Animal Crossing: New Leaf Tips

by Seyon, in Games: Animal Crossing: New Leaf, Guides & Tips (No Comments)

Wolf and I have been anxiously waiting for the release of Animal Crossing: New Leaf since the release of the 3DS. It was expected shortly after but ended up taking over two years. Well, the time of not-playing is over because on June 9th the game was released. We have been loving every minute: it includes everything from the previous installments plus a multitude of new features.

After about a week and a half of playing, we have put together some tips that would be good for veteran players of the Animal Crossing series:

1. I missed some good screenshots because I didn’t know how to take them at the beginning. To take a screenshot, hold the left and right shoulder buttons at the same time.
2. A really nice addition to the game is the ability to stack fruit. After picking up fruit, open your inventory and drag-and-drop one over another. Up to nine fruit can be stacked using this trick.
3. Speaking of fruit, every village starts with one perfect fruit on one tree. These shiny golden foods sell for 600 bells in your own town and 3,000 bells in a non-native town, so don’t eat or sell it, but plant it to create a tree that grows all perfect fruit. Occasionally, take one of the fruits it creates and plant a new tree as perfect trees die over time. Also, you can only plant perfect native fruit, so don’t try growing it in a friend’s village.
4. In previous Animal Crossings, it was important to get a piece of furniture that served as a storage device. In New Leaf, from the beginning you have access to a locker in the train station that has the same function.
5. Although you may not be overly concerned with adding items to your catalog at the start, it’s very important to buy up the shop items to unlock future store upgrades. This is especially true for Nookington’s and The Able Sisters.
6. As the mayor, make the commission of new bridges the top priority: each day a villager will move in until you have around nine. If any of these new neighbors’ house is near where you wanted your bridge, you may not be able to build it.
7. Every day, go the Able Sisters and talk to Sable (the quiet one behind the sewing machine). Eventually, a new sewing machine will appear behind her that will allow you to import and export patterns through QR codes for use in the game. There are many great patterns out on the web already.



8. Making bells in New Leaf is much easier than in City Folk, which is a very good thing as there is much more to spend it on. The “secret” to making this money is on the island. You can access the island after you pay back your first full mortgage (down payment plus final payment) for a total of $39,800 bells. The day after you pay it off, you will either be introduced to Tortimer in the loading screen or he will meet you at your house. He will suggest that you meet him at the boat dock and, if you do, from the next day on Kapp’n will be there to ferry you to the island. As it is always summer, all of the fish and insects that sell for tons of bells are available to catch – it’s not hard to make 300,000 in a single haul.
9. I particular enjoy the landscaping aspect of this game, which makes this tip extra special. You can collect unlimited flowers, island tree and palm tree fruit from the island tours. Depending on the tour, different trees and flowers will be scattered throughout the generated world. As long as the fruits or flowers aren’t what you are gathering for the tour, at the end of event you will get to keep them and put them in the items drop-off box for transport back to your village. This also allows you to do some landscaping on the island which is permanent. Of added note, if you are into the new flowers, violets and lilies, the butterfly catching tours seem to have more of them.
10. This one we can’t take credit for, but it’s so great that we just have to pass it on. New Leaf has a Best Buy DLC available through Spot Pass but it can be downloaded through your home network by simply changing your router’s SSID to “Bestbuy” without the quotes. This can even be done while playing; no need to close the game. Afterwards changing the SSID, go to the post office, inquire about a present, and Pelly or Phyllis will give you the DLC. Even using this method, keep in mind that a particular DLC can only be downloaded within its date range.



11. Finally, while I do occasionally enjoy Kapp’n’s singing, sometimes you just want to get to the island. After he starts singing, repeatedly tapping the A button will allow you to skip the song.

Last updated on July 26, 2013.