Building experience:

It has easy-to-follow instructions, not much repetition, and can be finished in 1.5 hours. It was a fun experience.

Parts:

The minifigs are really similar to the characters in the game, they are designed well in Lego form. You get new prints like the KK Slider poster, the fossil, the bell, and a hole in the ground.

There are 3 flowers surrounding the house, but you get an extra from the small pieces, so you can create another flower if you wish, and getting an extra bell and fossil is also nice. And there are no stickers in the set; everything is printed.

Playability:

Furnishing the house is a lot of fun. Despite having a small space inside the house, you can fit all the furniture in 3 official configurations. (In the end, I created another configuration where the bed faces the door, the table is in the middle, and you can access the stove more easily. I put the clock and the sink next to the door, and I removed a leaf from the plant, so I was able to put it inside the windowsill. It was fun to find a configuration I was satisfied with.)

The characters have bendable legs, so you can make them sit next to the table.

There is a balloon with a gift, you can pretend you shot it down with the slingshot, and you can open it to find a gift inside just in the game.

The tree has a compartment where you can hide the bells that come with the set. Maybe it is not accurate to the game that the tree has both fruits and bells inside, but if it bothers you, you can remove the apples and make the tree face the other side, or if you have similar coloured bricks, you can swap them out for normal bricks without holes.

You can rearrange the configuration of the garden surrounding the house, which is also nice and resembles the game well.

The switching out of the windows is the least interesting play feature, and it bothers me that the door is red but the replacement windows are blue. I would prefer they match.

Everything has a place, but the book was just placed on the bed. It was a little bit bothersome to me that there was nowhere else to put it, just on the bed or on the chair.

There is even more playability, but as an adult, I am not into pretending to dig out a fossil with a shovel, chop down trees, or check the phone for updates like you would in the game. The net is missing from the workbench.

Value for money:

You get 2 new minifigs with large, dual-molded heads. I think, compared to the other Animal Crossing sets, this provides the most play value if you like doll-house-type sets, and IMHO, Isabelle is the cutest character; she is worth every penny.

Overall rating

I am not a hardcore Animal Crossing fan or gamer, but I really like this cosy little house with these adorable characters.

I think it is very customisable beyond the suggested ideas, like using items from your own collection to put other small items into the gift box, putting other types of fruits on the tree, or creating other furniture and switching out the existing ones.

It is called Isabelle's House Visit, not Fauna's House, so even in that aspect, you can decide what you want to do with the house.

If you like furnishing a small house in general or are a fan of the game, you would enjoy this set.

To Nintendo fans, Animal crossing will need no introduction, but for LEGO fans who don’t generally follow Nintendo games, Animal Crossing is a series of cosy life simulation games in which the player is a human living amongst anthropomorphic animal characters. So far five main series games have been released since the series began in 2001 on the Nintendo 64. My personal journey with the Animal Crossing games started in 2005 with the release of the second game (Animal Crossing Wild World on the Nintendo DS) and has continued with every subsequent main game and a few of the spin off games. The most recent Animal Crossing game (New Horizons) gained huge popularity, in part due to it’s initial release happening around the time most countries around the world were introducing lockdown regulations to try to curb the Covid-19 pandemic, grossing an estimated two billion dollars in it’s first year of release.
The series has developed over time to include a large amount of customisation and building mechanics, as such a LEGO tie in makes a lot of sense, this is reflected in the sets, but more on that later. Personally I was very excited at the announcement of this theme as it’s been on my wishlist for themes for a long time, and the success of the initial Super Mario themes has had me hoping for more Nintendo themes.
My first entry into the Animal Crossing theme is with 77049: Isabelle's House Visit, the second largest set in the first wave of sets.

Minifigures

This set comes with two minifigures, Isabelle and Fauna. Both characters feature new molds for their heads, which are excellent matches to their in game appearances. Interestingly the instructions suggest adding a flower to Isabelle’s ear, which is not standard for her but she does frequently wear hats to match seasonal events in game so makes a little sense at least. Fauna is given a party hat, which villagers do wear during in-game events like birthday parties or celebrations. Fauna also has spots printed to the rear of her head, which is a nice detail which could easily be missed and is wearing a hooded, fur lined coat (called Shearling coat in the games) which matches her original appearance in Animal Crossing New Leaf (for the Nintendo 3DS) rather than her most recent appearance in Animal Crossing New Horizons.

