February is here, which means that Valentine's Day is just around the corner. Although it is yet to be seen whether Animal Crossing: New Horizons will have something special for players during the event, Nintendo has already announced a new festival called Festivale, which will happen a day after Valentine's. To the uninitiated, the Festivale event will see Pave the Peacock's return from Animal Crossing: New Leaf, who will facilitate a good number of activities for participating players.
Although there is no romance in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, players will likely have their favorite villagers that they want to make happy on Valentine's Day. In previous Animal Crossing games, players can give out chocolates to their favorite villagers. Here is a list of the most well-loved villagers in Animal Crossing: New Horizons for those who are still undecided about who to pay special attention to on Valentine's Day.
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Headlining the list is Raymond and Ankha, who remains the two most popular villagers in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Ever since the release of the game last March, players have been scouring mystery islands and checking visiting villagers in hopes of encountering Raymond and Ankha. Some players even went as far as paying real-life money to other players in exchange for having Raymond and Ankha on their island. It is worth noting that Ankha has been a villager in Animal Crossing ever since the franchise made its debut in the early 2000s. On the other hand, Raymond is somewhat a newcomer, making his first appearance in the 2017 mobile game Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp.
Next are some of the villagers who also share a huge amount of popularity among gamers. First up is Marshal, a smug squirrel villager who made his first appearance in Animal Crossing: New Leaf. It is a mystery why so many players are drawn to smug villagers like Marshal and Audie, but perhaps it's because of their clever comebacks and unique dialogue. Another superstar villager on this tier is Audie, who is believed to have been named after the famous Animal Crossing grandma who has logged in over 4,000 hours in New Leaf. The rest of this tier includes the snooty cub villager Judy, who is popular due to her looks, and Bob, a veteran cat villager, has appeared in all Animal Crossing games.
Next up are some fairly popular villagers who have since grabbed players' attention due to their unique appearance and personalities. Headlining this tier is Zucker, a lazy octopus villager whose appearance is modeled after the famous Japanese snack takoyaki. Coco, the normal rabbit villager, would also make for an interesting valentine given her popular catchphrases and a personality that blends well with almost any other type in the game. Of course, Stitches and Marina are also included in this list, given that they are considered the most adorable looking villagers in Animal Crossing.
Lastly, the villagers may not be as popular as the others but are fun to be around, especially with their funny dialogue that keeps the island's atmosphere light and happy. First up are Diana and Chester, both veteran villagers, appearing in several Animal Crossing games. Diana is a snooty villager, which means that players should expect conversations with her to be filled with all sorts of gossip and observations about other villagers. On the other hand, Chester is a lazy cub villager who players still adore despite having a lazy personality due to his permanent frown.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons is out now exclusively for the Nintendo Switch.
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