As worldwide COVID-19 quarantines begin, it’s important we all take some time aside to relax, design, and chat with friends on Tom Nook’s deserted island.

Social distancing. Quarantine. Businesses shutting down, low supplies, working from home… it can all be a lot to take in. With the isolation that COVID-19 calls for, it’s important that we take the time to acknowledge the wonders of the peace and tranquility Animal Crossing: New Horizons offers.

Too often, our world takes a violent approach to let off steam. While hitting a punching bag or destroying someone’s stock in Smash Bros. are quick fixes, nothing compares to relaxing in your very own Animal Crossing town.

It’s almost as if the coming release of Animal Crossing: New Horizons was planned for right when the world would need it the most. It’s tough to not be able to go out and socialize with friends at a bar, club, gym, mall, store, or restaurant, but this game will make things better.

Human beings need social interaction to sustain good mental health. Thankfully, Animal Crossing offers up safe solutions to aid us in maintaining the need for socialization inside of all of us.

The Animal Crossing series plants players in a world without turmoil (unless you count Tom Nook’s mortgage, but hey, it’s not as if he charges interest and threatens to repo your home if you’re not making payments).

The Animal Crossing ‘verse is unique in that it is always calm. (Unless you reset your game without saving — Beware of the furious Resetti). It’s a world that we all should escape to, because if all we’re concentrating on is breaking news and quarantines, our mental health is bound to go on the decline.

There really aren’t any hard goals in Animal Crossing. You can collect all of the fish, catch all of the insects, display all of the fossils in the museum, or decorate a room with all of the pieces of a snazzy furniture set. It’s like going out into the real world, but without all of the inconveniences of spending money on gas, supplies, and food.

Another major component of Animal Crossing is the in-game socialization. There is a lot of care that goes into crafting realistic social scenarios with your villagers. Your town’s denizens are randomly assigned, making everyone’s Crossing adventure a different one.

Without story choices, marriages, children, and roommates, the strength of your bonds with the animal villagers relies on your own interests. You can choose to catch up with your favorite villager on the daily, or you can avoid that one animal that really irks you.

Of course, if you’re playing with friends, there are limitless possibilities. You can invite friends over to your town to design it together, landscape a new area, catch some fish, or chop down trees.

You can even decorate the world around you with various themes to match your style. If you want to create a snowy villa by the beach, you can work together with your friends to collect all of the winter furniture, as others create designs for the floor tiles and clothing displays.

You can chat with friends as you wander the island with cute emotes, but the real magic comes when everyone has left your town. Sending and receiving letters in real life is fun, but when they arrive instantly in the recipient’s mailbox with an attached gift, there’s a gratification unique to video game life sims.

If you want some alone time in your town, there are plenty of solo activities to look forward to. It may be that your favorite thing is to sell to the turnip lady every Thursday. Or perhaps you look forward to the rug salesman making his way over to your town square.

With villager birthdays, holiday events, and random item balloons, there’s never a dull moment in the Animal Crossing world. Sure, it’s paced much more slowly than even other life sim games, but for me, that’s okay.

Experiencing the slow changes in seasons, along with the real-time day to night cycles make the Animal Crossing villages feel alive. I love rolling around snowballs to make a snowman, or sprinting through a big pile of leaves. Getting special holiday items, such as the Fourth of July party popper, are my most cherished solo Animal Crossing memories.

If you’re feeling ambitious, you can make it your goal to pay off your house as quickly as is possible. It may be that time travel is banned in New Horizons, which will only fuel my desire to pay off my house all the more fun. Taking a trip to an island with rare bugs, or gathering my daily rare fruit will feel like a treat, rather than a time-traveling cheat.

See what I just did there? I made all of the world’s problems melt away by just talking about the Animal Crossing games. From what I’ve played, I can guarantee you that your life simulation town will do just that. Animal Crossing: New Horizons releases for the Nintendo Switch on March 20.