Mr. Resetti

Mr. Resetti, full name Sonny Resetti, (also known in Japan as Mr. Reset (リセットさん, Risetto-san)) is a fictional character in the Animal Crossing series. He first appears in the Nintendo 64 game Dōbutsu no Mori, released in Europe and North America on the GameCube as Animal Crossing. Mr. Resetti is a mole whose role in the series is to remind players to save before quitting the game, and to give a lecture if they do not. Mr. Resetti has received mixed critical reception.

Development and concept

During play testing of Animal Crossing, players would simply reset the game and turn the clock backwards to make the daily stock at Tom Nook's store change. In order to prevent this, the development team implemented Mr. Resetti, in hopes that players who want to cheat would be deterred due to the long speeches.^[1] Mr. Resetti's English dialogue in Animal Crossing was written by Nintendo Treehouse team member Tim O'Leary, who intended the character to speak with a deep Bronx accent to complement the character's Osaka accent in the original Japanese.^[2] He is designed to make the player believe he knows them and is yelling directly at them, and the European Let's Go to the City manual warns that young children may find Mr. Resetti's authoritative tone of voice disturbing.^[3]

Appearances

Mr. Resetti's role in the Animal Crossing series is to advise the player to remember to save before quitting the game. If the game is shut off without saving, Resetti will appear outside the player's house the next time the player starts the game, and will give a lecture of why saving is important. After resetting more times, Resetti will make the player repeat phrases, and will not let them play until they get it right. If the player inputs something offensive, however, he will get furious.

In Animal Crossing: New Leaf, Mr. Resetti appears the first time the player turns the 3DS off without saving. However, he explains that the Reset Surveillance Center (the facility Resetti works for) has been closed down, and that he will not be able to make any more visits. If the player so chooses, the Reset Surveillance Center can be reopened, allowing Resetti to resume his former role.

Outside Animal Crossing

In the Animal Crossing film, Mr. Resetti appears a number of times to remind characters about following the rules of the Animal Village.

Mr. Resetti has made several minor appearances in the Super Smash Bros. series of video games, both as a collectible trophy in Super Smash Bros. Melee,^[4] and as an assist trophy in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. In the latter, he is summoned onto the stage where he yells at the opponents and his lengthy text box obscures a large portion of the screen.^[5]

In Mario Kart 8, Mr. Resetti makes an appearance on the race course based upon the Animal Crossing series included within the game's second DLC pack. In this course, he is a course obstacle that behaves similarly to a Monty Mole.

In Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Mr. Resetti is a craftable character as a costume for the player's Palico in-game as part of the June DLC pack. ^[6]

Reception

Since his appearance, Mr. Resetti has received mixed reception. Destructoid's Jonathan Holmes called his actions one of the "more creative" examples of fourth wall breaking alongside Metal Gear Solid's Psycho Mantis.^[7] Wired's Chris Kohler featured him at number six in a list of the "10 meanest tricks videogames ever played on us." He cited tactics such as pretending to reset the game during one of his lectures.^[8] UGO.com called Mr. Resetti an irritant,^[9] but ranked him the sixth best Animal Crossing character, stating that while they do not love him outright, his outbursts are a part of the game's charm.^[1] Joystiq editor Chris Greenhough stated "Animal Crossing games would be a lot less awesome without Mr. Resetti," referencing the way he "teaches his lessons through tough love."^[10] Kotaku editor Luke Plunkett stated that "Resetti may be just about the best thing about Animal Crossing," and said that "his furious tirades are, after all, both entertaining and informative."^[3] Mr. Resetti was named as the 17th best Nintendo character of all time by GameDaily, saying "he's helpful, while at the same time completely annoying".^[11] In 2010, GamesTM listed him among the greatest game characters, commenting that he "may be one of the most annoying characters in gaming" but "Mr Resetti is so meticulously designed with the express purpose of annoying that it's hard not to respect the thought that went into him."^[12]

The development team found that Mr. Resetti caused young female players to be scared by him to the point of crying. As a result, they made it optional whether players encountered him in New Leaf.^[13] Destructoid's Jonathan Holmes did not agree with the decision to make him optional as he felt that the game is "better when it can make you feel awful."^[7] Jamie Madigan in a Gamasutra article discussed the use of the word "cheater" by Resetti and how the label can be used to shame people away from breaking rules.^[14] GamesRadar's Ryan Taljonick featured Resetti on his list of gaming's most "hate-filled characters."^[15] IGN's Patrick Kolan felt that despite the quality of his rants, they felt "vanilla" and didn't surprise anyone anymore.^[16] Destructoid's Anthony Burch wrote an article that explains why Resetti was the "most heroic videogame character ever created" and suggested that he is "the only character in the Animal Crossing world whose sole job is to protect the entire universe from paradoxical destruction."^[17]

References