Two women who met while playing Nintendo’s Animal Crossing at the height of the pandemic came face to face for the first time at one of their weddings three years later.
Taryn Imwalle, 31, from Ohio, and Savannah Czyzewicz, 28, from Arizona, forged an unlikely friendship after they both lost their jobs during the first COVID-19 lockdown in March 2020.
With nothing to do and nowhere to go, they spent their days searching simulated islands in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, a video game that debuted the same month.
Speaking to Today.com, Imwalle and Czyzewicz recalled how they met in the Animal Crossing Reddit group, where players can exchange “dodo codes” to visit each other’s islands.
Taryn Imwalle, 31, from Ohio (left), and Savannah Czyzewicz, 28, from Arizona (right), met in person for the first time at the latter’s wedding this month after three years of friendship
The friends joined the Animal Crossing Reddit group after being laid off at the height of the pandemic and became fast friends
“We just hit it off and the conversation never stopped,” Czyzewicz said. ‘We’re both very loud and dramatic. And we both have very lively personalities, and we both really like to complain.”
Not only did they bond over playing Animal Crossing every day, but they were also both in the same place mentally after being fired.
When they started playing the game together over FaceTime, they went from casual acquaintances to good friends.
After more than three years of texting and calling each other, Czyzewicz invited Imwalle to her wedding in San Diego, California earlier this month.
“It was the craziest thing,” Czyzewicz said. “But at the same time, I felt like I had known Taryn my whole life.”
They admitted that some people, including their partners, questioned their decision to meet for the first time during such an important life event.
However, Czyzewicz explained that she “never thought anything of it,” and said her husband also invited an online friend to their wedding.
Imwalle added that she met her husband online and didn’t see how this was any different, although they were both nervous about meeting in person.
After more than three years of texting and calling each other, Czyzewicz invited Imwalle to her wedding in San Diego, California earlier this month.
The friends were able to spend some quality time together before Czyzewicz’s big day, including a visit to the San Diego Zoo
Imwalle shared their heartwarming story on the Animal Crossing subreddit where they first met, including photos of them together and the online greeting card she sent Czyzewicz
When she flew to San Diego for Czyzewicz’s wedding on November 2, they were able to spend some quality time together before her big day.
Imwalle later shared their heartwarming story on the website Animal Crossing subreddit where they met, including photos of them at Czyzewicz’s wedding and at the San Diego Zoo.
“Last weekend I saw her get married and got to hug her in person for the first time ever,” she wrote. ‘I met her parents, who welcomed me with open arms despite their very understandable hesitations about inviting an internet friend to their daughter’s wedding.
“I was known to their guests as the ‘Animal Crossing girl’ and was asked many times to tell the story of our ‘incredible friendship.’ This game has given us each other. And that’s why Animal Crossing New Horizons will always have a special place in my heart.”
Imwalle told Today that Czyzewicz is one of her best friends and said they had an “instant, almost karmic connection.”
“It’s a feeling like you’ve known them all your life,” she explained.