Animal Crossing: New Leaf

Prototype Info Prerelease Info Bugs

Unused Areas#

It was possible to go out of bounds in various areas using one of a few glitches in the game before the "Welcome amiibo" update patched a lot of these glitches out. This grants access to an area commonly referred to as "the Abyss". The Abyss is an empty area that connects the top and bottom parts of a level, creating a cylindrical loop. Each of the three Happy Home Academy showcase areas features two small squares of grass in their respective Abyss regions. The image above shows a player standing directly above a square piece of land. These squares are almost a full body's length beneath the player, and they match what the current season is. The two pieces are also horizontally adjacent to each other, suggesting that they may have been used for measurements. As mentioned above, these exploits to get to the Abyss have since been patched out in the "Welcome amiibo" update.

Unused Graphics#

E3 2010 Leftovers#

There are a few leftover graphics from the E3 2010 demo.

The in-game screenshot shows early designs for a house, trees, shrubs, and flowers. Internal names for the four images are as follows: "garden_image400x240_05", "im_Garden_TitleLogo2", "Upper_ThankYou_01", and "Bottom_Thank".

Miscellaneous#

Dummy	Final

This dummy door texture is similar to one of the final designs, but the window in the dummy door is brown as opposed to the final door's blue window.

An early design for the K.K. Swing album cover. This looks similar to the final DJ K.K.(called in Japan as EUROBEAT) cover, based on the e-Card from the first game.

A guideline for designing clothes.

A scrapped interaction icon. This graphic (without the X) is also present in Animal Crossing: City Folk, when choosing a bed to sleep in the attic.

A main dummy texture that can be found in many different archives.

Various dummy textures. The second pair can be found in Gracie-related files. The third pair are labelled as Carpet Dummy and Wall Dummy respectively. The fourth set relates to shoe textures.

Unused	Final

This unused door is a scrapped version of the final Shampoodle door. Both textures share the same internal name, "cmn_dobj_cut_door", and the .bcres files that each texture is contained in have very similar names, both with the _cut postfix that is used for Shampoodle-related files.

The design of each is completely different, making it a very interesting change, and suggests that Shampoodle was originally going to have a less 'modern' design.

Third Remake (Carrot)	Fifth Remake (Unobtainable)

A fifth remake of the pickle jar item is present in the game's files, though only four variants are offered by Cyrus. It looks nearly identical to the item's third remake (carrot). It can only be acquired with hacks using the code: 14002d50.

Unused Models#

Debug#

Inside a directory named "debug", there are four files: debug_sphere, debug_cylinder, debug_cube, and DebugFile.bin. The .bin file contains a bunch of placeholder data, which consists of the letter "a" repeating over and over. The sphere, cylinder, and cube models have no associated textures.

Test#

Inside a directory named "Test", there are two variants of the villager Bob, named animal_model and sample10. The model remains the same on both, but one has a dummied out running animation.

A test version of the villager Cesar named animal_model2.

Simply named gpu_test, this model is a female villager's head. The model is internally named "girl04a", and it contains textures for a variety of expressions. The skin tone and hair color for villagers is specified in-game, and isn't done via textures. This is why the model appears all-black. A mockup with edited textures is presented above to better visualize how the head looks. It's mostly the same as the final version of this female villager head style, except the GPU test model contains 21 more vertices.

Download gpu_test model + textures File: Animal-Crossing-New-Leaf-GPU-Test.7z (30 KB) (info)

This model pack contains two sets of textures: standard textures and [stripped] textures. The [stripped] textures have been modified to remove their alpha channel data.

Frillard and Tom Nook#

Alongside the special NPC models, there are two unused ones named "liz" and "rcn" that are duplicates of Isabelle's default model. These are the internal IDs in past games for Frillard and Tom Nook in his apron outfit, suggesting they may have originally had a role in the game. These were removed in the Welcome amiibo update.

Unused Text#

code.bin#

These strings are located in the game's code.bin executable file.

Starting at 0x7DD430 in the USA v1.5 code.bin:

BankTable::destroy() 忘れ
AcFtrMannequinHeap
Ftr/Common/%s
N_all
mouth
%sVramA
s_carpetB
dummy_carpet
m_carpetB
s_carpet
m_carpet
Mode=Save,Dir={GARDEN_ROOT_WINPATH}\rawdata\Graphics\3D\Light,FileName=%s,Mode=Open,Filter=固定ライトパラメーターファイル(*.bltpa)|*.bltpa,
Mode=Save,Dir={GARDEN_ROOT_WINPATH}\rawdata\Graphics\3D\Light,FileName=%s,Mode=Save,Filter=固定ライトパラメーターファイル(*.bltpf)|*.bltpf,

Japanese text translates to 'forgotten', and 'static light parameter file'.

