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Animal Crossing: New Horizons

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Increasing Your Island Rating

By
Seren Morgan-Roberts

Description

This page offers some guidance on how to decorate your island so that you can achieve the 3-star island rating needed to have K.K. Slider come to your island. These decorating tips should be done alongside finding new villagers for your island. You need at least 8 villagers on your island before you can reach 3-stars. You should have 7 villagers on your island right now, with another moving in in the next couple of days. During this time, you should focus on making your island appealing by decorating with flowers, fences and furniture.

Decorating Ideas

This list offers beginners some ideas on how to decorate their island during the early game. After you’ve unlocked Island Designer, you’ll have much more freedom to terraform and add paths to really enhance your island. For now, these are some simple and effective ideas to raise your town’s aesthetic.

  • Gardens - An easy way to begin decorating your island is to plan out gardens for each house! If the houses are spread out across the island, this is even better because decorations should be spaced out across all the available land. Gardens are a good start because you can use a small amount of fences to create enclosed areas. Each garden can have a different theme too, so you can really express your creativity. Try to include flowers and fencing wherever possible though, as these are an important factor in your island’s appeal.

(1 of 2) Lots of flowers and fencing increase your island’s rating

Lots of flowers and fencing increase your island’s rating (left), you can get creative with the types of furniture and decoration you want to use! (right)

  • Parks - Parks are also a nice addition to your island and can be enclosed using fencing too. If you’ve been following the daily walkthrough, then you’ll have already tried your hand at making a park. Perhaps you could design a new one with a new theme and aesthetic. Japanese style parks are very popular in the Animal Crossing community as there are lots of bamboo DIYs and Japanese style furniture and infrastructure. If there are small lakes on your island, you could create a picnic area and add lots of flowers to beautify the surrounding areas. Try to make as much of the furniture as you can, since DIYs are valued more in the evaluations than bought furniture.

  • Create small decorated spots - Small decorated areas help to add more detail to your island’s appearance. This can be anything from a beach chair on the shore to a picnic basket between the trees. Adding little details helps to spread out decorations and make your island feel more complete.

Small details make your island feel more thought out and complete.

  • Buy outdoor decorations from Nookstop - There are lots of different outdoor decorations that can be bought from the Nookstop for Nook Miles. You can either buy the DIYs there or buy the one off items that need to be delivered, like the street lamps or the vending machines. These items are great if you’re looking to add a modern touch to your island.

(1 of 2) If you want an urban London aesthetic, the phone box is a great choice

If you want an urban London aesthetic, the phone box is a great choice (left), there are also lots of play park items to purchase. (right)

  • Orchards and Flower Gardens - Lots of people in the Animal Crossing Community also use their space to create practical gardens and parks. Flower gardens are useful for cross-breeding flowers and orchards are great for having a variety of fruit trees that are in one specific area and are easily accessible.

  • Don’t forget about your beaches! - Beaches are sometimes neglected when it comes to the decorative process. Your flat rocks and beaches are perfect for tiki bars and sea-shell themed furniture. Nook’s Cranny is also often selling some beach-related items like surf-boards, beach chairs and recliners. You’re on an island after all!

A peaceful picnic area on the beach rocks.

  • More Bridges and Inclines - Accessibility is important to your island’s appeal, so make sure you continue to build new bridges and inclines until the majority (if not all) of your island is accessible without ladders and pole vaults. There are lots of different types of bridges and inclines, so try some new styles to add some variety to your island’s infrastructure. You can have a maximum of 8 bridges and 8 inclines on your island.

Experiment with new bridge styles.

  • Leif’s Bushes, Hedges and Flowers - When Leif visits your island, make sure to buy all the new flower types and bushes he has on offer. Bushes flower during different seasons, so they will offer more seasonal variety to your island. He also offers new breeds of flowers that Nook’s Cranny does not offer.
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Guide Information
  • Publisher
    Nintendo
  • Platforms,
    Switch
  • Genre
    Social simulation
  • Guide Release
    7 August 2020
  • Last Updated
    20 January 2022
    Version History
  • Guide Author
    Seren Morgan-Roberts

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The guide for Animal Crossing: New Horizons offers a walkthrough on how to make the most of your time on your deserted island. This guide will show you how to make tools, earn bells, achieve a five-star island, and more.

Inside this guide you will find:

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