Nintendo Power

Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power
	; ; First issue of Nintendo Power, July/August 1988
Editor	Steve Thomason (2012)
Former editors	Yoshio Tsuboike (2001?-2003?); Chris Slate (2008-2011)
Staff writers	Alan Averill - 145-166; Justin Cheng; Jessica Folsom - 163-166; Steven Grimm - 153-166; Chris Hoffman; George Sinfield - 145-159; Phil Theobald; Steve Thomason - 166; Jennifer Villareal - 145-161; Drew Williams - 145-152
Frequency	Monthly
Circulation	475,000+
Publisher	Nintendo (former), Future US (current)
First issue	July/August 1988
Final issue	December 2012
Country	United States; Canada
Language(s)	English

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Nintendo Power was the official Nintendo magazine for North America. It has supplied Nintendo fans with in-game information for 24 years starting with its July/August 1988 issue and ending in December 2012.

Animal Crossing in Nintendo Power

The Animal Crossing series appears in the following issues of Nintendo Power:

Issue	Images	Description
145 June 2001		As part of a special feature covering the reveal of the Nintendo GameCube at E3 2001, Animal Forest is mentioned as a "major release for GCN" on page 40.
146 July 2001		Animal Forest appears under the Nintendo GameCube section of the Game Watch Forecast on page 19.
146 July 2001		Screenshots of Animal Crossing from an E3 2001 video presentation appear on page 40.
147 August 2001		Animal Forest appears under the Nintendo GameCube section of the Game Watch Forecast on page 19.
148 September 2001		Staff writers clarify that Animal Forest will debut on the Nintendo GameCube. A screenshot of the game taken from an E3 2001 highlight reel appears on page 9.
148 September 2001		Animal Forest appears under the Nintendo GameCube section of the Game Watch Forecast on page 19.
149 October 2001		Animal Forest Plus appears under the Nintendo GameCube section of the Game Watch Forecast on page 19.
		As part of their detailed coverage of Space World 2001, a small section is devoted to GBA-GCN connectivity via link cable on page 31, with screenshots from Animal Forest Plus and Animal Island.
		A small screenshot from Animal Forest Plus is shown on page 32 as part of the magazine's Power Picks.
150 November 2001		Animal Forest appears under the Nintendo GameCube section of the Game Watch Forecast on page 21.
151 December 2001		Animal Forest appears under the Nintendo GameCube section of the Game Watch Forecast on page 23.
152 January 2002		Animal Forest appears under the Nintendo GameCube section of the Game Watch Forecast on page 21.
153 February 2002		Animal Forest is ranked as the number 2 most-wanted title on the Power Charts, page 14.
		Two screenshots of Animal Forest Plus are shown on page 20.
		Animal Forest Plus appears under the Nintendo GameCube section of the Game Watch Forecast on page 21.
154 March 2002		Animal Forest Plus appears under the Nintendo GameCube section of the Game Watch Forecast on page 21.
155 April 2002		Animal Forest Plus appears under the Nintendo GameCube section of the Game Watch Forecast on page 23.
156 May 2002		Animal Forest Plus appears under the Nintendo GameCube section of the Game Watch Forecast on page 21.
157 June 2002		As part of the Game Watch feature, Animal Crossing appears with four screenshots and a short description on page 20.
		Animal Crossing appears under the Nintendo GameCube section of the Game Watch Forecast on page 24.
		Animal Crossing GBA-GCN connectivity features including the e-Reader, e-Reader cards, and Animal Island are shown as a preview of E3 2002, on page 53.
		Animal Crossing is listed as a Fall game on page 64.
158 July 2002		Two Animal Crossing player characters appear on the front cover of the magazine.
		An Animal Crossing screenshot appears aside the table of contents with the caption "Get a life." on page 10.
		On the Power Charts, Animal Crossing sits at number 9 on the Players Choice chart on Page 18.
		Animal Crossing appears under the Nintendo GameCube section of the Game Watch Forecast on page 26.
		As part of their E3 2002 wrap-up, Animal Crossing is described as "the most innovative game of the show" alongside a screenshot from the game, on page 35.
		Animal Crossing is described as a "smash success" among E3 attendees who got to try out the title on the showroom floor, on page 37.
		A special feature titled "Welcome to your new life" that details Animal Crossing basics, introduces special characters & locations, and offers some tips and tricks, appears on pages 80-84.
159 August 2002		On the Power Charts, Animal Crossing sits at number 2 on the Players Choice chart, ahead of Metroid Prime (#4), on page 18.
		The Nintendo e-Reader is announced, with a release date of September 16th. Animal Crossing-e to follow shortly after, on page 21.
		An interview with Takashi Tezuka, the deputy general manager for Animal Crossing appears alongside screenshots of the game on pages 25-26. Animal Crossing appears under the Nintendo GameCube section of the Game Watch Forecast on page 26.
		A player character appears in a Best Buy advertisement on page 33.
		A special feature titled "All aboard! Calling all passengers!" that details Animal Crossing's multiplayer capabilities appears on pages 54-59.
