download your data. You can choose what types of data they can access — including emails, photos, calendar entries and YouTube videos.
There’s also an option to automatically delete your account after three months of inactivity, so your contacts will have to download any data before that deadline.
Facebook and Instagram
Some social media platforms can preserve accounts for people who have died so that friends and family can honor their memories.
When users of Facebook or Instagram die, parent company Meta says it can memorialize the account if it gets a “valid request” from a friend or family member. Requests can be submitted through an online form.
The social media company strongly recommends Facebook users add a legacy contact to look after their memorial accounts. Legacy contacts can do things like respond to new friend requests and update pinned posts, but they can’t read private messages or remove or alter previous posts. You can only choose one person, who also has to have a Facebook account.
You can also ask Facebook or Instagram to delete a deceased user’s account if you’re a close family member or an executor. You’ll need to send in documents like a death certificate.
TikTok
The video-sharing platform says that if a user has died, people can submit a request to memorialize the account through the settings menu. Go to the Report a Problem section, then Account and profile, then Manage account, where you can report a deceased user.
Once an account has been memorialized, it will be labeled “Remembering.” No one will be able to log into the account, which prevents anyone from editing the profile or using the account to post new content or send messages.
X
It’s not possible to nominate a legacy contact on Elon Musk’s social media site. But family members or an authorized person can submit a request to deactivate a deceased user’s account.
Passwords
Besides the major online services, you’ll probably have dozens if not hundreds of other digital accounts that your survivors might need to access. You could just write all your login credentials down in a notebook and put it somewhere safe. But making a physical copy presents its own vulnerabilities. What if you lose track of it? What if someone finds it?
Instead, consider a password manager that has an emergency access feature. Password managers are digital vaults that you can use to store all your credentials. Some, like Keeper,Bitwarden and NordPass, allow users to nominate one or more trusted contacts who can access their keys in case of an emergency such as a death.
But there are a few catches: Those contacts also need to use the same password manager and you might have to pay for the service.
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Is there a tech challenge you need help figuring out? Write to us at onetechtip@ap.org with your questions.
LONDON (AP) — Britain’s competition watchdog said Thursday it’s opening a formal investigation into Google’s partnership with artificial intelligence startup Anthropic.
The Competition and Markets Authority said it has “sufficient information” to launch an initial probe after it sought input earlier this year on whether the deal would stifle competition.
The CMA has until Dec. 19 to decide whether to approve the deal or escalate its investigation.
“Google is committed to building the most open and innovative AI ecosystem in the world,” the company said. “Anthropic is free to use multiple cloud providers and does, and we don’t demand exclusive tech rights.”
San Francisco-based Anthropic was founded in 2021 by siblings Dario and Daniela Amodei, who previously worked at ChatGPT maker OpenAI. The company has focused on increasing the safety and reliability of AI models. Google reportedly agreed last year to make a multibillion-dollar investment in Anthropic, which has a popular chatbot named Claude.
Anthropic said it’s cooperating with the regulator and will provide “the complete picture about Google’s investment and our commercial collaboration.”
“We are an independent company and none of our strategic partnerships or investor relationships diminish the independence of our corporate governance or our freedom to partner with others,” it said in a statement.
The U.K. regulator has been scrutinizing a raft of AI deals as investment money floods into the industry to capitalize on the artificial intelligence boom. Last month it cleared Anthropic’s $4 billion deal with Amazon and it has also signed off on Microsoft’s deals with two other AI startups, Inflection and Mistral.
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