Due to a combination of excellent timing and a unique global pandemic, there is no doubt that the most popular video game of 2020 was Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Even people who had never played an Animal Crossing before found themselves buying them, often purchasing their first Nintendo Switch along with it. Because so many countries experienced lockdowns for fear of spreading Covid-19, Animal Crossing: New Horizon’s online gameplay allowed people to first and interacted with their friends, even if only remotely. All of this exposure to the game has made many of its characters instantly recognizable, which gives companies incentives to produce collectibles. The latest company to jump on the Animal Crossing train is Build-A-Bear, who just announced a line of plush dolls based on the video game.
A tweet on the official Build-A-Bear Twitter account trumpeted the news with an image of the Animal Crossing logo on an idyllic island background along with the words “Coming Soon.” The tweet also included two links, one to the US version of Build-A-Bear’s website, the other leading to the UK version of the site. The only thing on the sites, however, are fields to enter an email address to be alerted when the line goes live, so as of yet, it is unknown which characters will be included. If I had to bet, though, I’d wager that Tom Nook and Isabelle are easy bells… I mean, money.
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US: https://t.co/g37GrjpCWc
UK: https://t.co/D6Wesqr0Cc pic.twitter.com/ZJ0UwlAJx7— buildabear (@buildabear) March 10, 2021
For those who are unaware of Build-A-Bear, it’s a create-your-own stuffed animal store. Upon first entering the store, the customer is met with what can only be described as pelts of the animal they want to create. Once they pick their animal, they can choose a heart so that the animal is capable of love, and it is hooked up to a gigantic blower machine to be filled with fluff by an employee. There is a selection of outfits to choose from to dress up the animal (all at additional cost) and the animal can be named and given a birth certificate. The interactivity of the store makes it popular for children’s birthday parties, which in turn makes the stores loud and hard to shop in. But some of the animals they offer are quite endearing.
And Build-A-Bear isn’t just generic bears and animals, either. Quite recently, they’ve offered a number of popular licenses, like Marvel Universe, Frozen, and My Little Pony. Last year even saw the release of a Baby Yoda from The Mandalorian. In fact, this isn’t Build-A-Bear’s first collaboration with Nintendo. Back in 2015, B-A-B first kicked off a Pokémon line with a Pikachu plush, which was followed closely by Charmander and Eevee the following year. Since then, they’ve continued to release Pokémon plush dolls periodically. Some of them were rather obvious inclusions in the line, such as Squirtle and Jigglypuff, while others seemed to come out of left field, like Vulpix and Snubbull.
As a longtime fan of the Animal Crossing games, I never would have imagined that I’d see so much AC merch in my lifetime. From collectible cards to figurines, it seems like every day brings a new announcement for more merch. And with the quality that Build-A-Bear puts into their stuffed animals, there’s no doubt that the Animal Crossing line is going to be amazing. I’m eagerly anticipating the announcement of which animals make the cut.