160 September 2002		Animal Crossing slips to number 5 on the Player's Choice Power Chart on page 18.
		Animal Crossing appears under the Nintendo GameCube section of the Game Watch Forecast on page 26.
		A promotional poster for Animal Crossing appears in the background of a photo taken at a Nintendo Street Team training event in Seattle on page 30.
		The Animal Crossing website is announced on page 32.
		Animal Crossing is announced as the first game to feature e-Reader connectivity on page 53.
		A special feature titled "A chic peek at connectivity and customization" that details Animal Crossing's GBA connectivity features and in-game customization options, appears on pages 62-65.
		A Walmart ad shows an early version of the Animal Crossing cover art on pages 66-67.
		An image of the official player's guide featuring an early version of the Animal Crossing cover art, appears on page 177.
162 November 2002		On the Power Charts, Animal Crossing sits at number 6 on the Players Choice chart on Page 20. Animal Crossing appears in a Walmart ad as part of a lineup of Nintendo GameCube games on page 65. A small Animal Crossing screenshot appears at the top of page 92, and a spread featuring tips and tricks appears on pages 96-97. The November 2002 edition of The Crossing Guardian appears on page 112.
163 December 2002		NES Link E-Reader card was included as a promotion for this volume On the Power Charts, Animal Crossing debuts as the 3rd best-selling Nintendo GameCube game for the month on page 20. An advertisement for the "Animal Crossing Calendar Sweepstakes" appears on page 38. An article about Animal Crossing e-Reader cards appears on page 74, followed by a double-sided poster featuring a visual checklist of the first 118 cards in the series. A spread detailing the Happy Room Academy appears on pages 92-93. Animal Crossing appears in a Kmart ad as part of a lineup of Nintendo GameCube games bundled with Players Guides on page 97. Animal Crossing also appears in a Walmart ad on page 113. The December 2002 edition of The Crossing Guardian appears on page 131. A fan-submitted Twisted Challenge for Animal Crossing appears on page 139.
165 February 2003		Animal Crossing appears on the Top-Selling Games Power Chart, falling to number 7. It also rises to number 5 on the Player's Choice chart on page 18.
		A tip for obtaining the Golden Shovel in Animal Crossing appears on page 81.
		An issue of The Crossing Guardian featuring Groundhog Day appears on page 94.
166 March 2003		Animal Crossing Corner in Players Pulse on page 13.
		Animal Crossing maintains its position at number 7 on the Top-Selling Games chart, and rises to number 3 on the Player's Choice chart on page 18.
		Animal Crossing is the Power Pick for Most Innovative Game of 2002 on page 30.
		Animal Crossing E-cards are featured in a K-Mart advertisement on page 77.
		An Animal Crossing player character appears on the first page of the 2002 Nintendo Power Awards Nominations and is nominated for Best Game on pages 88-89.
		Animal Crossing is nominated for Best Musical Score and Best RPG on the Nintendo GameCube on pages 90-91.
		Animal Crossing is nominated for Best Replay Value and Most Innovative game on page 93.
		Tom Nook is nominated for Best New Villain on page 94.
		Animal Crossing is nominated for Cheesiest Line of Dialog and The Guilty Pleasure of 2002 on pages 96-97.
		An issue of The Crossing Guardian featuring NES games appears on page 108.
		An advertisement for the Animal Crossing Player's Guide appears on page 146.
168 May 2003		On the Power Charts, Animal Crossing ranks as the 8th best-selling Nintendo GameCube game of the month, and places 10th on the Players Choice chart on page 16. A small mention is given on page 20 of the awards Animal Crossing received from the AIAS. The May 2003 edition of The Crossing Guardian appears on page 123.
169 June 2003		The June 2003 edition of The Crossing Guardian showcasing community-submitted content from Animal Crossing appears on page 106.
170 July/August 2003		The July/August 2003 edition of The Crossing Guardian showcasing community-submitted content from Animal Crossing appears on page 122.
171 September 2003		The September 2003 edition of The Crossing Guardian showcasing community-submitted content from Animal Crossing appears on page 112.
172 October 2003		The October 2003 edition of The Crossing Guardian showcasing community-submitted content from Animal Crossing appears on page 118.
173 November 2003		The November 2003 edition of The Crossing Guardian showcasing community-submitted content from Animal Crossing appears on page 130.
174 December 2003		The December 2003 edition of The Crossing Guardian showcasing community-submitted content from Animal Crossing appears on page 134.
175 January 2004		The Winter 2004 edition of The Crossing Quarterly showcasing community-submitted content from Animal Crossing appears on page 126.
179 May 2004		The Spring 2004 edition of The Crossing Quarterly showcasing community-submitted content from Animal Crossing appears on page 89.
181 July 2004		In a feature article titled E3 2004 The Inside Story, early screenshots of Animal Crossing: Wild World, then known as Animal Crossing DS, are shown on page 40.
