Tom Nook



"I'll be there with Bells on! Ho ho!"

- Tom Nook

Tom Nook is a raccoon (tanuki in Japanese and Korean versions) who runs various businesses throughout the. Prior to, he runs the town shop. In, he operates Nook's Homes, where the player can customize their house, and in , he works at Resident Services and gives daily announcements prior to the building's upgrade. At the beginning of each game in the series, Tom Nook sells the player a house, giving them a home loan to pay off and offering expansions after each loan is paid off.

Tom Nook has two apprentices, Timmy and Tommy (collectively referred to as the Nooklings), who are twins that serve as his assistants in Nookington's prior to and as assistants in Resident Services in  prior to the opening of the island shop. In and, the Nooklings take over Nook's role as shop owner, with their shop in the latter game, Nook's Cranny, sharing a name with one of Tom Nook's stores from previous entries.

Appearance
Tom Nook is a raccoon (tanuki in Japan and Korea) with brown fur and a long nose. He appears to have lazy, frowning eyes and no visible mouth, with his nose moving in place of one when he speaks.

Nook's clothing changes depending on the state of his store. In Nook's Cranny, he wears a short, blue apron with a leaf embedded on the front, or a kanji ten (店), meaning "shop," in. In Nook 'n' Go, Tom Nook wears a striped market uniform with a small market hat. In Nookway, Nook wears a large supermarket apron that covers his entire body, with a leaf still embedded on the front. Lastly, in Nookington's, Tom Nook wears a simple, purple business suit.

In, Tom Nook's clothing is changed to reflect his new employment at Nook's Homes, wearing a teal colored vest with a white undershirt and red tie, and gray pants. When outside, he wears a yellow coat. In, Nook wears a in spring and summer, and he wears an orange and yellow sweater with a  over it in fall and winter.

Personality
In the past, Tom Nook was an ambitious, money-driven individual who dreamed of fame and glory, even abandoning his friends to pursue such dreams in the city, although he still thought of his friends, particularly Sable, and would frequently exchange letters with them. After barely making a living and no profits, Tom returned to his home a more contemporary, down-to-earth individual, being described by Sable as a "completely different soul." Tom also says things such as "yes yes" or "hm" in his speech.

The following is Tom Nook's description from the game guide: "A kind raccoon with a heart of gold, Tom Nook helps you get started when you first move to town by loaning you a home to live in. Tom also runs a little supply shop in town that sells all the basics, including furniture, tools, and gardening supplies. Tom will help you in a variety of ways as your life unfolds, and you'll help him as well: keep shopping at the store and it'll get bigger and bigger. Eventually, old Tom will even need to hire his two nephews, Timmy and Tommy, just to keep his business running!"

Background
Many years before the events of the Animal Crossing games, Tom Nook left behind his friends, most importantly Sable, to travel to the big city. While there, he has dreams of success which are quickly broken by the harsh life there. After making nothing of himself, he returns to the player's town to set up his store. Nook no longer appears to be friends with Sable, though the two often mention each other to the player.

Nook seems to have a varied reputation amongst the villagers, with some speculating that he is, in fact, a human in a suit. His large, bushy tail seems popular amongst lazy villagers. He is openly derided by Redd as a "raccoon in an apron."

While the Nooklings share a strong resemblance to Nook, the exact nature of their relationship with him is unclear. Their Animal Crossing e-Reader cards imply that the Nooklings are Tom's family members, but Nook states in that he has no relation to them and that they are simply his employees. This is contrasted in the Prima Games strategy guide for, which states that they are Nook's nephews. In later games, certain villagers may mention that Tom Nook found the Nooklings as orphans and adopted them.

Nook is implied to have worked with Redd in the past. This is evidenced in, where, if the player has built his house, he may say, "Have you ever worked with a fox? Yes, foxes are never to be trusted, hm? I worked with a fox once in my life. Never again. Not after...the incident. Stop! I cannot say a word more! Let us assume it was tragic and not speak of it again."

and
At the beginning of the game, Tom Nook owns a small wooden shack. As the player buys items from him, the store will expand, eventually into a two-story supermarket. There are a total of four expansions, beginning with Nook's Cranny, which upgrades to Nook 'n' Go, then to Nookway, and lastly Nookington's.

In, Tom Nook runs a lottery on the last day of every month where spotlight items and NES games can be won if the player has raffle tickets. There are also random sales on occasion, as well as a selection of grab bags on Sale Day.

Tom Nook is also responsible for all players' mortgages, and will erect a statue outside the Train Station for each player who makes full repayments to him by depositing money in the Post Office.

This is the only game where the player can give passwords to Tom Nook. This allows for the transfer of items between towns.

Tom Nook's role in is virtually identical to what it was in the series' previous three entries. However, there are a few key additions found in the game. For example, the player can now visit his shop after hours by banging on the entrance with either a shovel or an axe three times. This causes the store's interior lighting to switch on and door to open, allowing the player to enter. Inside, Tom Nook, who is dressed in striped pajamas, wearing a nightcap, and carrying a pillow, will let the player browse and purchase any of the items on display, though this does not come without cons. Since he was sleeping, Tom Nook moves at a much slower pace; the selling price is inflated by 17%, while all items sold by the player are worth only 70% of their original value. Also, the player is only able to purchase the wares currently on display, meaning that the catalog is inaccessible.

