Villagers are such a central feature of Animal Crossing: New Horizons. The fact that players are spending thousands of Nook Miles to find their favorite villagers on mystery islands or even trading with other players goes to show just how important having the right inhabitants on an island is.
That being said, villagers aren't always super sweet and cute. A lot of them do very strange and random things, and when observed for a long time, it's pretty obvious there's a ton of details in them that makes them pretty inconsistent characters. Here's just a few things that have players scratching their heads.
10 They Run Around Randomly
Famously called the Naruto run, any player must have witnessed this strange ritual among their villagers at least at some point. It usually happens most commonly by the resident services, but villagers can really be running around with their arms extended just about anywhere.
Why do they do this? Are they playing tag? Engaging in a conversation with them while they're doing this doesn't offer any explanations. It's just another mystery that's yet to be solved within the game.
9 They Do Nothing For The Island
An island can have a maximum of ten residents, but anyone must have noticed by now that one resident above everyone else is pretty much doing everything for the rest. Yes, the player is the only character who actually contributes to the betterment of the island.
Think about it: when is the last time a villager terraformed or planted flowers or put down some new decorations? It's pretty unrealistic to assume they have no say at all or any influence on their surroundings. And yet, it's only the player who continues to influence any and everything that happens.
8 They Trust The Player With Everything
Not only does the player have to do all the work on their own, from building bridges to making the island a gorgeous 5-star paradise, everyone magically seems to also be onboard with them being in charge with all this. Really, they have no reason to trust the player at all, especially those who recently moved on the island!
The weirdest part is how residents always agree to have their houses moved. It's like they genuinely don't care what happens to their living space, and for all they know, the player could be putting them into a worse area.
7 They're All DIY Artists
Lucky players might sometimes catch villagers in the middle of completing DIY projects in their houses. This is a prime opportunity for them to potentially get a brand new DIY recipe from them, which makes it a great game mechanic.
However, from a realistic perspective, it seems a bit far-fetched to assume every villager is capable of DIY. Arts and crafts just isn't for everyone, and one would think the cranky and snooty villagers especially would have a special loathing for anything that gets their hands dirty.
6 They Never Sell Or Buy
With all the visits that players do at Nook's Cranny, they must have noticed that while villagers sometimes pop in to look at stuff they actually never seem to buy anything. Otherwise, some of the more expensive items would be sold out at some point, without the players having bought them.
Similarly, villagers are never seen selling anything to Timmy and Tommy. How do they make money? How do they pay off their house loans to Tom Nook? There's a lot of theories to be made, but it's very bizarre indeed.
5 They Sometimes Have Strange Homes
It's definitely cool that every villager has their own unique style and decor, but sometimes players can't help but to wonder why their villagers seem to enjoy living in filth more than living in regular nice houses.
Take Bruce, a cranky deer villager for instance. His house looks perfectly normal from the outside, but on the inside he's literally chosen to live in a dirty back alley, sitting on cardboard boxes. He doesn't seem to even have a bed for himself!
4 They Say Some Strange Things
Villagers are also known for saying a ton of things that show their lack of self-awareness. This is no doubt just a result of Nintendo not being able to create ultra realistic dialogue for each of its 300 and counting villagers. Plus, it makes for some funny memes for the community.
As an example, take Marina's dialogue to the player while visiting the museum. Although she's an octopus, she still claims that only fish know for sure what it's like to live underwater. It's like she doesn't understand what she really is...
3 They Ask For Permission To Leave
When it comes to living and leaving the island, villagers also show a total lack of logical thinking. For one, the player can just bump into any random person on a mystery island and persuade them to move to their island. No regular person would trust a complete stranger's word like that!
For two, villagers wanting to leave the island will always turn to the player to ask what they think of it, as if they have no free will of their own. They spent their own money, time and effort to move over, and yet leave it up to the player whether or not they should stay.
2 They Never Catch Anything
When idle, villagers engage in a ton of leisurely activities, not just running around aimlessly. It's not uncommon to see villagers actually being a bit productive too by watering flowers. Where it gets a bit weird is when they try to catch fish or bugs.
The problem is that they never seem to catch anything. Some villagers can spend over ten minutes sitting by a river without coming across anything, while some chase helplessly after butterflies and other critters. Is the player truly the only productive and talented person on the island?
1 They Send You Mail
Sending and receiving mail in itself isn't a bad feature. In fact, it's very wholesome and cute, and just adds a bit of extra into the game.
But here's the thing: what's the point in sending a letter to someone living on the same island, when they could just walk over to their house? It just seems like a waste of paper, time and money.