Isabelle similarly is depicted in her “classic” outfit (a checked green vest jacket and a blue skirt) as opposed to her most recent Nook Inc outfit (pink leaf print shirt and beige skirt) which is likely to make her appear more in line with her general appearances across all Nintendo media, she also appears wearing her classic outfit in Mario Kart 8 and Super Smash Bros Ultimate for example. Given how frequently Isabelle appears in games I wouldn’t be at all surprised if some of her other outfits (like the Nook Inc outfit or her Yellow Winter Sweater outfit from Animal Crossing Amiibo Festival) are likely to appear in other sets.

Modules

The set is divided into three basic module sections, the main house build, a tree and a vegetable patch/garden. These modules can easily be rearranged as they are built on the same rounded base panels that were used in the Super Mario theme. While I saw quite a lot of negativity towards this style when the sets were first announced I personally think it’s a very appropriate style to allow for easy customisation, particularly when multiple sets are combined and ties very nicely to the play style of the games.

The house is the largest module and interestingly does not particularly match the style of Fauna’s house in the game. This could be because the house styles and interiors do vary between games, so might have been a deliberate choice to be more generic and avoid representing an outdated version of Fauna’s house. It may also be possible that the design is based more on the playable character’s house, I have seen it suggested that the lack of a playable character minifigure in this first wave could be because the playable character is highly customisable to create an avatar of the player controlling them, in the case of the LEGO sets the person playing with the set is then representing themself anyway. I think this is possible, but I personally suspect it’s more to do with the level of customisation available making a single playable character figure a little difficult, I’m hoping that they might be holding back on playable character minifigures to be included in sets representing the Able Sister’s clothes shop and possibly Shampoodle barber shop - both of which would make sense to have multiple character figure options as these are places the player goes in game to customise their character. The house features easy to change window pieces, which is a nice nod to the game’s customisation options, and several pieces of furniture that the instructions encourage the builder to position as they like. I went with the first suggestion in the instructions as it does seem the most sensible configuration for the space. The furniture is fairly generic but does look fairly similar to some of the in game furniture - I really hope we might at some point see a LEGO version of the froggy chair!

The next biggest module, the tree, features a few very nice little nods to the game. Most obvious is the gift floating overhead, these have been a staple of the game as a way to acquire new items, diy instructions, materials and even money - this one appears to feature a painting set, which is the sort of item that could be found in game, but I would have been happier with a bag of bells - the in game currency. Cleverly tough there are some bells hidden in this module - inside the tree. Players of the games will know that sometimes shaking a tree can yield bells. I love this as a nod to the games but think the execution isn’t quite right on two fronts. Firstly a tree with fruit on it (like this apple tree) wouldn’t ever drop any bells, shaking it will instead drop the fruit, Also I think it would have been more fun is there was a shaking play feature to make the bells fall out of the tree - these are minor niggles though, overall the reference is fun enough to stand for itself.

This module also features a crack in the floor - these spots in the game could lead to the player digging up fossils - one of which is also featured in this module. Again a nice detail but would make more sense if the fossil was under the crack somehow.
The last module is a small veg patch/garden. This is actually the first module that you build but is the least impressive. The garden features a pumpkin and a carrot, but neither particularly matches the way they grow (both in game and in real life) so I do wonder just how much value this adds, but it is relevant to the game and could be used as a starting point for other easy additions.

For fans of animal crossing I think it’s really worth highlighting the printed pieces included in this set - these are all printed parts, no stickers. 1x1 round tiles representing bells are easily recognised by their simple star motif and very effectively used - in the most recent game one coin generally equates to 100 bells and a bag equates to 1000 bells. The fossil being represented by a printed 1x1 round tile is an acceptable match to the game, but not entirely accurate - the in game model is generally more angular and should have more depth - however I think the cost of developing a new part or new print method for something like part 65092 (Dots gem piece) isn’t really justified when this is a fairly good match anyway. My favourite of the printed pieces is the 2x2 flat featuring K.K Slider (a character suspiciously absent from this first wave of sets) with two trees in the background. In the game K.K. Slider will give players copies of his songs after he performs them and each has a record/cd cover style artwork - this one appears to be based on the song Forest Life, it isn’t a perfect match but is definitely recognisable enough for the scale of the piece. There is also the round 2x2 tile showing the floor crack discussed earlier - I hope this might be used in a later set for a pitfall trap play mechanic. Players will recognise the DIY instruction shown on one of the 1x2 tiles thanks to the recognisable acorn motif - I hope we might get some cooking recipes eventually too and finally a phone complete with the apps used in game during general play.

