Tips To Avoid Getting The "Popular" Villagers Just Because of Their Popularity

[Bk1234]

I mentioned my issue in another thread, and I thought it would be good enough for it's own thread. I don't want my island become "popularville" with villagers I only like because of their popularity. How can you tell which villagers you ACTUALLY like from villagers you like because of their popularity?

My villagers for reference:

Post automatically merged: Jun 16, 2020

Also, here is the thread where I originally mentioned by idea.

Post automatically merged: Jun 16, 2020

Additionally, @Unhappyhome and @ohare01 just reset. There is a donation thread if you are interested in helping!

 

[Ananas Dragon]

Additionally, @Unhappyhome and @ohare01 just reset. There is a donation thread if you are interested in helping!

already gave you some advice but seriously I appreciate the people wanting to help

@Milky star created the thread I JUST MENTIONED YOU YEP THANK YOU FOR THE THREAAAAD
I think I'm gonna thank everyone offering to help

 

[Cnydaquil]

thank you for the advice! i did donate some tbt!

 

[Romaki]

I think the question is more why do you prefer popular villagers. Is it because you rarely know any villagers to begin with, or because you can't pick your favorite style and such?

Either way I'd suggest going through all villagers personality by personality and maybe just accepting villagers who look okay to you. Sometimes the personality makes the design better, and they have to grow on you.

 

[Sheep Villager]

If a villager makes you happy then keep them.

I think it's a good idea to remember that you're playing for your own sake, not others. If you like all the popular villagers then so what? It's not a contest about who has the most unique set of villagers, nor is it one about who has the most popular ones.​

 

[Morningowl]

This might say cheesy but ask yourself why do you like this villager?
Don't ever take a villager because you feel guilty to pass them up because they are popular.
On the same note you do not need to keep villager because they are popular.
Build your island upon villagers that make you happy, it shouldn't matter what others think. If you enjoy villagers who happen to be more popular so what, its your island you play and live with them. This can go the other way too you don't need to play with villager because they popular within the community.

 

[xSuperMario64x]

Personally I didn't choose any of my villagers based on their popularity. If the villagers I chose are popular it's purely coincidence (such is the case with, for instance, Chief). If you like a villager and want them in your town it shouldn't depend on how popular they are in the community.
For example, I really like Audie. Not because she's popular but because her design is absolutely adorable! If I had room in my town I would definitely have her.

The villagers I do have resonate with me either in terms of aesthetic (I really like Pietro's rainbow wool), nostalgia (Sydney was one of my original villagers in AC:GCN and I haven't had her for a really long time), or maybe both (I chose Chief to be my last villager because his orange color fit in well with my "villager rainbow" and he was also one of my original wolf villagers along with Fang). None are chosen based on popularity. If you happen to like a bunch of popular villagers based on their design, aesthetic, personality, or whatever then that's just fine! But imo choosing a villager just because they're "popular" is kinda silly.

 

[dahlialia]

I think almost any villager can be likeable if given a chance.

If you happen to be giving popular villagers a chance, then you will likely end up liking them!

I think it's obvious if you don't. I have played AC for so long, I really wanted to try the new villagers. I worked to get the ones I thought I'd maybe like the most (Audie, Raymond, Reneigh, Judy) fully assuming I would pass some along. Audie I liked immediately, also Judy (who was the least likely candidate). Raymond I was about to rehome then I noticed his tiny little fangs when he spoke and gave him a vampire costume, and now he is absolutely staying! And then I made him a yard where he can eat, sleep, and hang, because I felt bad about his office house. Reneigh I'm still not sure but I am giving her some time. Mostly because I want to make sure I won't regret it, she would be a pain to have to re-get.

 

[marshallows]

i can promise you the game will be more fun and relaxing if you play for your own sake + your own happiness :') i completely ignore what the public's standards/opinions about who is/isn't popular in this game series. it can get overwhelming if you care too much about it. if a villager vibes with you and you like having them around, shouldn't that already be enough for you to keep them around?

 

[KayDee]

I think you just need to ask yourself this question about each villager, do they make you feel happy talking to them and seeing them walk around your island? If you don’t feel like that about one, then it’s time to let them go.

 

[mayortiffany]

Does the villager make you happy? Is there something about them that makes you smile? Would you be upset if they decided to move away from your island tomorrow?

For example, I like Raymond because he's got such a unique design as a working cat - on a deserted island, at that! I like to imagine that he's a busy business cat who decided to move to my island to get away from the stresses of life, and honestly, I can relate with that! I also like having a new villager on my island.

 

[Deliquate]

I realized a few weeks ago that every time I saw a picture of someone's villagers, I'd have at least 2 or 3 of them in my own village. I'd fallen into the trap. Most of my villagers were the ones you see everywhere.

