Highlights
- Rare villagers in Animal Crossing are not actually designated as "rare," but the probability of encountering certain species varies due to the randomized nature of the game.
- Octopus villagers are considered the rarest in the franchise, with only five of them available. Finding any of them is one thing, but finding a specific one is much harder.
- Popular villagers like Raymond, Bob, Goldie, and Cookie may be harder to obtain due to the large number of characters in their respective categories.
- Ultimately, the rarest villager is going to be any specific one a player wants, and the difficulty is going to be derived if the species has a vast pool or an incredibly limited one.
The Animal Crossing franchise is one of Nintendo's best-selling properties, as many fans love the cozy and general life sim approach accompanied by cute characters. Following the success of Animal Crossing: New Horizons, it's likely the developers are considering ideas for a new game if it isn't already in the works. The lore and characters of the game are one of the reasons that the life simulations are so beloved, though there are some characters that seem harder to acquire than others.
Rare villagers aren't an actual "thing" in Animal Crossing because the villagers that appear on a person's island or town are completely randomized, but the math would suggest that some are going to be less common because of how many of a certain species are available in a game. Additionally, in Animal Crossing: New Horizons the probability of meeting someone on a mystery island, or having them come to one's campsite, does vary (unless a player decides to purchase a character-specific amiibo.)
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Rare Animal Crossing Villager Species List
Fortunately, the rarest types of villagers in Animal Crossing can be categorized into a list based on species:
- Octopus (5)
- Non-Animal Villagers (6)
- Tiger (7)
- Cow (8)
- Bull (9)
- Lion (9)
- Rhinoceros (9)
- Alligator (9)
- Anteater (10)
- Monkey (10)
- Hippo (10)
- Goat (10)
- Hamster (10)
- Eagle (11)
- Koala (11)
- Kangaroo (11)
- Gorilla (12)
- Ostrich (12)
- Deer (12)
- Wolf (13)
- Elephant (13)
- Chicken (14)
- Penguin (15)
- Bear (16)
- Sheep (16)
- Horse (17)
- Duck (19)
- Pig (19)
- Mice (20)
- Cub (20)
- Frog (20)
- Bird (21)
- Rabbit (22)
- Squirrel (22)
- Dog (28)
- Cat (30)
Animal Crossing's Raymond and Bob
In Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Raymond and Bob are both considered dream villagers by some of the community. Dream villagers, or Dreamies, are characters that players especially like and would prefer to have in their town. Oftentimes, people will hunt for Dreamies by spending Nook Miles to travel to mystery islands.
Raymond and Bob are two of 30 cats in the franchise, though they're two of 23 cats in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Since cats are the most dominant breed, players could see a lot of other cats, like Merry or Kitty before ever meeting their dream types. There are ways to trade for specific villagers with other players, but Bob and Raymond typically come at a higher cost than most.
Animal Crossing's Octopus Villagers
Octopi are the rarest villagers in Animal Crossing because there are only five of them in the entire franchise. Animal Crossing: New Horizons originally only had three octopus characters when the game launched in 2020. However, this was altered by the 2.0 Free Update in November 2021 which saw the addition of Cephalobot, a smug type villager with a sleek robotic exterior. Inkwell also falls under this category, but the Splatoon-like jock is only featured in Animal Crossing: New Life as a welcome amiibo.
Since there are only a handful of octopus villagers, hoping for any of them specifically might be a little difficult. However, if a player is fine with Marina, Octavian, Zucker, Cephalobot, or Inkwell, the odds are good that one of the species will come across their town at some point. Categorically, however, trying to aim for any one specific Octopus villager is going to be much harder.
RELATED: The Next Animal Crossing Should Make a Few Changes to One of Its Most Important Features
Animal Crossing's Goldie and Cookie
There are many adorable dog villagers in Animal Crossing, which is one of the reasons that canines like Goldie and Cookie are so rare to find. Goldie is a normal type of villager while Cookie embraces her peppy personality. Despite their differences, both are a part of the second most-cluttered category of villagers. Both of them are considered to be quite cute by the player base, so it's no surprise that many people would want them. Sadly, with 28 dogs in the franchise, the chances of obtaining either of these two aren't the best.
Animal Crossing's Marshal
Marshal is portrayed as a smug villager like Raymond in Animal Crossing. Though he first debuted in Animal Crossing: New Leaf, he was also incredibly popular in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. The little white squirrel is often seen frowning, though this doesn't typically stop people from being drawn to his dapper denim jacket and "sulky" catchphrase. His pristine house is also a solid reason that he's so valued, as it resembles a little coffee shop complete with an espresso machine. Of course, Marshal is only one of the 22 squirrels in the entire series which makes him a bit more rare.
Animal Crossing's Judy
Judy is one of the quirkiest villagers in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. She was first introduced as a snooty bear cub in the 2020 game, though she was later added to Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp as a Treasure Trekker. Judy became one of the most sought-after villagers because she was one of eight new villagers at launch. In addition to this, her ombre-colored fur and sparkly eyes were enticing to many. Judy is one of 20 cubs in Animal Crossing, though because she's also a bear one could argue that she's actually one of 36.
Animal Crossing's Stitches
The rarity of Stitches is fairly self-explanatory, as his teddy bear-like design makes him look extremely cuddly and wholesome. He's a cub like Judy, but he's categorized as being lazy instead of being snooty. Stitches launched as part of Animal Crossing: Wild World in 2005, though he's been in City Folk, New Leaf, and New Horizons since. In the most recent game, he's often seen running about with his arms extended. Players that trade for the aesthetically pleasing bear typically end up losing a large sum of Bells to obtain him.
Though the term "rare villagers" is largely unquantifiable, it's safe to say that the most sought-after characters are those that have high asking prices. Furthermore, Animal Crossing: New Horizons starts players with one jock character and one sister character, which takes two slots, and on top of that is any specific villager that a player may specifically want in any given game. Regardless, it seems that the more popular a character is in Animal Crossing, alongside their species type, the less likely a person is going to be able to acquire them naturally.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons is available now on Switch.
MORE: The Next Animal Crossing Desperately Needs This Quality of Life Feature From Palia
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