Animal Crossing

Animal Crossing is a best-selling video game for the GameCube that was released in 2001. The game would not be released for another 9 months in the US in September 2002, and a further 2 years in Europe in September 2004. The game is essentially the second game in the series, though it's the first one to be released outside of Japan. It can arguably be considered a remake of the first game in the series, Animal Forest, but with added elements and slightly improved graphics. In the game, you play the role of either a young boy or girl. In the beginning of the game, you move to a new village, and throughout the entire experience you'll have fun doing daily activities, with no prominent goal included, and no way to actually beat the entire game.

One of the notable features of Animal Crossing is the fact that it uses the GameCube's internal clock, meaning the events will occur even if you're not playing, and if you don't play certain days, there will be consequences, oftentimes dramatic depending on how long you've been gone. It's a unique formula that has been praised among gamers and critics alike.

Gameplay
There's so much to cover in the gameplay department that it'll be separated into certain parts, starting with the beginnings and moving on from there.

Beginnings
In the beginning, you'll first talk to K.K. Slider, though soon after will delve right onto a train ride where you'll be greeted by the roving cat Rover, who'll ask a series of questions which will ultimately determine some important facts about your new town. Your facial features will also be determined through this short process. Eventually you'll arrive in your new village, which you happened to name when Rover asked you where you were going. If you don't exactly appreciate how you look, then it's suggested that you restart and slightly change your answers, as there's absolutely no way to change it otherwise. Right after you head down the flight of stairs here, you'll be greeted by arguably the second most important character in the game (behind only by you) - Tom Nook, the friendly raccoon who will be a very important figure in Animal Crossing. In the train, Rover called Tom Nook, telling him to get ready for your arrival, and to give you a house and a part-time job. He'll (Tom Nook) direct you over the central neighborhood where you'll see four vacant houses. He'll then ask you to go into each one and decide which one you prefer, though ultimately they're not too different, despite a few carpet/wallpaper changes and a different roof (though everything mentioned can be changed).

However, there's a catch to all of this - you'll have to pay the debt on the house, and the houses' first installment is over 19,000 Bells (the game series' currency), and you'll only pay off about 1,000 or so of the Bells by working for Tom Nook, which is basically the training portion of the entire game to get you situated.

Working for Nook
The first thing you'll do when you work for Nook is change into your work clothes. Next, he'll want you to plant foliage around his shop, though he won't notice if you do so elsewhere. The next task isn't exactly good for himself, though he's got a kind soul and wants you to meet everyone in town, including the town mayor, who can be found near the well. After you meet every villager and the town mayor Tortimer, he'll request that you deliver some furniture to one of the villagers. The tasks that he requires aren't nearly demanding, though overall it won't make as big a dent in your debt as you'd probably like. Nevertheless, you'll not only get to know your town better, though you'll also become better when equipped with the villagers as well.

Afterwards
After working with Tom Nook, you'll be free, though not nearly close to being free of debt. In fact, even after you do pay of your debt, you'll have to go through four more expansions, each one more expensive than the last. It'll take months until you're in possession of the last expansion, and it'll take a whole lot of effort as well. You'll also be able to buy and sell things from Tom Nook's shop, so it's suggested that you obtain the essential items that are on sale, which includes the shovel, the axe, the fishing rod and the net, though at the beginning only one of those will be on sale, and the throughout the week the others will be.

Multiplayer
While you're not able to play multiplayer simultaneously, you will have a lot of fun if you have two or more people living in your village. With multiplayer, you're able to send letters to each other, play made-up games, sell items through your front door Gyroid, and even travel to other towns if you have separate memory cards. Traveling to other towns is the only way to get the final expansion of Nook's store, which can be done if the visiting character buys an item from his shop.

Notable areas
There are a few noteworthy areas in the game that should be jolted down on this page, and they'll all be found in their respective sections below.

