Tom Nook

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Tom Nook
Dōbutsu no Mori)
In-universe information
SpeciesTanuki (Japan)
Raccoon (International)

Tom Nook, known in Japan as Tanukichi (たぬきち),[1] is a fictional character in the Animal Crossing series who operates the village store (or the Resident Services building in Animal Crossing: New Horizons). He first appeared in the Nintendo 64 game Dōbutsu no Mori, released in Europe and North America on the GameCube as Animal Crossing. 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. He has also made several appearances in the Super Smash Bros. series.

Concept and characteristics

Tom Nook is based on the tanuki, the raccoon dog. 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. Due to that involving risk, it shows generosity". Ninomiya agreed, and both felt that Nook's perceived greed is diminished by the city's price index compared to that of his shop. Amtower jokingly alludes to an "anti-Nook bias" several times throughout an interview with 1UP.com.[2]

Role in the series

Tom Nook first appears in the Nintendo 64 title Dōbutsu no Mori (ported to the GameCube as Animal Crossing in non-Japanese regions) as the town's main shop owner and continues his job in the next two installments. Nook's role in the series remained virtually unchanged from 2001 until 2012 with the release of Animal Crossing: New Leaf. In addition to being the main shop owner, Nook will also sell the player a house at the beginning of the game for around 19,800 Bells (the in-game currency). 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. The chores Nook assigns the player to do are meant to help them get used to the controls of the game. 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. 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.

Nook's store also goes through four upgrades and changes throughout the game. The time of the upgrade depends on how many bells are spent in the store. Eventually his humble "Nook's Cranny" shack-like store with basic tools and very little objects to buy will become "Nookington's Department Store"—a large, three story building with a wide variety of items for purchase. It is in this expansion that the player meets his two apprentices, Tommy and Timmy, who run the second floor of the store. In every game, no matter what upgrade the store is on, the items in the store will be changed every day. This means that theoretically, no two days will ever have the exact combination of items for sale.

  • In Animal Crossing, at the end of the month Nook will host a raffle with rare items to win. This was not continued in any sequel.
  • In Wild World, with the Nookington's expansion the player meets Harriet, a poodle who will do the player's hair for 3,000 Bells.
  • In City Folk, Harriet has moved her shop to the city. With the Nookington's expansion, Nook will randomly ask the player a series of questions. How the player answers could change the store to a former appearance.
  • Nook returns in New Leaf. Instead of being the local shop owner, Nook is now in charge of "Nook's Homes" and instead offers exterior renovations for the player's house. He also will expand the player's house for a price, which increases with each expansion. His apprentices, Timmy and Tommy, now run the town shop by themselves.
  • Nook makes a minor appearance in Pocket Camp with the player being able to purchase him to put in their camp for 250 Leaf Tickets (Only available for purchase 45 days after starting the game). He later appeared as a free log-in gift to promote the release of New Horizons. He also appears on the button to buy leaf tickets.
  • In New Horizons, Nook and his apprentices Timmy and Tommy offer an island getaway package, and help the player to facilitate the setup and progression of the island; eventually, the player helps Timmy and Tommy to establish the town shop which they again run by themselves. Nook offers the player a new program known as the Nook Mileage program as a secondary form of in-game currency. He can again arrange expansions to the player's house, with the loan amount increasing each time.

In other media

Tom Nook has made several minor appearances in the Super Smash Bros. series of video games, appearing as various collectibles in Super Smash Bros. Melee, Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate,[3][4] as well as a background character on the Smashville stage, which is based on the Animal Crossing series.[5] Tom Nook's shop music also features in Super Smash Bros. Brawl as part of "Town Hall and Tom Nook's Store".[6] Tom Nook also appears in the Animal Crossing animated film, and has been featured in several promotional items, including plush toys.[7]

Reception

Tom Nook has received mixed reception since his appearance in

UGO.com ranked him the fifth best Animal Crossing character, stating that while Mr. Resetti was an irritant, Tom Nook was a jerk. They added that they love to hate him, jokingly suggesting that he was a "kingpin".[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.[12]

Tom Nook has received some positive reception as well. In author Katherine Isbister's book, "Better game characters by design: a psychological approach", she cites Tom Nook as an example of a mentor character, one who indirectly helps players.

