Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp's new paid version has finally arrived and is microtransaction-free, but fans already miss the old app

Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp's paid version launches, removing microtransactions but eliminating online multiplayer and friend visits, leaving players feeling lonely despite a one-time purchase model and carried-over items.

The new "paid" version of Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp has finally arrived, kicking all of the old app's microtransactions to the curb in favor of a one-time purchase model without online capabilities or multiplayer functionality - and even though fans are excited, they're also missing some of the axed features.

After announcing the new Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp app, Nintendo clarified that there would be differences between the paid version and its free predecessor. Now that the game is rolling out, players are experiencing some of these differences firsthand - and not all are impressed. There aren't any pesky microtransactions to worry about anymore, which my own wallet is content with, but there's also no way to play with friends now.

As players discuss in a recent Reddit thread on the matter, things are feeling pretty lonely in the new Pocket Camp. "I get sad when I see the empty spaces the other players used to hang out in," writes one fan. "I wish there was still an option to visit their campsites and vans, at least." Another describes how even though they're happy to decorate, they're "just alone with all the cool stuff I've always wanted to brag about."

"I'm feeling both overwhelmed and underwhelmed all at the same time," admits a player - and as a fan myself, I personally understand where they're coming from. When it comes to games like those within the Animal Crossing series, getting to visit your friends and share designs makes up a good chunk of the fun. One suggestion amid the replies speaks to me most: "I wish we could 'invite' our friends if we had their QR code to our campsite… I want some people to hang out with."

It's not all doom and gloom, however. For just "10 bucks" while Pocket Camp is half off until January 31, as a player puts it, you get "everything with no microtransactions." Aside from the loss of online functionality, it's also almost entirely the same game - and if you're like me and have spent an embarrassing amount of money on the old app, everything you bought via leaf tickets carries over into the new version.

Looking for something new to play? Here are great games like Animal Crossing to check out.