The cheerful Shizu (dog) secretary who first appeared in New Leaf and became the series' breakout star.

A cranky mole who used to yell at players for turning off the game without saving. Animal Crossing: A Brief History

Bringing the game to Western audiences was a massive undertaking. Localization teams had to rename characters, holidays, and items to resonate outside of Japan—for instance, changing traditional Japanese festivals to events like and Toy Day . The title "Animal Acres" was considered before the team settled on Animal Crossing for the GameCube release in 2002. Evolution of the Series

In 2001, Dōbutsu no Mori (Animal Forest) was released for the Nintendo 64 in Japan. Unlike action games, it was a "life simulation" where time passed exactly as it did in the real world. Because the N64 lacked a real-time clock, Nintendo famously embedded one directly into the game cartridge. Crossing into the West

A guitar-playing dog based on Nintendo composer Kazumi Totaka, who performs weekly concerts.

The tanuki (raccoon) businessman who provides your home and loans. While some see him as greedy, others view him as a saint for offering interest-free, no-deadline loans.