Ever wonder if there's a point to all of the constant conversation-having, flea-catching, and task-completing to be had with your neighbours in Animal Crossing: New Horizons? Lucky for you, there most certainly is: framed photos of each and every resident! But they don't come easily, or quickly.
For those who are less familiar with the intricacies of friendships in the Animal Crossing series, we've provided a handy guide to determining, increasing and benefiting from friendship levels with your animal acquaintances.
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As a note: the information provided below is directly from the official Animal Crossing: New Horizons Companion Guide (unless stated otherwise). As there is much speculation and theorisation on the interwebs about all things Animal Crossing, we've decided to stick to what we know is straight from the source and guaranteed to be accurate. Read on, islanders!
Increasing Friendship Levels with Villagers and Getting Their Photos in Animal Crossing: New Horizons
What is the "friendship level"?
While it's always been a bit of an unspoken, mysterious achievement in nearly every Animal Crossing game to date, becoming "best friends" with your animal neighbours has been yielding tangible results since the days of Wild World, in which players actually began to acquire framed photos of their BFFs as rewards signifying their friendship.
"Friendship" is measured on a scale of friendliness between yourself and each of your fellow towns-animals, and is increased through consistent, positive interactions together. Of course, this popular element of the games has naturally made a return in New Horizons, and even has a few new features to keep things spicy.
How do you increase your friendship levels with villagers?
While "friendship levels" may be a bit of a black box, the official guide lists actions that can be taken to either improve — or degrade — your friendships in the game:
| Raise Friendship | Lower Friendship |
|---|---|
| Talk to villagers (once per day) | Hit villagers with a tool |
| Send villagers letters (friendship increases when they reply) | Push villagers around or run into them a lot |
| Give villagers presents (when friendship is already high) | Give villagers "trash" items (tires, weeds, rotten turnips, etc.) |
| Give villagers wrapped birthday presents | Accept requests from villagers but fail to successfully carry them out |
| Complete requests for villagers | - |
| Sell villagers items they ask to buy from you | - |
How can you check your current friendship levels?
Because there is no in-game measurement or tool to determine friendship levels, it can be difficult to know where you stand with your friends - just as it can sometimes be in real life.
However, it's possible to influence friendship levels by visiting Katrina on Harv's island.