Tom Nook's Shop
Tom Nook's store will be a measly shop named Nook's Cranny at the beginning of the game, though while you play, you'll notice that it, as well as your house, will start to expand, though it'll only do so if you buy and sell a lot of items there. The expansions includes -


 * Nook's Cranny - The first shop at the beginning of the game. It's basically very junky and not kept up well, and notably small.
 * Nook 'n Go - After buying and/or selling 25,000 Bells at his shop, he'll expand into this shopping mart. It has a wider selection of goods.
 * Nookway - After you spend 65,000 Bells, he'll once again expand his shop into a superstore.
 * Nookingtons - The final installment. He'll add a second floor which his nephews Tommy and Timmy will run. It's basically a completely different store. The only way to get this expansion is to buy 150,000 bells worth of items and to have a visitor buy something.

To shop for items, all you have to do is go up to the item you wish to buy, then press the A button. While going around the shop, Tom Nook will erroneously assume that you wish for him to consistently follow you, as he'll never leave your side. After you press A, Tom Nook will ask if you wish to buy it, and depending on what the item is, you can select yes. If it's wallpaper or carpet, then you can ask to see what it looks like on their respective sections, and if it's an article of clothing, then you'll be able to see what it looks on yourself.

You'll also be able to sell your goods, though for a fraction of what you've paid for it. You can virtually sell everything, though Tom Nook won't pay for some items, which includes but isn't exactly limited to your work clothes and junk you find while fishing.

When you talk to Tom Nook, you can also choose to view your personal catalog, which lists every item that's been in your possession. If you wish, you can also order some of the items, though this does not include the Gyroids, the fish, the bugs, and the fossils that you've collected over the course of the game.

Tailor
The Tailor is run by the hedgehogs known as Sable and Mable. Here, you're able to design patterns, and contrary to the Nintendo DS remake you're not able to buy clothes here. The clothes that you design will eventually catch on and become popular with the villagers, as they'll start wearing your clothes that you display in their shop.

While designing patterns, there are multiple different things that you are able to do. There are three different sizes of the pen, six different things that your capable of doing with the painting tool, five different figures, and four different marks. You're also able to undo mistakes that you've accidentally done.

In all, there are sixteen different color palettes, each one with different colors. Unfortunately, you're not allowed to mix and match them together, though it's not a terrible burden.

Town Museum
The Town Museum is a small museum that, in the beginning of the game, includes absolutely nothing. Your job is to donate different items, which includes fish, insects, paintings and dinosaur fossils. In this installment, Blathers, the museum's owner, isn't authorized to check fossils, so you'll have to send the unchecked fossils via mail to the main Farway Museum, which is stationed far away from the one found in your town.

Police Station
The police station is relatively small, and rightfully so since there's absolutely no crime in your village. Rather, it's there as a lost and found, though the officer inside, known as Booker, will give away anything no matter how outrageous, and will often apologize if they don't happen to have anything there.

The officer outside, Copper, is considerably a better cop than Booker, and very involved in his job. If you desire to know what events are going on in your town, then he'll explain them to you.

Post Office
The Post Office is run by Pelly and Phyllis, two birds with wildly different personalities. Pelly is a more outgoing and friendly bird while Phyllis is a bit more grumpy. Pelly will run the day shift, while Phyllis will work there during the night. Here you're able to send letters, pay off your mortgage and put money into your account. It should also be noted that another bird, Pete, is the mailman, or rather mail bird in the game who'll be sent off from here. Pelly has a crush on him, though he's in love with Phyllis.

Animal Island
Animal Island is an interesting area that can only be accessed through the Game Boy Advance. When you use the GBA to GameCube connector, you'll be able to go to the ocean's dock and talk to a character named Kapp'n. He'll ask if you want to go to the island known simply as Animal Island, and if you choose yes he'll sing a tune on the way there. There isn't much to do on Animal Island, though there are exclusive villagers and items that you can only find there. Once you're ready to go back to your village, all you have to do is simply talk to Kapp'n once more.

Items found only on Animal Island

Other areas
There are multiple other areas as well, though probably they aren't as important as the ones above, and thus don't exactly need their own specific section.

