It seems the whole world is currently orbiting around Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and no one can really blame us. Nintendo really delivered with their brand new installment of the ever-popular simulation game, which drops the player in the imaginary world of animals and exotic islands.
One of the most important characters in the series has been Tom Nook. Controversial and yet undoubtedly the iconic face of Animal Crossing, this raccoon-like creature has been selling players houses and other upgrades for years now. There are still, however, facts and details about him that are very strange, which many of us tend to ignore.
10 He Has Magical Abilities…Maybe?
Tom has always been the go-to person if the player needs something, whether it’s a loan for a house or some special type of item. Whatever it is, Tom always seems to have one ready for the player, but what’s weird is that many of the items received from him and in the game in general appear in the form of tiny leaves.
While we understand this is simply to make the game easier to play, it really begs the question of whether or not Tom has the ability to somehow turn every object into a leaf for easy transport. That’s a pretty impressive skill right there — one we could definitely all use in real life.
9 He’s Not Really A Raccoon
Those who thought Tom Nook was always just a regular raccoon are not alone. He has all the characteristics of one, certainly, but he’s actually from a separate species called the tanuki, which is a Japanese sub-species of raccoon dogs. They can be surprisingly different from regular raccoons found in other countries.
What’s suspicious about this fact is that the tanuki are known for being tricksters in Japanese folklore. They’ll often make humans feel like fools with their shenanigans, and we can’t help but feel like this stereotype has been somehow taken into account with Tom…
8 He Tricks The Player
Okay, so let’s think about this logically. An innocent person is offered an island getaway package for a pretty affordable price, with the promise of everything provided for them at the beginning (as mentioned by Timmy and Tommy when first starting a game).
However, when the player arrives to the island, nothing is actually there. It’s deserted. There’s no house, no infrastructure, and most of the island can’t even be accessed. The player is forced to make a living by selling weeds and shells, while Tom makes a bank off of selling these getaway packages. This is definitely a scam, and yet we all ignore it.
7 He Trusts The Player With Investments
Even if Tom Nook isn’t an evil person per se, he still does a lot of strange things and makes plenty of questionable decisions that a real businessman probably wouldn’t. For one, he immediately seems to trust the player by giving them a ton of responsibility over the island’s future and infrastructure.
Moreover, he trusts the player so much he’s even willing to give out extremely lenient loans with zero interest or due date. For a businessman, he seems pretty naive and inexperienced, yet somehow he’s making bank.
6 He Supposedly Wears A Raccoon Suit
It’s not just players who find Tom Nook to be a highly suspicious creature with some shady practices; some of the villagers in past games have also made some strange comments about Tom’s real nature, which has everyone scratching their heads.
Dr. Shrunk for instance has been quoted stating that most people wear masks to hide their true emotions, and that Tom Nook wears a raccoon suit to hide his true self. These types of dialogue make this character even stranger.
5 He Is One Of Nintendo’s Top Villains
Although the developers of the game have always disagreed strongly with the anti-Nook sentiment that players have, this trend isn’t likely to die down. In fact, the sentiment is so strong that Tom Nook has actually been awarded position as one of Nintendo’s top villains.
Back in 2003, this award was granted during the Annual Nintendo Power Awards, and was very different in the sense that Animal Crossing doesn’t have any real villains or enemies.
4 He And His Nephews Will Buy Anything
In many games that involve a shop or some sort of bartering mechanic, players won’t always be able to sell everything in their inventory. Trash and other useless items won’t be accepted by sellers, who know better than to spend money on valueless things. Not in Animal Crossing, however.
Tom Nook and his nephews definitely don’t discriminate, and never have. Any and every item can be sold to Tom, even the weeds found everywhere on the island or a seashell from the beach. This doesn’t sound like a safe business practice.
3 He Has Infinite Money
Something that often gets overlooked in the Animal Crossing universe is how Tom Nook seems to have an infinite amount of money. He can loan as much as he wants for any sort of building project, whether it’s a house or a bridge or an incline.
The funny part is, no one actually knows where he gets his money from. Sure, the player has to pay their loans back, but even them Tom Nook seems to have bottomless pits of cash in his pockets. How did he make sure a fortune? And if he has so much money, why didn’t he just sell the player a fully furnished island in the first place?
2 He’s The Leader, Yet Does Nothing
It’s evident particularly in New Horizons that Tom Nook is sort of the leader figure of the island. He decides pretty much everything, from what the island needs next and the kind of projects he’d like to offer for the player.
He delegates everything, but does almost nothing himself. It’s his nephews who end up supporting the island with their economy, and it’s the player who must place down all the new houses and build furniture for them. And yet somehow, everyone accepts him as the leading figure.
1 He Employs His Nephews, Who Are Minors
This might be a controversial statement to some, but minors generally shouldn’t be allowed to work, unless it’s a training or an internship specifically designed for that age group. Animal Crossing, however, doesn’t care about these real-life rules.
Timmy and Tommy are pretty much forced by Tom Nook to start a business and work for him. They keep the store up and running all day long, and while we don’t know how much of the profit goes to Tom Nook, we can imagine him taking more credit than he should for his nephews’ work.
NEXT: Animal Crossing New Horizons: 10 Beginner Tips For Animal Crossing Newcomers
