Islander

Bud, an islander who has appeared in every Animal Crossing series game since his debut.

An islander is an inhabitant that lives on Animal Island in Doubutsu no Mori+, Animal Crossing, and Doubutsu no Mori e+. While similar to the mainland villagers, they offer fully unique dialogue and display some unique behaviors. In Doubutsu no Mori e+, however, no islanders are present on the island by default, including the original Animal Crossing islanders, and can only be brought to the island through the use of their e-Reader cards. In installments after Doubutsu no Mori e+, Animal Island was no longer a feature, and various islanders returned in later games as regular villagers.

There are 36 islanders in total, starting with the original 18 islanders that debuted in Doubutsu no Mori+, and an extra 18 added in Doubutsu no Mori e+. In Animal Crossing: Wild World, only six islanders return as regular villagers. City Folk sees a return of four more islanders absent in Wild World, New Leaf sees a return of twelve—six in the initial game, and six more in the Welcome amiibo update—and New Horizons sees a return of two, both of which were only available after the release of the 2.0 Free Update. When adapted into mainland villagers, islander are often changed to a different personality type other than their previous mainlander counterpart due to the lack of an exact equivalent for their previous islander personality. As of New Horizons, 12 islanders have not reappeared since Doubutsu no Mori e+.

Although all villagers are technically "islanders" in New Horizons (as the main setting of the game is an initially deserted island), none of the special behaviors that applied to islanders in Animal Crossing and Doubutsu no Mori e+ carry over to the later game.

Characteristics

Behaviors

Flash, an islander, speaks with a player in Animal Crossing.

Islanders use the same system of six personalities as the mainland villagers which designates their daily routine and voice type. However, islanders share no dialogue with their mainland counterparts and have personalities that can differ drastically from mainland villagers' in conversation.

• Lazy islanders are stoic and philosophical hermits who speak in a depressive, taciturn manner.
• Jock islanders are casual and laidback rather than energetic, embodying the stereotypical "surfer dude" with characteristic interests and lingo.
• Cranky islanders are suave and flirtatious romantics who will make advances on the player with pleasant smooth talk and are slow to get upset; the smug personality introduced in Animal Crossing: New Leaf may be loosely based on this personality.
• Normal islanders are whimsical and sensitive nature-lovers who often daydream about fairy tales and the souls of living things.
• Peppy islanders speak with the dialect of an old country woman and are bossy and tomboyish, coaching the player about sports or reminiscing about their glory days; the big sister personality introduced in Animal Crossing: New Leaf may be loosely based on this personality.
• Snooty islanders are air-headed and melodramatic ditzes who show both a warmhearted and self-absorbed side, speaking in the excitable, emotional manner of a stereotypical teenage girl.

Because the island is a small, contained area, players cannot ask islanders for work or favors. Instead, islanders will request specific pieces of furniture from the player they are looking for, which they will use to decorate their home. Islanders will also commonly ask for furniture the player has on hand, even if it is not an item they are seeking. The islander will decorate using all items they have received, including all their requested items and up to four unrequested items. However, if they have more than one item, they will randomly select one piece each time to give back or sell to the visitor. All of the Doubutsu no Mori e+ islanders request the same furniture as the original Animal Crossing islanders; for instance, Madam Rosa in e+ requests the same items normally requested by Ankha in Animal Crossing.

Islanders dress in a distinct manner with female islanders wearing red aloha shirts by default and the male islanders wearing blue aloha shirts. They also commonly wear various accessories to distinguish their status as an islander. Prior to Doubutsu no Mori e+, all female islanders (with the exception of Ankha) wear a flower in their hair, while cranky islanders wear a straw hat, and other characters wear tropical leis or a backpack. Islanders can also ask for clothes in the player's inventory for them to change into. Since it is not possible for the player to exchange letters with islanders, islanders will instead ask the player to write something in their guest book which they can then display to others later.

Game Boy Advance connection

Faith fishing on the Game Boy Advance island.

If a connection between the Nintendo GameCube and the Game Boy Advance is present, the player can interact with the islander on the Game Boy Advance via a small minigame. The islander can eat fruit, use tools, and trade items. These actions can also affect their mood. Items islanders possess within the minigame are not the same as those on the GameCube.

Any changes made to the island in the minigame will be transferred to the island on the Nintendo GameCube by talking to Kapp'n with the minigame connected. This feature is removed in Doubutsu no Mori e+, due to the player no longer requiring a linked Game Boy Advance to access the island.

See also

• List of islanders