Animal Crossing (video game)

Animal Crossing, known in Japan as Dōbutsu no Mori, is a social simulation game developed and published by Nintendo. It was first released in 2001 for the Nintendo 64 in Japan, followed by an enhanced port for the GameCube. The GameCube version was localized for North America, Australia, and Europe between 2002 and 2004. It is the first game in the Animal Crossing series.

Animal Crossing features nonlinear gameplay in which the player takes up residence in a village inhabited by anthropomorphic animals. The goal is to save money to pay off the mortgage on the player's house by collecting and selling natural materials. The player can engage in everyday life in the village, interact with the animals, attend events, and contribute to the village's development. The western localization replaces Japanese holidays and cultural references with Western ones.

Animal Crossing was conceived as a role-playing adventure for the 64DD, with the main action taking place in dungeons. However, development was stalled by the repeated delays of the peripheral. Following the move to the standard cartridge format, co-director Katsuya Eguchi decided to refocus the game as a non-linear life simulator, which would carry the themes of family, friendship, and community and allow several players to develop a virtual town at different times.

Animal Crossing was a critical and commercial success domestically and internationally, attracting many non-traditional gaming audiences. Critics praised the game's unusual but immersive and addictive gameplay, which was devoid of purpose and stressful elements. Criticisms centered on its outdated graphics and simple art style. The game is considered one of the earliest examples of the casual game genre, as well as one of the greatest games of all time.