He says the money the player owes Tom is "one of the biggest motivations that users have to continue playing Animal Crossing.". It's a good thing you pay off your debts — you probably have nothing to worry about!". Aishwarya Sinha Aishwarya is a freelance writer, tale spinner, and a globetrotter. Though this seems unlikely to ever be canonized, we think everyone can agree: the internet is a weird place. Now that's progress! He asks for 1000 bells per week to pay off your debt, then adds "Otherwise, I'll send the raccoon goons after you!" Regardless of which side of the fence you fall on, you probably want to know more about the well-dressed tanuki. That's right: Tom Nook threatens to send Knuckles and Tiny over to break your kneecaps. Tom Nook employs these little rapscallions, and he views their situation as a mentor-student relationship. Rae Paoletta. Tom even sent her a special pair of scissors on her birthday, despite hardly being able to afford them. Rich Amtower and Reiko Ninomiya, members of Nintendo's Treehouse localization team, described him as "that first boss you ever had", adding that, "despite him being all business and not always having the time for pleasantries, Nook isn't a bad person; because he hired someone new to town. They certainly tried. Redd could be seen as the counterpart of Tom Nook, as both make a living by selling items to the player. By condensing all of the environment's financial transactions into one flow between the player and Tom Nook, the game proceduralizes the redistribution of wealth in a manner even young children can understand. Part of what makes Tom Nook so easy to target is how comparable his tactics are to some real world predatory tactics. Worst of all, he does it through a thin veneer of kindness, like he's doing you a huge favor by swamping you with debt. Dr. Shrunk, the resident emotional expert in the Animal Crossing series, suggests at one point that everyone wears a mask, but he specifically singles out Nook, saying he "wears a raccoon suit, but it serves the same general purpose." There are a few hints, however. IGN listed him as the ninth most-wanted character to appear in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. [11] Junkee also offers a fairly negative assessment of Tom Nook's personality, while also pointing out his transformation over different games in the franchise, and arguing that his personal qualities are not as important as the intrinsically exploitative system he represents and benefits from. It may sound like he's just joking around with you, but that's what mob bosses would do, too. [9] GameSpy listed Tom Nook as one of their favourite bosses; editor Brian Altano specified that he passionately loves to hate Nook, stating that while he provides appreciated services to the small village, he keeps his reality grounded in that he lives in Nook's town, not his own. The iris on his left eye is gray and he has a creepy permanent smile showing his teeth and disturbingly hi… See how they respond to you (please, please don't actually do this). Tom Nook has been called an anarcho-capitalist, a fascist, and downright evil. In an interview with The Verge, New Horizons producer Hisashi Nogima calls Nook "a very caring, really great guy" and says that, without him, there would be no game. The Animal Crossing series rarely delves into deep backgrounds of its characters, but it often provides little hints at where they come from. While the player spends more, Nook makes more. [20] He has also appeared in the web comic PvP, in which Tom and Rowan threaten to destroy the player's home for owing 500,000 bells. tom nook is a robber a bell thief a pro destroyer using like cranes and a crazy lunatic who ends up giving u everything u would need and want he even gives the main villager immortality read up the stuff about banks they were not pro nazi and tom nook was only a japanese tanuki which is entirely innocent and used as a mario suit which was also fully innocent if anything tom … Nintendo can spin Tom Nook however it likes, but the truth is that Tom Nook is a villain. Nintendo has created some of gaming's most iconic villains. Most likely, you see Tom Nook referred to as a raccoon, though he's actually a tanuki (a Japanese raccoon dog) in the Japanese version of Animal Crossing. Read full article. Why Animal Crossing's Tom Nook is an Evil Capitalist Villain. [18] Fellow IGN editor Patrick Kolan described Nook as the Animal Crossing equivalent of Al Swearengen, a pimp from the 1800s, due to his business sense, as well as both the character's position and disposition. He is a raccoon with nothing but pure evil in his heart and gold in his pockets, and his name is Tom Nook. Sure he gives massive debts, but you can pay them off whenever you can. 23. Is Tom Nook a villain? However, there are a few citizens running around the world of Animal Crossing that think there is more to Tom Nook than meets the eye. Each time a mortgage payment is completed, Nook will upgrade or add on to the player's house, each time putting the player into greater debt to Nook, with the last addition being the most costly. Combined with his absolute love of capitalism, you could see why some of the villagers aren't sure he fits in with the carefree nature that so many of them