An Animal Crossing: New Horizons short animation showcases the dark implications of selling off villagers to other players. Densle has uploaded several Animal Crossing shorts in the past that poke fun at aspects of the game, such as one video which displays the problems of a sudden influx of island visitors.
The villager market has been a popular one ever since Animal Crossing: New Leaf. When a villager is about to move away from an island, another player can visit and convince the villager to move into their island instead. This has led players to compete to buy other player's villagers, with Raymond being one of the most desired characters. The prices can range from millions of bells to hundreds of Nook Mile tickets, all to obtain that one coveted villager.
The new short from Densle puts a dark spin on these types of transactions. Titled "In Boxes," the video depicts a player hosting an auction for Raymond the cat, with the price repeatedly jumping as other players compete for the chance to adopt the coveted villager onto their island. The scenario accurately depicts what these auctions would be like if they were to be taken seriously, and shows how dark such an event would be, since it treats these charming creatures as commodities.
Raymond is one of the most coveted villagers in Animal Crossing: New Horizons for a variety of reasons. His design is very unique for a villager, as an office worker cat with glasses. But he's also one of the rarest due to his status as a new villager in Animal Crossing: New Horizons; as such, he currently doesn't have an amiibo card corresponding to him, unlike all the villagers that came before him. He can only be obtained through the random chance of appearing on a Nook Mile island or as a campsite villager, which is why Nook Mile tickets have a very high currency value.
The economy of Animal Crossing: New Horizons will likely continue to fluctuate through the game's lifespan. If amiibo cards based on the new villagers get released someday, that could make those villagers less valuable than they were before. Most recently, Nintendo has released Sanrio amiibo cards in the west, which include exclusive villagers and various furniture items. If someday Nintendo did release a Raymond amiibo card, one has to wonder how that would effect the Animal Crossing: New Horizons economy.
Source: Densle/YouTube