Complex placed him as the 49th coolest video game villain of all time.[16]

Game-studies scholar Ian Bogost described Nook as central to Animal Crossing's effective depiction of the economics of consumption and debt:

None of the townsfolk ever appear in Tom Nook's shop... In contrast, the player participates in a full consumer regimen; he pays off debt, buys goods, and sells goods. Tom Nook buys goods, which he converts to wealth. ... While the player spends more, Nook makes more. 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. Tom Nook is a kind of condensation of the corporate bourgeoisie.[17]

Parody and analysis

Tom Nook has been satirized in several articles, often compared to a

1UP.com editor Jeremy Parish, in his review of Animal Crossing: Wild World, makes a parody documentary of the in-game world. In it, he suggests that Tom Nook's keen business sense allows him to effectively control the village.[24] In the TV show Robot Chicken, Tom Nook is parodied in the sketch The Racoon of Wall Street, where he is portrayed as a business tycoon who made trillions of bells by using illegal practices.[25]

References

  1. ^ "キャラクターずかん たぬきち" (in Japanese). nintendo.co.jp. Archived from the original on 2020-02-25. Retrieved 2020-02-25.
  2. 1UP.com. Archived
    from the original on 2012-10-13. Retrieved 2010-04-13.
  3. ^ "Trophy List - Smash Bros. DOJO!!". Smash Bros. DOJO!!. Archived from the original on 2013-12-24. Retrieved 2010-04-13.
  4. ^ "Sticker List - Smash Bros. DOJO!!". Smash Bros. DOJO!!. Archived from the original on 2013-12-24. Retrieved 2010-04-13.
  5. ^ "Smash Bros. DOJO!! - Smashville". Smash Bros. DOJO!!. Archived from the original on 2013-12-13. Retrieved 2010-04-13.
  6. ^ "Full Song List with Secret Songs - Smash Bros. DOJO!!". Smash Bros. DOJO!!. Archived from the original on 2013-08-08. Retrieved 2010-04-13.
  7. ^ "A Tom Nook plush toy at a Tom Nook price | Joystiq". Nintendo.joystiq.com. 2007-06-20. Archived from the original on 2009-02-11. Retrieved 2013-08-24.
  8. ^ "Smash Bros. Wish-List: All Nintendo Edition - Stars Features at IGN". IGN. 2008-02-08. Archived from the original on 2009-09-21. Retrieved 2010-04-13.
  9. ^ "Major Minor's Majestic March Review - Wii Review at IGN". IGN. 2009-04-19. Archived from the original on 2009-04-18. Retrieved 2010-04-13.
  10. ^ "GameSpy's Favorite Videogame Bosses". GameSpy. Archived from the original on September 24, 2010.
  11. UGO.com. 2008-12-09. Archived from the original
    on 2011-06-15. Retrieved 2010-04-13.
  12. ^ "The Left Has No Choice But To Disavow Tom Nook From 'Animal Crossing'". Junkee. 2020-03-19. Archived from the original on 2020-04-29. Retrieved 2020-05-18.
  13. ^ Isbister, Katherine (2006). Better game characters by design: a psychological approach (Book). p. 239.
  14. GamesRadar. 29 December 2009. Archived
    from the original on 2011-06-15. Retrieved 2010-04-13.
  15. ^ GamesRadar Staff (May 17, 2013). "100 best villains in video games". GamesRadar. Archived from the original on 2013-06-24. Retrieved June 21, 2013.
  16. Complex. Archived
    from the original on 2013-12-20. Retrieved July 25, 2013.
  17. ISBN 978-0262026147
    .
  18. ^ "Tom Nook is number 72". IGN. Archived from the original on 28 June 2013. Retrieved 24 August 2013.
  19. Pythian Remote DBA. Archived from the original
    on 14 February 2009. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  20. Ramsoomair, Scott (2005). "VG Cats - 174 - Nookie". VG Cats. Archived
    from the original on 10 February 2010. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  21. PvP. Ok Domo. Archived from the original
    on 4 July 2013. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  22. Future US, Inc.
    Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  23. IGN Entertainment, Inc. Archived from the original
    on 21 April 2010. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  24. Ziff Davis Media Inc. Archived from the original
    on 5 October 2006. Retrieved 24 August 2013.
  25. ^ Kaliroff, Marc. "Robot Chicken short combines Animal Crossing: New Horizons and The Wolf of Wall Street". Archived from the original on 24 May 2023. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
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