182 August 2004		As part of their coverage of E3 2004, early screenshots of Animal Crossing: Wild World, then known as Animal Crossing DS, are shown on page 33. The Summer 2004 edition of The Crossing Quarterly showcasing community-submitted content from Animal Crossing appears on page 106.
184 October 2004		Early screenshots of Animal Crossing: Wild World, then known as Animal Crossing DS, are shown on page 21 noting the possibility of wireless gameplay on the Nintendo DS.
185 November 2004		The Fall 2004 edition of The Crossing Quarterly showcasing community-submitted content from Animal Crossing appears on page 96.
187 January 2005		At the end of a feature article titled Nintendo DS: Making Waves in Gaming two screenshots of Animal Crossing: Wild World, then known as Animal Crossing DS, are shown on page 48 as an example of future games in development for the Nintendo DS.
191 May 2005		In a feature article titled Nintendo DS: The Future Comes into View highlighting upcoming titles for the Nintendo DS, a console playing Animal Crossing: Wild World is shown with a note that Animal Crossing: Wild World will be one of the first Wi-Fi compatible games.
192 June 2005		Nintendo Power mentions Animal Crossing: Wild World, then known as Animal Crossing DS, and shares some screenshots from its appearance at the May 2005 Game Developer's Conference on page 15.
194 August 2005		Wild World comes in at number 2 on Steven G's top 10 list of games at E3 on page 48. As part of their E3 2005 recap, Animal Crossing: Wild World, then known as Animal Crossing DS, was showcased in a small piece titled Village Venture on page 49.
197 November 2005		In the News section, Nintendo Power reveals Animal Crossing: Wild World will release on December 5th, 2005 and confirms its title in a short piece titled Wild World in View on page 18.
198 December 2005		As part of a feature titled DS Brings It! 25 world-changers Animal Crossing: Wild World makes an appearance as number 19 in a short article called Spread the Herd in which its touch-screen controls and Wi-Fi compatibility are lauded.
199 January 2006		In a feature titled behind the scenes: Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection staff members at Nintendo Power comment on their online experiences with Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection during its beta testing phase and their experience with Animal Crossing: Wild World on pages 36–40. A solo feature on Animal Crossing: Wild World titled Get a Real Life follows on pages 48–56. Wild World is reviewed on page 109 and receives a rating of 9.5/10. Writer Andy M. offers a second opinion rating of 8.5/10.
200 February 2006		A feature titled Money Power Fame that offers bell-making tips in Animal Crossing: Wild World appears on pages 38–42.
201 March 2006		A feature titled Animal Crossing Water World??? that details pattern-making and town design in Animal Crossing: Wild World appears on pages 50–58.
202 April 2006		The NP team's favorite Blanca faces from Animal Crossing: Wild World appear in the Community section on page 91.
203 May 2006		Nintendo Power's Player's Poll Sweepstakes for May 2006 titled Seek Professional Help features an Animal Crossing: Wild World makeover as a grand prize. Contest details appear on pages 74–75.
204 June 2006		As part of a series of articles following the Zelda development team, composer and sound designer Toru Minegishi talks about his experience creating K.K. Slider's songs for Animal Crossing on page 78.
205 July 2006		A full-page Animal Crossing special titled Civilize Your Wild World on page 101 of the Community section showcased suburban-themed patterns for use in Animal Crossing: Wild World.
207 September 2006		At the end of the Community section, the NSider Review of the Month featured Animal Crossing: Wild World on page 90.
208 October 2006		A guide article for Animal Crossing: Wild World called Hair-Brained Hairstyles appears on pages 64–65.
209 November 2006		Fan-submitted photos of Animal Crossing: Wild World showcasing custom patterns and interior décor appear in the Community section on page 101.
210 December 2006		Animal Crossing: City Folk is teased in a screenshot of WarioWare: Smooth Moves that features Animal Crossing gameplay on page 22.
212 February 2007		Fan-submitted photos of Animal Crossing: Wild World showcasing themed towns and interior décor appear in the Community section on page 103.
215 May 2007		Fan-submitted photos of Animal Crossing: Wild World showcasing custom patterns and interior décor appear in the Community section on page 93.
218 August 2007		Fan-submitted photos of Animal Crossing: Wild World showcasing custom patterns appear in the Community section on page 92.
233 October 2008		Animal Crossing: City Folk appears as part of a feature highlighting the most anticipated games shown off at E3 2008 on pages 64-66 . The article includes a lengthy interview with the game's producer and series creator Katsuya Eguchi.
235 December 2008		The cover of the magazine showcases Animal Crossing: City Folk and a feature titled Out on the Town explores the game in depth on pages 56–64. The piece concludes with an interview with associate localization producer Ann Lin and producer/localization manager Reiko Ninomiya.
236 January 2009		A male player appears on the cover of the magazine and Animal Crossing: City Folk is reviewed on page 76, receiving an 8.0/10 rating.