The Train Station is where you'll go if you wish to visit other cities, and where you'll arrive when you come back. There are 16 different train station designs, and that's the same way for the models, thus making it a challenging task to get every single one.

The Bulletin Board is where you'll write notices and in turn read some that the villagers have posted. In the beginning of the game, Tom Nook will ask that you post a message there advertising his shop. It can be found in the center of where the four main houses are.

You'll find multiple common items in the Dump that the local visitor just don't care for. If they're not already in your catalog, then it's probably a good idea to pick it up. However, make sure you do it everyday, as it'll be withdrawn from the dump every Monday and Thursday at 6:00AM.

You're able to change the town's melody on the Town's Melody Board near the Post Office. You can change the notes which oddly resemble frogs by moving the joystick, and you'll be able to listen to your new tune on various occasions.

The Wishing Well will announce to you the problems with your village environmentally, and will explain to you which acre to change. You're also allowed to apologize for items that you were unable to deliver to the visitor if he or she happens to move. If that's the case, then the Wishing Well will take the item from you.

You'll be able to run the Lighthouse when Tortimer is on vacation in Winter. If you successfully run the lighthouse everyday while he is gone, then he'll reward you with chocolates and the Lighthouse Model.

Activities
The daily activities are wide ranged and consists mainly of having quality time with the many villagers, buying and selling items at Tom Nook's and the Able Sister's shops, fishing, bug catching, and filling the museum with all of the items that it needs, among hundreds of other things to do. This section will cover all of those activities.

Fishing
Fishing is an interesting activity in Animal Crossing, and it takes a lot of skill in order to get the behemoths such as the Coelacanth, and certainly plenty of patience if you wish to get every single fish, which will require you to do so every month of the year, with some of them only appearing during rain or in the late night.

You can find fish everywhere in your village - in the ocean, the waterfall, the river, the ponds, and the river's mouth. You'll know when a fish is nearby when you see its shadow, which is your que to cast out. To cast you press the A button, and eventually the fish will probably see it, in which it'll come closer and start bobbing it. Once it brings the bobber under water, then you must press and hold down the A button once more until you catch the fish. The more rare the fish, the more precise and quick you have to be. If you fail the first time, then the fish will swim away.

Insect catching
Catching bugs is arguably easier than catching the more rare fish, and you also won't get as much profit. Still, it's purely opinionated on whether you prefer this over fishing, though in order to finish the museum's collection, you'll need to find every bug and fish in the game. You can find bugs on the ground, in the air, on plants, near the water, in trees, under ground and in rocks, inside trees and near traps that you set. You can catch a bug with your bug net, and afterwards you can sell it at Tom Nooks or donate it to the museum.

Digging up Treasures
Digging with your shovel is a fun activity in the game. You'll find many different things, and you can also burry things for your friends to find. There are three main things that you'll find in the ground, and they include Gyroids, Bells, and Fossils. Occasionally you'll find a Pitfall, which is a trap rather than a treasure. You'll know where to dig when you see an "X" in the ground, and what you'll find underground is seemingly random. One bug, the mole cricket, can also only be found in the ground by digging, though it's much more demanding as there are no "X"s, and the only way to know where it is is by listening to the noises it makes.

Special Events
Many different special events will occur throughout the entire year, and the following is a list of those events. Each month you'll be able to experience a new special event, some that are exclusive to Animal Crossing and some that are found in the real world.

The first day of the year, which is in January, is the New Year's Day. On this day, it's suggested that you visit the Wishing Well, as all of the other characters including Tortimer the mayor will be there from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Here, Tortimer will make a speech, and at the end give you a new diary to record your thoughts in.

In the next month of February, you'll be able to experience Groundhog Day on the second. Because there are no groundhogs in your village, a relative mole of Mr. Resetti will pop up instead. If the mole returns back into it's hole right after coming out, then you should expect another six months of winter. For experiencing this event, Tortimer will give you the Flower Model.

