Animal Crossing Codexery

Mr. Resetti

The mole who will never let you quit without a proper save.

Mr. Resetti, full name Sonny Resetti (also known in Japan as Mr. Reset (リセットさん, Risetto-san)), is a character from the Animal Crossing series of video games by Nintendo. His first appearance was in the Nintendo 64 game Dōbutsu no Mori, released in Europe and North America on the GameCube as Animal Crossing. Mr. Resetti is a mole whose role in the series is to remind players to save before quitting the game, and to give a lecture if they do not. Mr. Resetti has received mixed critical reception, with critics taking note of both the unique creativity and perceived hostility of his role.

Quick Facts

Series
Animal Crossing
First game
Animal Crossing (2001)
Creator
Nintendo EAD
Designer
Noriko Ikegawa; Yoshihisa Morimoto
Voice
Yūichi Kimura (Dōbutsu no Mori)
Species
Mole
Family
Don Resetti (brother)

Lore & Background

During play testing of Animal Crossing, players would reset the game and turn the system time backwards to make the daily stock at Tom Nook's store change. In order to prevent this, the development team implemented Mr. Resetti, in hopes that players who want to cheat would be deterred due to the long speeches. If a player resets the game enough, Mr. Resetti will make the player type out sentences such as 'I am stupid' and 'I stink'. Contrary to popular belief, Mr. Resetti does not delete the player's saved file if the player keeps resetting the game.

Mr. Resetti's English dialogue in the original Animal Crossing was written by the Nintendo Treehouse localization team; claims that a specific writer gave him a deep Bronx accent are not supported by official sources. He is designed to make the player believe he knows them and is yelling directly at them, and the European Let's Go to the City manual warns that young children may find Mr. Resetti's authoritative tone of voice disturbing. Within the series, Mr. Resetti is treated as the mascot of the seasonal holiday Groundhog Day.

In the first game, the player watches for Mr. Resetti's shadow during the Groundhog Day event, but villagers do not gather to watch him; in later entries of the series the player receives a tiny doll version of the character instead.

Reader's Guide

Mr. Resetti acts as the series' moral compass for data management, appearing exclusively when players attempt to quit without saving. His primary skill is an endless supply of patience and rhetorical questions designed to guilt-trip users into hitting 'Save.' While he lacks physical powers within the village simulation, his ability to halt gameplay makes him a formidable force. In the Animal Crossing film, Mr. Resetti appears a number of times as a handyman and reminds characters about following the rules of the Animal Village and scolds those who do bad.

Mr. Resetti has made several minor appearances in the Super Smash Bros. series of video games, including as a collectible trophy in all games beginning with Super Smash Bros. Melee, as an assist trophy in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and as a background character on the Animal Crossing themed stages in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. In Brawl, his assist trophy summons him onto the stage to yell at the fighters, causing his lengthy text box to obscure a large portion of the screen.

In Mario Kart 8, Mr. Resetti makes an appearance on the Animal Crossing race course included within the game's second downloadable content pack. On this course, he erratically pops up from the ground during the race, forcing players to avoid crashing into him. Additionally, the Mr. Resetti amiibo figurine can be utilised to unlock the Animal Crossing costume for the Miis. In Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Mr. Resetti is a craftable character as a costume for the player's Palico in-game as part of the June DLC pack.

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