The Crossing Guardian

During the Animal Crossing era, each issue included an edition of The Crossing Guardian. It also distributed Animal Crossing-e cards and published secret codes for items from the Mario Theme from January 2003 to November 2003, which are the only way to obtain the items through normal means. It also distributed codes for the Mario Trophy and Luigi Trophy in the December 2003 and January 2004 issues, respectively.

The Crossing Guardian - Nintendo Power Vol. 165
The Crossing Guardian - Nintendo Power Vol. 166
The Crossing Guardian - Nintendo Power Vol. 169
The Crossing Guardian - Nintendo Power Vol. 170
The Crossing Guardian - Nintendo Power Vol. 171
The Crossing Guardian - Nintendo Power Vol. 172
The Crossing Guardian - Nintendo Power Vol. 173
The Crossing Guardian - Nintendo Power Vol. 174
The Crossing Quarterly - Spring 2004
The Crossing Quarterly - Summer 2004
The Crossing Quarterly - Fall 2004
The Crossing Quarterly - Winter 2004

Feature articles

Nintendo Power ran several feature articles on different games in the Animal Crossing series:

An article titled Out on the Town for Animal Crossing: City Folk.

An article titled Get a Real Life for Animal Crossing: Wild World.

The features behind the scenes: Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, Animal Crossing Water World??? and Money Power Fame for Animal Crossing: Wild World.