In March, you'll be able to have fun in the Spring Sports Fair which can be done on either the 20th or the 21st. Here, Copper will head the even near the Wishing Well, and you'll be able to have fun with the villagers all day long with neat events that include gymnastics at 9 a.m., a foot race at 11 a.m,, a ball game at 1 p.m., and finally a tug-of-war at 3 p.m. For participating in the event, you'll get the Spring Medal.

The month of April includes a whopping three different events. The first of April is April's Fools Day, in which if you talk to Tortimer, he'll give you a fake NES game called Super Tortimer (an obvious reference to Super Mario Bros.). The three day Cherry Blossom Festival will take place on the 5th and end on the 7th. During this time, the leaves will all change color, and you'll be able to talk to all of the villagers and Tortimer to get the special Pink Tree Model. Finally on the 22nd is Nature Day, a day in which all of the villagers will gab about the environment. Talk to Tortimer on this day to get the Tree Model.

The first of May is Spring Cleaning, and Tortimer will give you the Dump Model in celebration. The second Sunday of the Month is Mother's Day, a day in which your fictional mother will send you the Lovely Phone.

On the second Friday of June, Tortimer will give you the Tailor Model in celebration of Graduation Day. The third Sunday of the month is Father's Day, and Tortimer will hand over the Locomotive Model here. Finally on every Sunday of this month is the Summer Fishing Tourney, where you compete for the largest fish in the village. If yo win, then Chip will give you the Angler Trophy. July includes three more events. The fourth of July is the Fireworks Show, and on this day you'll be able to buy special items from Redd from 7 to 9 p.m. On a random date in July, the villagers will celebrate you in "Your Hometown" Day, where you'll get the Train Station Model. Taking place every day of the month is the Morning Aerobics, where you'll use the C-Stick to perform your daily exercises.

On the Twelve of August, you'll be able to see a meteor shower by looking at the lake's reflection. You'll also get the Telescope on this day as well. The 21's is Founder's Day, in which Tortimer will offer the history of the town and give you the Weed Model. You'll also be able to participate in the Morning Aerobics again, and even come in possession of the Aerobics Radio so you can jam out in your house.

The first Monday of September is Labor Day, and on this day you'll get the Shop Model. The Fall Sports Fair will take place on the 23rd and the 24th, and it's very similar to the Spring Sports Fair, though this time you'll get the Autumn Medal. The Harvest Moon will occur randomly during this month, and you'll be able to see it through the lake's reflection. You'll get the Moon item as a gift during this day.

The second Monday of October is Explorer's Day, and on this day Tortimer will give you the Bottled Ship. The 15th to the 25th is Mushrooming Season, and during these days you'll be able to find five mushrooms every morning (starting at 8 a.m.). The villagers will also participate, and ever fifteen minutes they'll find one. Sell them for plenty of Bells.

The 31st of October is Halloween, and on this day every villager except yourself dresses up as the same character - Jack. The real Jack is somewhere in the village, and your goal is to go and find him so that he'll hand over gifts by giving him candy. You'll know if the villager is a fake, as he or she will run after you. If they actually catch up to you, then you'll have to hand over some of the candy you've collected in the past weeks. If you don't happen to have any, then they'll transform your clothes into rags and an item into a jack-in-the-box or a jack-o'-lantern.

The first Tuesday of November is Mayor's Day, and if you pay Tortimer a visit he'll give you the Well Model. You'll celebrate Copper and Booker, the two police officers, on Officer's Day, and if you participate Tortimer will give you the Police Model. The Fall Fishing Tourney is incredibly similar to the Summer Fishing Tourney, so once again your goal is to catch the biggest fish.

The 4th Thursday of November is the Harvest Festival, and on this day you'll be able to enjoy a big feast. Tortimer is wandering where the guest, a Turkey, happens to be, and Franklin (the turkey) is clearly worried about participating as on this event, turkeys are basically the main course. You'll be able to find Franklin hiding around town, and he'll ask that you give him forks and knifes, and he'll in turn give you special furniture. The fourth Friday of every November is Sale Day, a day in which you can buy grab bags, each one with three random items, and very low prices. Redd will also be here, and if you talk to the mayor he'll give you the Market Model.