Starting at 0x80C9A8 in the USA v1.5 code.bin:

PlayerBankTable::destroy() 口アニメバンク使用中 - 破棄を見送ります Frame<%d>
PlayerBankTable::destroy() 目アニメバンク使用中 - 破棄を見送ります Frame<%d>
PlayerBankTable::destroy() 道具バンク使用中 - 破棄を見送ります Frame<%d>
PlayerBankTable::destroy() 帽子バンク使用中 - 破棄を見送ります Frame<%d>
PlayerBankTable::destroy() アクセサリバンク使用中 - 破棄を見送ります Frame<%d>
PlayerBankTable::destroy() 靴バンク使用中 - 破棄を見送ります Frame<%d>
PlayerBankTable::destroy() 脚バンク使用中 - 破棄を見送ります Frame<%d>
PlayerBankTable::destroy() トップスバンク使用中 - 破棄を見送ります Frame<%d>
PlayerBankTable::destroy() ボトムスバンク使用中 - 破棄を見送ります Frame<%d>
PlayerBankTable::destroy() 頭バンク使用中 - 破棄を見送ります Frame<%d>
PlayerBankTable::destroy() 顔バンク使用中 - 破棄を見送ります Frame<%d>
PlayerBankTable::destroy() 体バンク使用中 - 破棄を見送ります Frame<%d>
PlayerBankTable::destroy() MIIバンク使用中 - 破棄を見送ります Frame<%d>

Each line of Japanese text translates to '[name] bank in use - skipping destroy' for banks 'mouth animation', 'eye animation', 'item', 'hat', 'accessory', 'shoe', 'leg', 'tops', 'bottoms', 'head', 'face', 'body', and 'MII'.

\Script\MSGVERSION.TXT#

Unused Portuguese Catalogue Order#

The item parameters folder has a sorting order for items in the catalogue in each language the game was officially released in, plus Brazilian Portuguese (UsPor). It is not referenced internally and is identical to the English sorting order. Whether a Portuguese translation of the game was planned or this was included just in case remains unknown.

"PadReplay" Folder#

There is a directory named "PadReplay" which contains four .bin files, two of which were intended for E3: GardenReplayBeachForE3.bin, and GardenReplayFlatForE3.bin.
Garden is the internal name used for Animal Crossing: New Leaf. These files currently can't be viewed.

Miscellaneous Oddities#

Public Works Project on the Beach#

To do: Better video capture, or replace with screenshot(s). Explain how to perform the glitch and put text dumps and IDs here (in both English and Japanese).

Watch on YouTube

Normally, it's impossible to take Isabelle to the beach when building a new Public Works Project. When approaching the slope, she'll say that you can't build on sand and you won't be able to go further. If you do manage to glitch her into being on the beach with you, and you try to build something there, she'll say that the Public Works Project is too "close to the ocean" to build there. This could indicate that building on the beach was once planned and later scrapped.

Unseen Tortimer Texture#

The mayor's office in New Leaf has a fixed perspective, meaning rotating the camera manually isn't possible. Viewing the office in a model viewer reveals that the computer monitor on the desk actually displays Tortimer on the screen! This texture is exactly the same as the Tortimer portrait on the wall behind the desk, which can be normally seen in-game. It is stretched to fit the monitor, and horizontally flipped.

Hidden Totaka's Song#

"Totaka's Song", a short melody composed by Kazumi Totaka, is hidden in nearly every game he has worked as composer for. Usually, the song is literally hidden, with the player having to do something unusual to hear it. Animal Crossing makes it available as one of the K.K. Slider songs under the name "K.K. Song"; New Leaf is no exception. However, another version of Totaka's Song is also present, and this one is hidden in traditional Totaka's Song fashion. To hear this hidden variation of the song in-game, a player needs to remain on the Club Tortimer online loading screen roughly 2 minutes and 30 seconds. This is only possible if the player has a horrendously awful Internet connection.

Welcome amiibo Unused Content#

Bash Stackdump#

Exception: STATUS_ACCESS_VIOLATION at eip=610202F7
eax=00DEFE60 ebx=612257EC ecx=77411ABE edx=003441B8 esi=00000000 edi=0028F9E4
ebp=61020A10 esp=0028C7B4 program=D:\home\Ctr\GardenPlus\Env\cygwin\bin\bash.exe, pid 8948, thread main
cs=0023 ds=002B es=002B fs=0053 gs=002B ss=002B
Stack trace:
Frame     Function  Args
End of stack trace

A stackdump from a Bash crash, located in \Item\Model\bash.stackdump. This file was included in the 1.4 update.

Exception: STATUS_ACCESS_VIOLATION at eip=610202F7
eax=00F100F8 ebx=612255FC ecx=75881ABE edx=003441B8 esi=00000000 edi=0028F9E4
ebp=61020A10 esp=0028C7B4 program=D:\cygwin\bin\bash.exe, pid 8860, thread main
cs=0023 ds=002B es=002B fs=0053 gs=002B ss=002B
Stack trace:
Frame     Function  Args
End of stack trace

Another stackdump from a Bash crash, located in \Scripts\bash.exe.stackdump. This file was also included in the 1.4 update, and later removed in the 1.5 update.

\Script\MSGVERSION.TXT#

Removed Items#

To do: Is there any way to restore those items?

