Since her debut in Animal Crossing: New Leaf, Isabelle has become a firm fan-favorite amongst the Animal Crossing community and has appeared in every release since, as well as cameoing in other Nintendo games too. The fandom fell in love with the adorable, endearing personality of the special NPC who acts as secretary to players in the game.
Even though Isabelle isn't in Animal Crossing: New Horizons straight away, she is one of the few NPCs with a fairly large role in the game and will help with your island evaluations. However, it comes to a point when you have to question whether everyone's favorite blonde pup is getting a little overrated, check out some of the reasons why below.
10 There Were Better Choices for Super Smash Bros
Due to Isabelle's soaring popularity, it came as no surprise that she was included as a new challenger for Super Smash Bros for the Wii U and Nintendo 3DS, as well as later for Super Smash Bros Ultimate for the Nintendo Switch. However, there were far better options than the mild-mannered secretary that would have fitted into the game better, but no other NPCs got a look in because of fan demand for more Isabelle.
Just imagine how much funnier it would have been if Resetti had been chosen for Super Smash Bros as a proper fighter. With his temper and pick-axe weapon at the ready, he would have made a great addition to the game.
9 She Invades Everywhere
Super Smash Bros wasn't the only place that Isabelle cropped up, she's also cameoed in Mario Kart 8, Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate, Taiko no Tatsujin, and Miitopia. Even social media platforms weren't safe, with Isabelle taking over the official Twitter accounts for the Animal Crossing series.
Much to the relief of fans who are getting a little tired of seeing Isabelle everywhere, Tom Nook has recently taken over the official Twitter accounts for the time being, but who knows whether it will last.
8 No Caretaker Feature for New Horizons?
A great feature that was added to Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp was that players could choose one of their favorite villagers to take on the role of caretaker to help at the campsite. Your chosen animal will perform chores on your behalf while you aren't playing, as well as accompanying you around when you do play. However, this feature is only available for an additional price as part of the Happy Helper Plan.
This would be an awesome thing to be able to do in New Horizons - give your favorite villager a job. This could potentially secure their place on your island so they don't move out, as well as ensuring your island is taken care of when you can't play. Regrettably, this will likely never happen as Isabelle is the dedicated "helper" on your island, though she just doesn't actively help.
7 Amiibo Overdose
When it comes to Nintendo's coveted Amiibo figures, fans were spoilt for choice when it came to Isabelle with the Animal Crossing character receiving three different amiibo variations in total. It's times like this when Nintendo overrates Isabelle a little too much, did she need three different amiibo?
Especially considering there are so many other special NPC characters that didn't get made into amiibo form at all. There are plenty of other fan favorites that players would have loved to have amiibo figures made of, such as Redd, Tortimer, Harriet, Gulliver, and many more.
6 She Judges You If You Do a Poor Job
Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer released for the Nintendo 3DS in 2015 as a spinoff title, allowing players to unleash their interior designer creativity by designing the homes of villagers and special NPCs.
It was in this title that players also realized that Isabelle can be judgmental and gossipy as she complained about a mayor that went absent for two years, essentially a player who stopped playing. As much as you love Animal Crossing, there are often times where you have to go AWOL for a time due to your real-life commitments, or perhaps you just get bored of playing. Players don't need some NPC making them feel guilty about it.
5 She Hogs the Limelight from Her Brother
Many players, especially ones new to the franchise, don't realize that Isabelle has a twin brother named Digby. Digby showed up in Animal Crossing: New Leaf, as well as the spin-off titles Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer, Animal Crossing: Amiibo Festival, and Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp.
Because Isabelle is Nintendo's "go-to" mascot, Digby is often left by the wayside and he has yet to even make an appearance in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, with many fans being worried that he'll never arrive on the island at all.
4 Her Tips Aren't Really Helpful
Isabelle's function is to help you out and make the running of your town/island a little easier, but her tips aren't as helpful as you'd expect. She normally just gives vague general tips like "remove weeds", "build more", and similar points that you already know or could easily guess.
It would be far handier if she were more specific in saying what your villagers wanted in order to raise your island evaluation level, or possibly specify your lowest scoring area so that you know what to improve upon most.
3 Her Design Is A Literal Joke
Everyone fell head over heels for this adorable smiling dog character when she first appeared, but many fans have yet to realize that Isabelle's design is actually a joke. Her head is shaped like a bag of bells, complete with a red band to tie her top knot. Additionally, her name "Isabelle" literally spells it out for fans - "Is a bell".
Moreover, much like a hefty bag of bells would jingle in your pocket, Isabelle jingles too. Noticeable whenever she runs over to players, more often in New Leaf than New Horizons. This is because Isabelle has a little bell attached to her hairband.
2 She Won't Do Anything Useful to Get Rid of Villagers
Isabelle always has an option to report villagers that you find offensive, but she won't actually get rid of them for you, no matter how much you complain. Players can say whether it is the villager's appearance or conversations that they find inappropriate, and Isabelle will revert the villager to either their default appearance or default conversational topics.
While it's understandable that Nintendo won't allow us to just evict anyone and everyone without limits, there should be some allowance, like one villager a month or something. You can kick villagers out by inviting amiibo characters, so there's no good reason to punish players who don't have amiibo cards (other than greed - essentially making them spend money on amiibo cards).
1 She Made Tortimer Redundant
One of the few pet peeves that fans have when it comes to Isabelle is that she essentially made Tortimer redundant by assuming his role as island helper in the Animal Crossing games. Some fans even believe that Tortimer has since been "killed off" as Nintendo Direct footage for Animal Crossing: New Horizons showed a grave in the background and Tortimer is inexplicably absent.
Tortimer was the mayor in most of the Animal Crossing titles up until New Leaf, where he apparently retires but is still present in the game as part of the island tours element. It's no coincidence that this was also the first game to feature Isabelle.