The first of December is the wonderful Snow Day, in which snow will finally start drifting down to Earth. Tortimer also appreciates this wonderful day, and will give you a memento if you talk to him - an actual Snowman! The 23rd of this month is Toy Day, and Tortimer will give you either a Miniature Car or a Doll depending on if you're a boy or a girl. The twenty fourth is an event simply called Jingle Comes to Town, a day where the reindeer Jingle will go around town giving gifts. He'll only give out one per villager, though if you change your clothes, you can trick him into giving you a different present. The 31st is New Year's Eve, and on this day you'll get to celebrate the end of the year, and also get a Noisemaker to do so in fashion.

Gardening
Gardening may not seem like an important activity in Animal Crossing, though that would certainly be a false assumption. Villagers will be attracted to your town if you've planted flowers and trees everywhere, though they'll be disgusted if you've let weeds grow too much. It also should be mentioned that growing too many trees can also cause your town to be too cluttered. The Wishing Well will gladly deliver gardening hints, so it's suggested that you visit him often.

Your House
Many dramatic improvements can be made to your house, and you'll even be able to get special luck in the game if you follow the lifestyle known as Feng Shui. Presents will be delivered to you if you have a high HRA rating, and you'll certainly be the talk of the town if you've gotten the final expansion to your house.

Feng Shui
Feng Shui is a lifestyle in both the real and Animal Crossing world. Basically, in Animal Crossing you'll be given luck if you place particular items on certain areas of your house. It's not very challenging to do so, and not nearly as in-depth and diverse as the real world Feng Shui, but nevertheless coming in possession of some of the items will certain be a challenge.

The items that are special are color based. If you place orange items in the north, yellow items in the west and green items in the south, then you'll get good luck in money and items. If you place red items in the east, then you'll just get good luck in items. Some items are special, and can be placed anywhere in order to get good luck.

Happy Room Academy
The Happy Room Academy is a group that will grade your house based on how it looks. If you have a particularly nice looking house, then they'll reward you with items (House Model for 70,000 points and the Manor Model for 100,000 points). Rare items will definitely give you plenty of points, as will having a full collection of a single series. Having a cluttered home and placing too much junk on the floor will dramatically reduce your score.

Furniture
One of the highlights of Animal Crossing is finding all of the different furniture in the game. In all there are fifteen different furniture series, nine different themed rooms, and hundreds of other special items that can be found various ways. Corresponding wallpaper and carpet will not only make your house look snazzy, though it'll also snag bonus points from the HRA.

Villagers and Visitors
There are a multitude of villagers that'll move in to your town, and the same goes for the many visitors that'll come to sell items to you or to simply just chat. In the entire game, you're the only humanoid character, excluding the other players. Everyone else is of a particular animal species, though none of them will act like a beast as they do in the real world, but will rather be your friends.

You'll want to form friendships with the town's villagers, as doing so will reap you rewards. Giving letters, doing favors and just talking with them daily will help you do this.

Special Visitors
There are plenty of special visitors that visit your town randomly. Some are arguably more notable than others, though they've all got their own unique personality and their own gifts that they'll give to you. In order to know who the special visitor of the day is, head over to Copper and ask him.

K.K. Slider is a favorite among players, and he'll appear in front of the Train Station ever Saturday at 8 p.m. to midnight. Request a song and he'll play it for you. Gulliver is a pelican who'll appear randomly once a week. Talk to him on the beach and he'll tell you a story then give you a rare and exclusive present. Redd is a greedy fox who tries to lure you into buying items for much more than they're worth. Some can only be bought at his shop, however.