The names of 22 items appear to have been removed late in Welcome amiibo development, but can be partially restored from remnants of data.
Some of these include removed daruma and OK Motors furniture.
Anything with a sell price was likely intended to be possessed by the player. OK Motors appeared only in Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp, but the music by K.K. Slider would later appear in New Horizons.

OK Motors Camper#

An OK Motors camper appears to have been planned to appear as a random daily camper. It would be inhabited by Giovanni from Pocket Camp, and references to Giovanni's codename 'cwa' can be seen in the game's files and folders relating to the campsite, though all related strings have been removed. A character model of cwa even exists, though it turns out to contain a duplicate Isabelle model. Melodies also seem to have been prepared for Beppe ('cwb') and Carlo ('cwc').
This camper would likely be the source of the OK Motors jacket, cap, garland and sign items.

The camper texture has surfaced in the files of Pocket Camp.

Census Menu#

The Census Menu is a scrapped menu that was introduced in the Welcome amiibo update. The name 'Census' comes from its filename, "m_pcensus.arc". "m_p" is a prefix for the various TPC files, leaving 'census'. The menu lists various (~30) player-specific stats, such as the player's bank amount and money earned, which also further strengthens the name. While the menu displays various values, there is no corresponding text for these, and there is no evidence of them in the game's files. What every value represents is therefore not currently known. A similar feature keeping track of stuff done by the Player would be introduced as Nook Miles in New Horizons.

A video showcasing this menu can be seen here.

Abstracted C code to enable the menu:

#define PLAYER_SIZE 0xA480
#define BASE_OFFSET 0x57CF

int offset = BASE_OFFSET + (playerIndex*PLAYER_SIZE);
savebuffer[offset] |= 0x40; //Enable bit 7

Unused Villager Data#

To do: Actually take in-game images and sort-of expand? on this than just grabbing them from another site.

Holden and Filly were distributed in special Wi-Fi events in Japan where they would appear in the Campground, however they cannot be invited as villagers. If they are hacked to do so, they would have a lot of normally unseen traits.

Both of the villagers would have the same house interior and exterior, which is not used by anyone else.

Holden#

If the player was to somehow obtain Holden's Pic, it would have the image of Hamphrey on it. Holden has an unused head sprite that would be used in the Amiibo Camera if he was present in a player's town.

Filly#

If the player was somehow able to obtain Filly's Pic, it would have the image of Cleo on it. Filly has an unused head sprite that would be used in the Amiibo Camera if she was was present in a player's town.

Inaccessible Content#

Due to the shutdown of Nintendo Network on April 8 2024, there's surprisingly little content that cannot be obtained outside of distributed DLC; the Dreamer badges are no longer obtainable, due to the Dream Suite feature solely requiring Wi-Fi. Though the Host and Traveler Badges can still be obtained by Local Connection.

Thus, the following text strings are no longer used;

Phineas' Dialogue#

Descriptions#

Dreamer
A badge for players who've 
experienced a lot of dreams.

Heavy Sleeper
A badge for players who are
really into dreaming.

Mr. Sandman
A badge for players who've had
500 or more dreams.

Furniture#

Out of all of the Furniture in the game, the only non-DLC furniture that isn't obtainable by the player in some way without external help is the Box of Chocolates item; which was only obtainable by connecting to the online counterpart of Tortimer Island, Club Tortimer. All the rest of the normally Club Tortimer exclusive furniture can be obtained from RVs or bought from the few villagers that have them as their default furniture.

Regional Differences#

To do: There's A LOT more. Different starting character presets. Many more English, Spanish, and French text differences between the North American and European versions.

The banking machine has a different name across the Japanese, European, and North American releases. Bellpoint is a play on cashpoint, commonly used in some English-speaking countries. ABD is short for Automatic Bell Dispenser.

Japan/NA	Europe

As in Animal Crossing: City Folk, SMPTE Color Bars are used in the Japanese and North American version, while the Philips PM5544 test pattern is used in the European version.

Revisional Differences#

To do: More detail.

Ver 1.5#

To do: Removed sound effect in one of the in-game television shows.

Released on November 2, 2016, to coincide with the Welcome amiibo update. The internal code name used for this update is GardenPlus.

• Amiibo support is added, whilst, new items and characters, a campground, the ability to link a save file of Happy Home Designer to New Leaf for extra items, and two minigames obtainable from Wii U and New 3DS fortune cookie items.
• Decorating your house got a bit easier too, with the furniture arrangement functionality from Happy Home Designer being blatantly copied backported into this game.
• Minor gameplay adjustments include rocks and pillows are now finally able to be sat on, as well as
• Cyrus now "thanks" the player when a Furniture refurbishment is completed, using the "Wave" Emotion.
• The area required for projects are now a tad more lenient when near rivers, cliffs, ponds, where they can be placed one square's worth of extra space rather than two prior.
• Dream Addresses have been completely overhauled for the update, now requiring letters to be entered.

Internal Project Name#

The game's internal project name is "Garden", according to multiple strings. This is also reflected in the game's two-letter code "GD".