Animal Crossing Characters Who SHOULDN'T Be Build-A-Bears
The Animal Crossing and Build-A-Bear Workshop collaboration is nearly here. The exclusive Animal Crossing collection go live on April 6, with a digital waiting room opening up for access before it officially releases. For many fans, the Build-A-Bear partnership is a match made in heaven, as the AC series' cast of adorable, fuzzy villagers lends itself perfectly to the plush treatment. That said, there are some Animal Crossing: New Horizons villagers more suited to stuffed stardom than others.
It's easy to pick out Animal Crossing characters perfect for Build-A-Bear adaptions, and it's equally simple to find a few names on the other end of the spectrum - characters that should never be made into Build-A-Bear plushies. This list is for those unfortunate creatures.
The Animal Crossing fanbase is larger than ever, so it's possible a name on this list may be somebody's favorite AC character, however unlikely. The villagers below either lack the mainstream appeal necessary to be a Build-A-Bear or are too visually unappealing or unsettling to have a chance at being a child's (or adult's) favorite stuffed animal.
The argument could be made that every Animal Crossing villager is cute in their own way, but Truffles the pig certainly makes that a tough sell. Truffles' reasons for being excluded from the Build-A-Bear collection are mostly surface-level, but the poor pig just has too many factors working against her to ever be made into a high-quality plushie.
For starters, she's a pig, which is often one of the less desired species among potential island residents. Beyond that, her appearance is just unappealing, mostly due to her angry-looking eyebrows and questionable haircut. Truffles' looks are the primary reason she would make for a bad stuffed animal, but her personality probably hasn't endeared her to too many Animal Crossing players, either. She has a peppy villager personality type, which can often be grating. Add to that her odd catchphrase, "snoutie," and Truffles is a lackluster character all around. She's often listed as one of the least popular villagers in all of Animal Crossing, and it's hard to imagine a stuffed iteration of her would fare any better.
Coco is actually a popular New Horizons villager choice, but that doesn't mean she would be a good Build-A-Bear. The most popular theory on Coco's striking appearance is that she is modeled after Animal Crossing's statue-like gyroids, a staple of the series since the beginning. It's also possible she's meant to look like a chocolate rabbit, which would explain her name. No matter her origins, there's no denying her expressionless face can be a bit unsettling; Coco is the only villager in the game whose face never changes or shows emotion. She definitely gets points for being unique, but it's hard to imagine those large, unblinking eyes would make for a comforting plush toy. As great as Coco is, she's best left in the virtual confines of Animal Crossing: New Horizons.
Lyle the otter is an insurance salesman, which may dock him points in likeability for some players. He almost perfectly embodies the middle-aged insurance salesman persona, too - just in otter form. While there's nothing necessarily wrong with that, it probably wouldn't make for the best stuffed animal, as he lacks the cuteness and charm many of his AC peers possess. It doesn't help his case that Lyle is one of the more annoying NPCs in Animal Crossing, as he often badgers and even scams the player mercilessly. In other words, fans probably don't have the fondest memories of him.
As of now, Lyle is still missing from New Horizons, which shows Nintendo might not have any plans for him, going forward. Lyle is a unique character in the Animal Crossing universe, and he fills his role well, but he would be an odd addition to a Build-A-Bear collection.
A character most Animal Crossing fans are familiar with for all the wrong reasons, Rodney should never come anywhere near the shelves of a Build-A-Bear Workshop. The hamster is a consistent name on many Animal Crossing most hated villager lists. He is not only one of more visually bland villagers in New Horizons, but he also has a smug personality type, which makes him a constantly unlikeable presence. As unappealing as someone like Truffles is, at least she isn't also rude and arrogant, like Rodney. If the internet is any indication, Rodney is one of the least popular characters in Animal Crossing history, which means he would be one of the worst choices for the Build-A-Bear treatment.
Zipper T. Bunny is the face of Animal Crossing: New Horizons' most hated holiday and would probably be just as unpopular in a Build-A-Bear collection. As the Animal Crossing version of the Easter Bunny, Zipper isn't entirely without charm, but the bad outweighs the good. For one, he tends to be a little on the extreme side, as his constant babbling about eggs and excessively happy face are more weird and creepy than charming. Most of all, though, Bunny Day was so massively unpopular in New Horizons that it likely destroyed any potential this character had to be a hit with the fanbase. Sorry Zipper, but Bunny Day isn't as great a holiday as you think it is.
A stuffed adaption of Zipper would also bring with it a number of technical issues. The visor he constantly wears would be tough to translate to plushie form, and the zipper found on his back could create similar problems. That's not even addressing the fan theory that Zipper T. Bunny is just a costume being worn by another AC character. If true, this would create a slew of other logistical issues and also make for an extremely unsettling stuffed animal. Maybe Zipper can redeem himself one day, but for now, it's probably best that he - like everyone else on this list - be excluded from the Animal Crossing Build-A-Bear collection.