Oh, wasps. We all know, if not necessarily love them. These hives filled with buzzing menaces have been lurking in trees throughout the Animal Crossing franchise. The image of a hapless villager being chased by angry insects became so iconic, the item even appeared—under the name “Beehive”—to further annoy players in later installments of fighting game Super Smash Brothers.
Wasps once again return in the recently released Animal Crossing: New Horizons for Nintendo Switch. As players dart around their island harvesting items from trees, they have a small chance of running into an angry hive instead of collecting delicious fruit or a bag of bells (an in-game currency). If the wasps sting you, your character will temporarily sport a swollen bruise over one eye. Players must then either craft medicine or purchase it from the Nook brothers’ store in order to cure their injury.
The usual method of avoiding wasp stings is to trap the offending insects in your handy-dandy bug-catching Net before they can attack. However, in New Horizons, players have discovered an alternative, extremely amusing solution, which they have taken to Twitter to share.
yes! it works!! you can blast away wasps with a party popper https://t.co/cqLLWjKWYS pic.twitter.com/lKb7DDo7NF
— Nicole Carpenter (@sweetpotatoes) March 30, 2020
This new method utilizes the Party Popper, a colorful handheld item typically used for joyous celebrations. In order to carry it out, you must first equip the item so that it is held in your hand. Then, turn to face the front of the tree and begin shaking it.
When the wasps appear, your character will begin a “surprised” animation. Once the reaction is complete, hit “A” to unleash the party popper. The blast of noise and confetti will send those wasps away immediately!
While it has been proven that this method works, it has been noted to require careful positioning and be slightly more finicky than the standard “catching wasps in your net” solution. Additionally, since the insects will be driven away rather than caught, you will not be able to sell them for bells. Still, it’s a fun new strategy to try to ruin those pesky wasps’ day!
Have you had any run-ins with wasps in Animal Crossing: New Horizons? How have you dealt with them? Let us know!
