April 14th, 2001, is when the first entry in the Animal Crossing series released in Japan for the N64. Titled Dōbutsu no Mori, or Animal Forest, it would eventually make its way to the West as Animal Crossing for the GameCube in December 2002. It’s hard to believe a quarter of a century has passed since then, but time makes fools of us all. To commemorate our foolishness, Nintendo has sent a new in-game item to all players of Animal Crossing: New Horizons to celebrate the date.
Boot up New Horizons today, and you’ll find the “Leaf Statue” in your mailbox attached to a note that looks like the stationary from Dōbutsu no Mori. It has the same color scheme, imagery, and an N64 logo to complete the illusion. The statue isn’t massive, but you can place it either in your home or somewhere on your island to show your love for the series.
Along with the in-game item, Nintendo has uploaded the soundtrack from the original Animal Crossing to its Nintendo Music app. 158 tracks are included, totaling nearly five and a half hours of music. Surprisingly, none of KK’s tracks are there, but that’s likely because his tracks have been the same in each game. You can find all 107 of them in the New Horizons soundtrack.
Check out more Animal Crossing content
10 songs from Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ 3.0 update added to Nintendo Music
Takara Tomy launches new Animal Crossing: New Horizons capsule toys in Japan
Guide – How to unlock the Splatoon items in the Animal Crossing: New Horizons Switch 2 Edition
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Written by Peter Glagowski
Peter has been a freelance gaming and film critic for over seven years. His passion for Nintendo is only matched by the size of his collection.