Overall

This set absolutely lives up to my expectations for the theme and leaves me very excited for what's still to come. There are a few little things that could be improved but those little issues are all so minor compared to the overall joy I felt while building this and enjoying all the little references to the games. The price point feels pretty in line with other themes and this is a very good middle of the road price and size set. I think this would be an ideal first set for anyone on the fence about the theme, it works as a standalone but would definitely be improved by adding it to the other sets.

Personally, I have been very excited for the new 2024 March Animal Crossing sets. I can now actually see my favorite Animal Crossing characters in Lego form. Now, let’s take a look at this build.

The Build

The house’s exterior itself does not look like Fauna’s house from New Horizons (or any other game) though I think that’s perfectly fine. This is a set to play around with Fauna’s house. I think that’s fine. It’s also pretty cool how the window frame system works. The windows look pretty good and not much is required to switch the different windows out. All you have to do is take the window off and then put a different window on. It is very simple.

The plates that make up the ground are all very simple though I think that makes sense. The outdoor plates make use of the Lego Mario plates. I’m not the biggest fan of those plates though I’m not sure how else Lego could have done this with still making the set look good. The house itself bases itself on a “Juniors” plate which originated from the Lego City road plates system. I have no problem with this as it allows for connection to other pieces. It also makes some of the furniture easier to take off the ground. The plate being two plates thick helps quite a bit with that.

Minifigures

The set includes two Minifigures which are Isabelle and Fauna. Both figures could have benefited from dual-molded feet though I’m not sure if Lego is able to do that. Foot and side foot printing might have worked though it might not have looked the best.

Both figures are based off of their designs from Animal Crossing: New Leaf. I think I’m okay with that. Lego will continue to make more Animal Crossing sets, and we will eventually get the Isabelle that corresponds with the current Tom Nook. Aside from that tiny foot complaint, Fauna looks great.

In pictures, Isabelle just looks weird. She doesn’t look quite like Isabelle from the games. She kind of looks like how I would draw Isabelle which is not that pretty. However, when I had her figure in hand, I think she looked better and actually pretty good. When seeing the figure in hand, I actually felt like it was a good figure. The head printing probably does still need to be a bit smaller though this is good. I also have to say that Isabelle deserved dual molded arms. Isabelle wears short sleeves in the games when she wears this outfit. Tom Nook has them so why doesn’t Isabelle? I maybe could see this lack of arm printing existing due to maybe Isabelle not looking color balanced though she definitely deserved it.

I don’t really like the K.K. Slider minifigure I’m seeing in the K.K. concert set though hopefully that will change when I see that in person just as it did with Isabelle.

Building Experience

The general building experience was smooth and no hiccups along the way. The building experience was not super interesting though I think that’s perfectly fine due to the target audience.

Parts

There are plenty of special Animal Crossing parts in this set. They can be really useful if you want to create your own Animal Crossing MOC that is more sophisticated than this set. Included are two good Animal Crossing figures which you can use to populate your creations. You also get the “hole” print, fossil print, and bell print which are already included in some other sets and help bring to life the Animal Crossing village. We also see a Nookphone which also helps bring stuff from New Horizons into play. We also see a crafting recipe and a copy of “Forest Life”. Again, these are great little things to be able to put into your Animal Crossing village. Hopefully, Lego will release all 98 K.K. Slider album covers somehow. That would be very cool to see.

Playability

This theme of Animal Crossing seems to be really going for customization. I think it’s even more encouraging than Lego Mario. Lego Mario requires those barcodes while Animal Crossing does not. Animal Crossing has a system too made for customization. The set is a generally fun “dollhouse” set where you can play around with figures to enact play scenes. The interior is also very customizable where you can change the arrangement of furniture or make your own furniture. The furniture itself is also very balanced as it has a kitchen, tables, chairs, and a bed which make for a good enough house at this scale.

Value

This set definitely could have been more at $35 for the price. If Lego added another minifigure, I think it could be worth the $40, but I don’t think a third minifigure fits in this set. $37 could also be more fitting. $40 is very close though not quite there yet.

Final Opinion

I honestly did not expect too much, and I was not disappointed nor surprised. The set is basically what you see on the box. You know what you’re getting. I would say the 31139 Cozy House outmatches this set for the price. However, if this set was $35, I would have no reason to compare because both of these sets are totally different and have totally different purposes. In the end, a fine set with good minifigures that is a little too expensive.