Last year, DOOM Eternal and Animal Crossing: New Horizons both released on the same day, March 20th. Inspired by this minor connection, fans of the two franchises began sharing art online of a friendship between Animal Crossing’s Isabelle, and the Doom Slayer. Both Bethesda and Nintendo are aware of this fan art, and have even encouraged it! To celebrate the start of 2021, Bethesda made things a bit more official, sharing an image of the Nendoroid figures for Doom Slayer and Isabelle happily playing together alongside the caption “happy new horizons.” It’s a cheerful way to ring in the New Year, and it made fans of the friendship quite happy!
The Tweet from Bethesda can be found embedded below. The same image and message were shared by the official DOOM Twitter account, as well.
happy new horizons pic.twitter.com/bnj8keI3l0
— Bethesda (@bethesda) January 1, 2021
It will be interesting to see whether or not the friendship between Doom Slayer and Isabelle is ever acknowledged inside of an actual game. While it would be far too silly in a DOOM or Animal Crossing game, there is one place that it could work: Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Doom Slayer has long been rumored for the game, and it seems even more likely following Microsoft’s purchase of Bethesda. The publisher already has two fighters in the game, and companies like Capcom, Konami, and Square Enix all have three representatives, so it wouldn’t be outside the realm of possibility. With Isabelle being a playable character in Ultimate, it’s not hard to imagine how much fans would love to see the pair actually appear together!
For now, the friendship between Isabelle and Doom Slayer will simply have to live on through these small acknowledgements between the two companies, and through the fan art that made it a thing in the first place. There is something to be said for the way that fans made this connection between the two franchises, and how it went from a simple joke nearly a year ago, to a recurring connection between the two companies. Even if nothing more ever comes from it, it’s nice to see the influence fans can have on gaming!
Are you a fan of the crossover art of the two franchises? Would you like to see Doom Slayer and Isabelle appear together in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate? Let us know in the comments or share your thoughts directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp to talk all things gaming!
