Long read: The beauty and drama of video games and their clouds

"It's a little bit hard to work out without knowing the altitude of that dragon..."

If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy.

Build-A-Bear is "taking notes" about your dreams of an Animal Crossing-themed collaboration

What character do YOU want?

Build-A-Bear is listening, Animal Crossing aficionados.

When a fan tweeted the build-your-own-stuffed-companion company stating that a "build a bear x animal crossing collab would be a cultural reset", the official Twitter account responded with: "Wow! [teddy bear emoji]. We're taking notes..."

Since then, the tweet has been liked a staggering 149,000 times, intimating it's not an isolated request, and a Change.org petition (thanks, MXDWN) - which went live six months ago but has only recently found a little traction - has, at the time of writing, secured almost 6,500 signatures.

"I believe the Animal Crossing community would really enjoy it if Nintendo and Build-A-Bear Workshop would collaborate to make Animal Crossing plushies," writes petition creator, Mark Gonzalez. "I think Animal Crossing fans of all ages would like to buy or even create one of their favorite characters from the game series."

So if you, too, would like a cuddly Flick or Tom Nook all of your own, perhaps you should let B-A-B know. Given it has partnered with Nintendo before to create ranges for Pokémon and Mario characters, stranger things have happened. What character would you want most?

Cover image for YouTube videoTop Fifteen Cutest Villagers In Animal Crossing New Horizons - WHO IS YOUR MOST ADORABLE?

In related news, did you know the colour of your airport's roof may intimate the colour options available in both your Nook's Cranny and Nook Miles stores? According to a new hypothesis that's popped up on Reddit, your teacup ride will be black if lamposts are green, and my airport's roof is blue. Other items are also similarly linked, too, so if your Nook Store offers the lighthouse in blue and white strips, your swimming pool will have white tiles and your vending machine will be black.

And if you've ever wondered if there's a pattern behind which visiting NPCs show up on your Animal Crossing: New Horizon's island and when, wonder no more. Turns out that there is, indeed, an algorithm behind the random - and not-so-random - appearances from your favourite visitors - and this dataminer thinks they've worked it out.

"So, here's the tea on ACNH NPC spawns," dataminer Ninji said at the time. "Every week, you're guaranteed to get Saharah, Kicks and Leif on weekdays (if you meet their criteria, e.g. having Able Sisters built). "That leaves two weekday slots that will be randomly filled by Gulliver, Label, CJ, Flick or Redd."

As for your fellow islanders? Here's everything you need to know about Animal Crossing villagers, from how to invite new recruits, making them leave, and becoming BFFs (Except for Rowan, of course, because I'm already his BFF for life, mango, so back off. He's mine).