Animal Crossing is a strange series. The sequels seem to be less about advancing the original formula and more about simply bringing the experience to a new system (hence there being exactly one mainline entry each on GameCube, Wii, DS, and 3DS). There are surface improvements along the way and New Leaf is certainly the best installment yet (it helps that handhelds are a natural home for this sort of play) but the core is unchanged. That’s fine from a comfort-food-gaming perspective - if you’ve played any previous Animal Crossing you’ll recognize the characters and know how to interact with the world. Your nostalgia will be fed and you won’t have to stretch your brain to learn radical new concepts or skills.