- Animal Crossing turns 20
- Part One appeared in Japan on April 14, 2001
- First it was released for the Nintendo 64
The Animal Crossing series turns 20 today!
On April 14, 2021, the first part appeared under the name Dōbutsu no Mori aka Animal Forest in Japan. And first for the Nintendo 64.
A version that never made it to the West. Only an improved implementation for the GameCube was published in the USA and Europe.
“The Animal Crossing series began in Japan 20 years ago today!” Wrote Nintendo on Twitter. “What special moments do you associate with these games?”
20 years ago today, the #AnimalCrossing-Series begin in Japan! What special moments do you associate with these games?
Are you new to the series? Then see you #AnimalCrossingNewHorizons For #NintendoSwitch an: https://t.co/coUMZ9UuGt pic.twitter.com/lMW0yajQHt
– Nintendo DE (@NintendoDE) April 14, 2021
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In any case, the series has come a long way since its inception. The most recent installment, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, is one of the most successful Switch games, while Melinda and the resident made it as characters in Super Smash Bros.
The sales figures clearly show how successful New Horizons is. The game alone has sold more than all of the previous major parts in the franchise combined since its March 2020 release.
Animal Crossing made its debut on the N64 and GameCube, as I said, and sold a little over two million copies. Animal Crossing: Wild World then made a significant leap forward on the DS in 2005, when around 11.75 million units were sold.
Animal Crossing: City Folk, which was released on the Wii in 2009, was again less successful with 4.32 million copies, while Animal Crossing: New Leaf, which was released for the 3DS in 2012, set a new record for the time being with 12.82 million sales the series put up.
One that Animal Crossing: New Horizons broke with ease, 31.18 million units of the Switch title have been sold to date (as of December 31, 2020).
Of course, I don’t want to withhold two other offshoots. Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer hit the 3DS in 2015 and had 3.04 million sales. Animal Crossing: Amiibo Festival, which was also released for Wii U in 2015, turned out to be a total flop. It is estimated that only around 500,000 copies were sold here.
In any case, the success at the Switch promises a bright future for the series, whatever it may look like. With that in mind: Happy Birthday, Animal Crossing!
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