possess. That would even put GameStop to shame! To some, the shopkeeper is the ultimate good guy, providing the player with all sorts of options to … Because the player will only have 1,000 Bells in their pocket in Dōbutsu no Mori and Animal Crossing (and no Bells at all in the rest of the main series), Nook will request that the player work in his shop for a bit to pay off some of the debt. Tom wrote letters to Sable, telling her all about his experience in the city. By using our Services, you agree to our use of cookies. Is He A Good Guy Or A Bad Guy? For people on this forum, it depends who you ask. Ninomiya agreed, and both felt that Nook's perceived greed is diminished by the city's price index compared to that of his shop. Twitter quickly had the Animal Crossing character trending and fans of the Nintendo franchise were very confused. We need to talk about Timmy and Tommy. Where did these two come from? Mr. Nook regularly wins "Best Villain" awards from a variety of outlets; kind of odd, considering his creators view him as misunderstood. Maybe we'll learn more in later games. Aya Kyoguku, the director of New Horizons, said this of Nook: "Even if the player didn't have any money, he would offer you a new home. Here's what seems to be true between these two in the Animal Crossing series. They describe him as devious, diabolical, and sinister, commenting that while he may not be a good fighter due to being from a video game without any fighting, they would enjoy seeing him get beaten up. Does Tom Nook have a wife? One day, Tom left his town to go to the big city, in order to achieve his dream of becoming a businessman. He owns the most profitable business in pretty much ever single town, is never seen at night (Only in rare occasions in Animal forest E+) he is an animal which has been known to attack (except in Japan, since that's the only place where people know he's a Raccoon Dog) has two kids which … December 4, 2017, 12:17 PM. Let's not forget that, at the beginning of New Horizons, Nook sends you to a deserted island, then expects you to improve the island and pay him for the privilege. The big city was harsh. Even the company's less mainstream franchises have well-recognized and beloved villains. Yet harmless, his love for money has certainly failed him… Who would have thought one day that a character from Animal Crossing will be voted “best villain”? Here are some of the best tidbits we've been able to dig up on Tom Nook. [23] 1UP.com editor Jeremy Parish, in his review of Animal Crossing: Wild World, he makes a parody documentary of the in-game world. Tropes referring to specific villagers (such as how Pekoe is an Anime Chinese Girl) should go in the listing for that personality type. Maybe Timmy and Tommy were once residents there? Nook sells a house to the player at the beginning of each title in the series (with Animal Crossing: New Leaf and Animal Crossing: New Horizons being an exception, as Nook sells the player a tent at the start of those games), giving a set mortgage for them to pay and offering to upgrade it after the mortgage is paid off. Nook's role in the series remained virtually unchanged from 2001 until 2012 with the release of Animal Crossing: New Leaf. Tom Nook — The 50 Coolest Video Game Villains of All Time", "Animal Crossing: Let's Go to the City AU Review - Wii Review at IGN", "Videogame Characters Who Would Suck in Real Life", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tom_Nook&oldid=1001061675, Anthropomorphic characters in video games, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles containing Japanese-language text, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 18 January 2021, at 02:09. Tom faced harsh working conditions, low pay, and was swindled several occasions. [14] In 2012, GamesRadar ranked Tom Nook as the 80th best villain in video games in their 2013 "Top 100", saying although raccoons are "stripy, furry and cute", "Tom Nook can go to Hell. Despite not actually being a villain, Tom Nook was nominated as one of the top antagonists in a Nintendo Game in the 2003 Annual Nintendo Power Awards — and this still rings true. Business Insider argued that Nook "puts on this cute animal facade while exploiting your hard work in order to expand his business empire." In New Leaf, Tom Nook has the voice of a lazy villager. [24], Fictional character from the Animal Crossing franchise, Nintendo Entertainment Analysis and Development, "Animal Crossing: City Folk Afterthoughts from 1UP.com", "Full Song List with Secret Songs - Smash Bros. Partner: AmoMama. Contrary to popular belief, they are not related to Tom by blood (he has called them nephews, but more as an endearing term than the actual relation), despite the fact that the three of them are the only tanukis of consequence running around the place. Instead, we'll cover the eight basic villager personality types in their stead. After planting flowers, writing letters, and talking to villagers, the player is sent off to do whatever they want, but have to pay the remaining amount of their mortgage on their own. Why does Tom Nook trust them with so much money? [17], Tom Nook has been satirized in several articles, often compared to a mob boss or kingpin or otherwise a bad person. Jk, Tom's a swell guy. And no