Three different visitors will give you special items only on certain conditions. Wendell the walrus will give you wallpaper if you find him a tasty fish. Gracie will give you a shirt depending on how well you clean her car, and Saharah will give you rare carpet if you give her your old carpet and 2,000 Bells.

Katrina is a fortune teller who'll tell your fortune for a price of 50 Bells. The fortune that you get will actually have an effect on the gameplay. Some are lucky (love, lucky finances and lucky materials) though some are unlucky (unpopular and unlucky), though as aforementioned they'll all have effects on the game.

Joan will come to your town every Sunday a 6 a.m. to Noon and sell you turnips that you can in turn sell to Tom Nook for more Bells. Some visitors will only arrive during special events, and they include Jack, Chip, Jingle and Franklin. Wisp is a ghost who'll only appear during midnight to 4 a.m. under certain conditions, and the Snowman can be created during December 25 to mid February once you compile snowballs together.

NES Games
In the game, you're able to find NES video games by doing your daily activities. In all there are fifteen different NES games, all which are listed below.


 * Pinball - This game is basically just a classic game of pinball with a Mario cameo.
 * Golf - A simple game of golf.
 * Balloon Fight - A classic game that resembles Joust. Your goal is to pop the antagonist's balloons by ramming into them, though if both of yours gets popped, then you'll ultimately lose.
 * Tennis - A simple game of tennis.
 * Baseball - A simple game of baseball.
 * Donkey Kong - The original classic game where Mario first appeared. Your goal is to jump over the barrels that Donkey Kong thrusts your way and finally save Pauline.
 * Donkey Kong Jr. - The sequel to Donkey Kong, though this time Mario is the enemy and you place as Donkey Kong's son.
 * Donkey Kong 3 - The final installment of the arcade Donkey Kong games, and the only one not to feature Mario.
 * Wario's Woods - A puzzle game that is described as a combination of Tetris and Dr. Mario. Wario is the antagonist here, and you take control of Toad or Birdo.
 * Donkey Kong Jr. Math - Similar to Donkey Kong Jr., though this time you must solve math problems.
 * Soccer - A simple game of soccer or European football.
 * Excitebike - A fun game where you race to the finish on a motorcycle.
 * Clu Clu Land and Clu Clu Land D - In both of these games your goal is to destroy the sea urchins and find the gold ingots.

Other
These games are not available in-game though through an Action Replay cheat device.
 * The Legend of Zelda
 * Super Mario Bros.
 * Ice Climber
 * Punch-Out!! - The classic boxing title can also be found using MooglyGuy / UltraMoogleMan's Animal Crossing Code Generator.

E-Reader cards
You'll be able to get extras by using the Game Boy Advance, e-Reader, the GBA to GameCube connector, and special E-Reader cards that were once available at stores. There are four different series, each one with a copious amount of cards. Sliding them into your E-Reader would give you items, and sometimes even patterns and NES video games, among other things. Each card had a special visitor or a villager on the cover, and a background on the back of each card.

Legacy
The game has been so popular that it's gotten two sequels, Animal Crossing: Wild World for the Nintendo DS and Animal Crossing: City Folk for the Wii), been referenced in multiple other game titles, and has even been made into a made-for-DVD movie that was only released in Japan. Another game, Animal Crossing 3DS) is being made for the Nintendo 3DS. Animal Crossing 3DS isn't the final name though. In Super Smash Bros. Brawl for the Wii, a stage is based on Animal Crossing and its sequel Wild World. Many trophies and stickers can also be found, along with Mr. Resetti as an Assist Trophy.

Reception
The game was generally well received, with an average of 86.6% on Game Rankings. IGN rewarded the title with a 9.1 (outstanding) rating, while GameSpot gave it an 8.1. Other high ratings include a 9.5 from Game Informer, an average of 9.17 from Electronic Gaming Monthly, and a 4.5 from Game Pro. The game has sold a total of 2.321 million copies worldwide; it is the sixth best selling GameCube video game. The sequel, Animal Crossing: Wild World, however, dramatically outsold the title with a whopping 9.53 million.