In addition, the player can pay Tom Nook to build decorative objects — ranging from street lamps to wind turbines — at selectable acres in the town. He can also demolish them should the player ask. Near holidays, he temporarily stocks more celebratory items, such as party poppers in the latter half of December for New Year's Eve.

Tom Nook returns in as the shop owner once again. In this game, his store is now always adjacent to the Able Sisters, and the lottery, password and Sale Day features are removed. He also no longer sells clothes or umbrellas. However, the Tom Nook Point System is introduced to allow for eventual discounts on all purchases, with occasional Point Special days awarding five times the points, and Spotlight Items will infrequently appear in store. Nookington's contains Shampoodle on the lower floor, and upgrading to this store triggers Tom Nook's episodes.

Each player now shares Tom Nook's mortgage, and Tom will still force new players to work for him even when it is fully paid off. He states that he will 'not charge' the player for the lessons they are learning in Animal Crossing life.

His picture can be obtained by giving him a Safe, and the quote is "I'll be there with bells on! Ho ho!"

Episodes
Sometimes, upon entering his store, he will appear in thought, and may tell the player a story from an episode when approached:
 * "...Well, actually, I was just thinking about the good old days, hm?
 * I know it seems that the world is my oyster, what with my fine shop...
 * But in my childhood, I lived the kind of life you couldn't even imagine!
 * Yes, yes, but this was all some time ago, before I moved to this town, hm?
 * Of course, I was born in our lovely , but I moved away for a time...
 * Yes, yes, the city years, I like to call them. I was a raccoon of action, hm?
 * The big city certainly had its charms...but it had its pitfalls, as well.
 * Indeed, I had to endure certain hardships that I've never spoken of, hm?
 * ...Hard to believe, yes?
 * You're probably asking yourself, what the heck is Nook talking about, hm?
 * For now, , maybe it's best that we forget we ever talked about this."

Tom Nook acts similarly in to. His store is never directly to the west of the Able Sisters, however, and his picture cannot be obtained in this game. But, players each have their own mortgage once again. Tom Nook will erect a flag outside a house with its mortgage fully paid off.

After a period of time with Nookington's in, Tom Nook will ask the player a question to "better serve his customers." Based on the answer given, Nookington's can close and reopen one of the previous stores, excluding Nook's Cranny. Periodically, after the first questioning, Tom Nook will ask again, and the player can once more change the store.

The suggestions and answers are:


 * Variety — Nookington's
 * Balance — Nookway
 * Good Hours — Nook 'n' Go
 * Nothing much — Store does not change.

In, Nook runs a real estate store in place of a shop, and players are no longer required to work for him. The player, the new mayor, moves in without a home, but Tom Nook assists the player by letting the player determine the location of their new home. Construction of the home, however, takes a day and a 10,000 Bells down payment from the player, so they must sleep in a tent. Once the home is built, players must pay off the debt before they can make any expansions. After this, Tom Nook offers exterior home decorations and encourages the player to sign up for the Happy Home Academy, an association that scores players' homes.

In, Nook and the Nooklings are heading a new venture, offering getaway packages to the player that set them up as new residents on a deserted island. Nook is now the founder and CEO of Nook Inc., a real estate development company. In the game, Nook provides the player with a loan to establish themselves on the island and also runs a Resident Services center that provides a crafting bench and other amenities to the island's residents, like the use of the Nook Stop and recycling bin. When the player progresses through the game and the Resident Services center is upgraded, Nook will provide construction consultation and home upgrades to the player.

In, like in , Tom Nook runs Nook's Homes. He also appears as a client, and he helps run the monthly Happy Home Network Design Contest. During the contest, the player will be asked to design a home for Tom Nook, under the alias King Nook. Under this alias his appearance is notably different, wearing royal clothing including a crown.



Tom Nook appears in as the town shop owner, just as he does in the games.

Super Smash Bros. Melee
Tom Nook appears as a trophy in Super Smash Bros. Melee.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Tom Nook also appears in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, in the background of the Animal Crossing-themed stage Smashville.

Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U
In Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U, Tom Nook makes an appearance in the Villager's Final Smash, Dream Home. He also appears as a trophy in both versions, with the 3DS trophy being based on his design and the Wii U trophy being based on his  Nookington's design. Nook also makes a cameo appearance in the first E3 trailer for the games.

Tom Nook reprises his role as the Villager's Final Smash. He also appears in Isabelle's Final Smash, which functions similarly to Villager's, trapping opponents as he constructs Town Hall before it explodes, sending opponents flying.

Kirby: Planet Robobot
A rare gold sculpture of Tom Nook appears as one of Kirby's Stone ability transformations.

Trivia

 * In a character popularity poll for held by Nintendo in Japan, Tom Nook ranked 4th with 1,791 votes, above Sable and below Mr. Resetti.
 * Tom Nook seems to be a fan of golf, as in, his employees mention that he is probably golfing if he isn't in the office. Also, the loading animation for the Happy Home Network shows him hitting a golf ball. This is shown further in , as he has an indoor golf set in Resident Services prior to its upgrade.