It wasn't because I'd gone 'popular villager hunting' or anything like that. Most of the villagers I'd found naturally, with the campsite or NMTs. But I'd bought a few amiibo and I'd definitely prioritized the villagers I thought would be too expensive to trade for. Moving them in was GREAT but also really skewed my population toward the generic.

I asked myself, "Ok, what do I want my island to feel like?" -- and I looked through my ACNH app, which lets me scroll through villagers by species or personality type, trying to see each animal fresh. And, at the same time, I started thinking about who I'd cut.

I found Diana and Merengue almost back to back on mystery islands, really early on. At the time, I had no idea who Diana was but I'd seen fanart of Merengue so I did recognize her & I think her design is awesome. But now when I look at my island, I know that Diana is the PERFECT snooty but Merengue is a little too sweet for me. So I'll let her go because even though she's wonderful, she makes my island feel more generic.

 

[Uffe]

You can tell who you actually like based on your preferences. I like wolves, my favorite colors are blue, green, and purple. But it doesn't really stop there. I like villagers for certain things. Frita, Pietro, Hopkins, Merengue, etc., all have something unique about their appearances. But that doesn't mean they're going to suddenly be popular. If you look at Bob, he wasn't all that popular, but he ended up somehow being popular, or at least good enough for people wanting him. I couldn't care less about who is popular or not. If I saw Audie in my campsite one day, you bet I'd have her move in. Not because she's popular, but because like I said before I like wolves and she's a wolf.

 

[applesauc3]

I think I’m starting to realize I’m not the most fond of Judy and that Stitches doesn’t really suit my island. The thing is, I can’t picture who I’d replace them with (especially Stitches). I want to look for some new, more underrated villagers. Can anybody recommend my villagers like Gonzo (I love him and I want to see if there are any characters like him)

 

[Porxelain]

I have a few popular villagers and it’s more so because I really like them! My favorite is Ankha. I have Tia but I’m thinking of letting her go, I don’t bond with her very well probably because I’ve had her before and she was a starter for my current island. I really want Olivia from my GameCube days and I will always have a soft spot for Savannah. My underrated villager I have right now is Ozzie he is absolutely adorable + Walt & Blaire have grown on me!

All in all the best thing to do is choose the villagers that make you want to go talk to them everyday and make you happy to see them! It doesn’t matter if they’re popular or not, the ones who make you ‘Aweh’ over them singing alone, running, etc. are worth keeping for yourself!

 

[Etown20]

I think the popularity thing can work two ways. I agree it’s important to pick things because you like them and not because they are popular.

At the same time, there’s nothing wrong with liking a villager that does happen to be popular, and I try not to let it deter me for or against.

 

[Deliquate]

Hmm. Gonzo is a cranky koala whose coloring suggests gray hair and maybe gray stubble. Maybe... a goat? Billy might be a good jock for you, Kidd a good smug, Velma a good Snooty. Maybe one of the lions? Elvis or Leopold? I have Boris on my island now and I LOVE him, he's cranky and very fun. Cool house, too.

 

[Bk1234]

• Thank you guys so much for all the tips! I am going to try listing things I like about the villagers I plan on keeping.

Raymond:

• I love his little pointy teeth.
• I love his businessman aesthetic.
• His glasses add so much to his personality.

Audie:

• I love the wolves!
• I think her tropical/vacationer design fits with the theme of ACNH perfectly.
• I love that her name is based off of "Mayor Audie."

Sherb:

• I love his shade of blue.
• His eyes are so cute!

Post automatically merged: Jun 16, 2020

For my Normal villager, I'll probably go for Caroline. I don't think she's too popular, but she is so cute, and gives me that "book nerd" vibe that I love.

 

[Shellzilla_515]

To me, why should you worry about what others think? It seems like you're building up unnecessary pressure that will impact your personal enjoyment of the game. If you want to keep them because you genuinely like them, let them stay. I have Raymond in my town and he's very popular, but I disregard his popularity status and I like him for what he is. Just my two cents.

 

[Deliquate]

I don't think anyone here is saying that popular villagers are bad--just that there's a kind of gravity around them and it can be hard to resist.

It's one thing to think, "Yes, I love this, it's great!" and another to feel sort of like you've been hijacked. You thought you were making your own choices but actually you were just caught in that gravitational force & don't quite know how it happened.

I do think one thing that makes popular villagers hard to resist is, quite simply, recognition. You immediately know what you're getting, you can probably imagine their house, a whole community has filled the empty spot in your imagination with really cool images and ideas. It seems like a richer picture because it's already so complete whereas the unpopular villagers are blank slates.