5. ‘Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp’

“Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp” deserves a spot on the list because of its convenience, as well as its mobility factors. As the only mobile game in the franchise, “Pocket Camp” does well at sprinkling in a few of Animal Crossing’s traditional features, like interacting with others and trading. Unfortunately, as a lot of mobile games are, it is a bit lackluster and has little depth to it as far as a storyline. There is something to be desired from the game, but it is still one of the best ways to kill time on your phone.

4. ‘Animal Crossing: Population Growing!’

The first installment of the series is a lot to unpack. With witty dialogue from villagers and a wild 2 a.m. theme, there is definitelya reason Nintendo received so much support from fans. Although the technicalities of the game as far as how to move from acre to acre are awkward to maneuver through, there are a lot of other pros that bring “Population Growing!” up in the rankings, specifically with the special events like the Sports Fair, or the miniature island to explore when connecting your Game Boy Advance to the GameCube.

3. ‘Animal Crossing: Wild World’

The first Animal Crossing game I ever played was “Wild World.” Beloved by many, Nintendo offered the second major addition to the series in a handheld version, the Nintendo DS. With better connectivity online, more bugs, more fish and more fossils to collect, this version is definitely in a higher class than its predecessor. It added many new features and kept most of the old, making the player’s experience more in-depth and fresh. The soundtrack in this game is timeless, and future games released have had themes hinting at this soundtrack in the background to evoke players’ nostalgia.

2. ‘Animal Crossing: New Horizons’

The most popular and newest addition to the series is beloved by many. Fans waited anxiously for eight years for the next mainstream game in the series. Withthe addition of more internet connectivity than ever before, “New Horizons” allows up to eight players on an island at once. Witha new concept being centered on an abandoned island rather than a city or town, “New Horizons” focused on building a getaway adventure, which was on theme at the time of its release at the beginning of the pandemic. The addition of updated character designs and terraforming garners this installment high praise.

1. ‘Animal Crossing: New Leaf’

The absolute best game in the series is “Animal Crossing: New Leaf.” By giving the players the role of town mayor, it opens up a ton of freedoms for characters to explore, like making town ordinances to make your town more welcoming. Players had the addition of QR codes, swimming, new characters like Isabelle and Leif and it even looped in some of the same aspects from “Animal Crossing: City Folk,” including shops. “New Leaf” shines in its multiplayer functionality, minigames and overall soundtrack. I have spent hundreds of hours on this game between multiple 3DS consoles.