Animal Crossing’s Bunny Day begins this week letting players take part in a fun seasonal event with visitor Zipper T. Bunny. Mr. Bunny seems like a fun mascot to celebrate with…but do island settlers know who he really is?
Animal Crossing is a cute game. Throughout its generations, villagers have landed in a fairy tale land similar enough to the real world, with mortgages and errands to run, but a dash of whimsy sprinkled in. After all, how many people pay off their bills by picking fruit and going fishing?
There’s a dark side to the sweet series, however. There’s plenty of information online articulating Tom Nook’s venture into the city, only to become jaded. That created a rift in his relationship with seamstress Sable, a quiet hedgehog who only shares her story once you’ve earned her trust.
But there may be no stranger story in Animal Crossing than the mystery of Zipper T. Bunny.
Many players will meet Zipper — some, for the first time — as Bunny Day kicks off on April 1. When he first arrives, the “rabbit” seems friendly enough.
I put the word rabbit in quotes because it’s clear Zipper T. Bunny is in a bunny costume. Besides the fact that Zipper is in his name, it’s possible to see the zipper on his back when you approach him from behind. He’s not a fan of that, and will specifically ask you to stop.
“I know what you’re thinking. No. This is NOT a costume. And don’t you go snoopin’, got it?” he says the first time you meet him in New Horizons.
Zipper’s dialogue is also a bit biting. His barbs at villagers inspecting his zipper aside, he makes sarcastic comments and can even be heard mumbling about how much he hates his job. When approaching Zipper, his music begins to play and he’ll start to dance, but once you start walking away, he drops the act and sighs heavily.
Other villagers sometimes comment on Zipper when he’s in town, either expressing fear or suspicion about the mysterious character.
Who is in the bunny suit?
So, who is Zipper T. Bunny? Conspiracies have run wild since Zipper first made his appearance in the Wii entry City Folk.
Many suspected the former mayor of Animal Crossing in earlier releases, Tortimer, who often appears during holidays in the franchise’s more recent titles. That would explain the T in Zipper T. Bunny. He and other special characters — including Tom Nook and black-market seller Redd — have always appeared prime candidates. However, vigilant villagers have noted that each is eventually seen somewhere else on days Zipper is in town.
Bunny villager Hopkins shares a birthday with Zipper, March 11, but he too has been seen around town on Bunny Day, knocking that theory out.
The other options include holiday-specific characters like Jingle, who appears around the Christmas-themed holiday Toy Day, or Pavé, who appears for Festivale. It’s harder to rule these characters out since they can never be seen at the same time as Zipper, but there’s nothing supporting those theories either. And it wouldn’t explain why Zipper T. Bunny hates the job.
We may never know who Zipper T. Bunny really is. Maybe, just maybe, it really isn’t a costume at all, and poor Zipper had an unfortunate accident involving a zipper.