one personifies that quite like Tom Nook. Vice ran an article trying to calculate the real world value of bells, the currency used in Animal Crossing. As Polygon writes, several players have taken it upon themselves to create an elaborate backstory where Nook and Redd were an item in the past. He wears an argyle sweater vest and mumbles the end of his phrases sometimes. Animal Crossing doesn't give you any concrete answers, just more questions. “I felt like I had perfect clarity over Tom Nook’s head and face. [5] Tom Nook's shop music also features in Super Smash Bros. Brawl as part of "Town Hall and Tom Nook's Store". On one hand, the outlet found that many things sell well under what you'd expect them to be priced. If you start searching the internet for things about Tom Nook, you're bound to find all sorts of memes and thinkpieces decrying him as a heartless, capitalist crook. Tom grew up in a rural community, where he and Sable were best friends. It can be odd to see a video game character utilizing tactics like high interest debt, scam travel agencies and ridiculous markups for reselling, but that's Tom Nook for you. Tom Nook may be the greatest Nintendo villain ever. He was denied a bank loan, ran into financial trouble (partially due to Redd, it seems) and eventually returned home a changed being. Nintendo's penchant for great villains is so strong that, even when making a game that didn't have a villain, it still succeeded in creating one of the best out there: Tom Nook. In just six days, 15 million people downloaded Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp, the latest addition to Nintendo’s adorable mobile dynasty. And then if you can't pay him back, then he'll wait forever without really bothering you, and he'll never get angry that you've never paid him back, either." For non enthusiasts it's definitely Bowser and Sephiroth. Either a raccoon, or a man in a raccoon suit (which makes this slightly less bestiality-ish), Tom Nook is a capitalist villain who you are forever in debt to. In an interview with CNET, the minds behind Animal Crossing discussed how Nook's role has changed in New Horizons versus previous games. He returned to his hometown completely changed, and it seems Redd may have caused some of his suffering. Shrunk may be saying this figuratively (or making one of his trademark bad jokes) but it certainly adds to the aura of mystery surrounding Tom Nook. And he'd even offer you a loan. However, we don't really know what happens if you never pay that debt back. Tom Nook's early days have actually been spelled out pretty well, and we have a pretty good idea why he became the capitalistic tanuki we know him as. News Xbox One PS4 Switch PC. There are some seriously shady tactics going on here, and it isn't hard to figure out why people have such a low opinion of Nook. I was around six or seven years old and had no clue what I was doing. Keep an eye on Don Tom Nook; you might wake up with a severed fox head in your bed. Cookies help us deliver our Services. (edited by FlabbrGazt) 6. The two would climb on top of the observatory and gaze at the stars together. Animal Crossing Animal Crossing: New Horizons memes Tom Nook. The best … Tom was best friends with Sable growing up, and Sable tells the player in Animal Crossing: Wild World that they spent a lot of time together as children. To others, he is one of the worst villains Nintendo has ever created, manipulating the economy of Animal Crossing through shrewd business decisions and dangerous, loan shark-esque tactics. Tom Nook first appears in the Nintendo 64 title Dōbutsu no Mori (ported to the Nintendo GameCube as Animal Crossing in non-Japanese regions) as the town's main shop owner and continues his job in the next two installments. We'll get deeper into some of these in other places here, but we do know that Tom Nook donates most of his money to a nearby orphanage. The bad blood between them, according to this fan fiction, stems from a failed relationship. [6] Tom Nook has also been featured in several promotional items, including plush toys. Nook's store also goes through four upgrades and changes throughout the game. "Boy, it sure would be terrible if something happened to your business, wouldn't it? Tom Nook is a villain we may not like but can still depend on. Kyoguku also notes that Nook actually asks you in New Horizons if you want your house upgraded, instead of just doing it and then charging you. We don't know why, exactly, Sable and Tom's relationship didn't pick back up when he returned from the city. The chores Nook assigns the player to do are meant to help them get used to the controls of the game. 1 sub = 1 bell in your future http://bit.ly/NintendoFanA new Animal Crossing is here! Awesamdude fans flooded social media to laugh about his Tom Nook soundboard. Some see him as a kindly boss, whereas others see him as a ruthless mercenary. You could argue that the game forces you to go into debt to Tom, so that's hardly a strong claim. This means that theoretically, no two days will ever have the exact combination of items for sale. Due to that involving risk, it shows generosity". The brother she never had ’ game forces you to go into deep backgrounds of characters... 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