A lot of Animal Crossing: New Horizons' heart comes from its charming animal villagers. For many players, interacting with Animal Crossing's villagers is the most important part of the series' gameplay, largely because of their adorable designs, entertaining dialogue, and the friendship that can be built between them and the player. Almost every fan of the series has at least one favorite villager, and while every fan-favorite is personally valid to each player, not all villagers are strong contenders for their own spinoff game.
The vast amount of villagers options in Animal Crossing: New Horizons is truly something to behold. It has the largest roster of villagers of any game in the series, with over 400 animals from 35 different species that could possibly take up residence in a player's town. Alongside their cosmetic differences, each animal has their own birthday, personality, and home design in Animal Crossing that set them apart from one another.
The Animal Crossing series has had a few spinoff titles since it began over two decades ago, each to varying levels of success. The Mario Party-style game amiibo Festival saw a lukewarm reception, largely because it was too distanced from the personal connections and creativity that made the mainline series so special. Conversely, the designing DLCs Happy Home Designer and Happy Home Paradise found great success for emphasizing creativity and villager interaction. However, there's never been a spinoff that's centered around one specific in-game character or explored a completely new genre, which begs the question: which villagers would be best suited for the job?
ACNH Sisters Chrissy And Francine Could Have A Rhythm Game
Chrissy and Francine are one of only two canonical villager sibling pairs in the entire series. Like most villagers with the peppy personality type, they frequently mention their pop star aspirations in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. However, in a way they've gotten closer than any other has, as they appear on the cover of K.K. Slider's popular ACNH song, "Bubblegum K.K." The colorful bunny duo would do great as the hosts or protagonists of a rhythm-based game in the style of games like Guitar Hero or Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight where players can play along and live out their own pop star dreams.
Chai And Merengue Could Run A Cafe Outside Of ACNH
While Animal Crossing: New Horizons does have a cafe, unlike the game's predecessor New Leaf players do not have any part in running it. From Cat Cafe Manager to Coffee Talk, games that revolve around running a quaint coffee shop and eatery are becoming increasingly popular, and who better to branch out on their own than two of the most adorable food-based villagers Chai and Merengue? Chai's character could manage cozy drinks and latte art for customers while Merengue would handle creating baked goods, perhaps through Cooking Mama-style minigames to create a unique new management-style game.
Kid Cat And Agent S Would Make A Great Superhero Spinoff From ACNH
It's already heavily implied in Animal Crossing that Kid Cat and Agent S are linked to each other via their shared superhero roots, even demarcated by the numbers on their helmets and Agent S's catchphrase "sidekick." While there are a handful of other superhero-styled villagers in the game, Kid Cat and Agent S are arguably the most connected. Their personalities also make for a fun superhero and sidekick dynamic: the leader Kid Cat is a strong-minded jock, while Agent S is a peppy, easily excitable second-in-command who is eager to help the hero.
The cat and squirrel duo from Animal Crossing would make excellent protagonists of a superhero game, whether it be an open-world title like Marvel's Spider-Man or a fighting game like Injustice. The pair would also bring a welcome lighthearted spin on the genre to the table, which is typically filled with dark, edgy protagonists. The game could even offer co-op capabilities as the two work together to save citizens and fight crime.
Ankha From Animal Crossing Could Put A Spin On Tomb Raider
Ankha is one of the most interesting and popular villagers in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, with both her home and appearance reflecting ancient Egypt. The snooty cat is already one of the most beloved characters amongst Animal Crossing fans, and her rich background creates an easy segue into a lore-focused adventure game in the style of titles like Tomb Raider. Evidently already familiar with tombs - as her home is modeled like one - Ankha would be the perfect protagonist to explore old ruins, fight mummies, and uncover ancient treasures.
ACNH Jocks Are Begging For Their Own Sports Spinoff
Any player who has talked to a jock villager in Animal Crossing: New Horizons knows of their endless love and passion for sports and fitness. Whether they're talking about running laps, reps, or protein shakes, athletics are always at the forefront of their mind, which makes the game's jock characters the perfect roster for a sports game spinoff. A more cartoonish style of sports game in the vein of the well-reviewed Mario Strikers: Battle League would best suit the design of the villagers, versus more realistic titles like FIFA. A collection of sports minigames like Nintendo Switch Sports would perhaps be the best fit, as jock villagers would never turn down any chance to compete.
Animal Crossing Fans Will Buy Literally Any Bob-Centric Spinoff
Bob is one of the most beloved and iconic characters in Animal Crossing: New Horizons and within the series as a whole. Speculated to be the very first villager ever created - hence his birthday January 1st - the adorable purple cat has captured the heart of a huge amount of players over the years, and is a dream villager for many fans. Because of this, there is a large section of Animal Crossing players who would buy literally any title starring the lazy cat regardless of its actual content.
It could be a walking simulator or narrative-focused game like What Remains of Edith Finch where players investigate what it is the bugs whisper into Bob's ear every night, a cooking game where he aims to create the tastiest snacks, or a maze-based puzzle game where players work to lead Bob to the coziest napping spots. No matter what the title's actual gameplay, any game with Bob's name on it would immediately garner fan attention. Regardless of how unlikely a Bob-centric spinoff - or any of these spinoffs, for that matter - may be, any Animal Crossing: New Horizons game with the iconic purple cat at its forefront would undoubtedly sell millions of copies.