e-Reader card

Promotional image for Doubutsu no Mori Card-e+ showcasing the "K.K. Rockabilly" e-card

Several series of e-Reader cards were released for Doubutsu no Mori+, Animal Crossing, and Doubutsu no Mori e+. These cards can be scanned by the e-Reader on the Game Boy Advance by itself or, in Animal Crossing and Doubutsu no Mori e+ only, in-game by connecting a GBA with an e-Reader to the Nintendo GameCube; the outcome of scanning a card depends on the card's type.

e-Reader cards have a dot code strip on one or both edges of the card's back. This strip contains data that can be read and decoded by the e-Reader when the card is swiped across it.

Releases

There are three lines of Animal Crossing e-Reader cards: Doubutsu no Mori+ Card-e, released in Japan in 2002; Animal Crossing-e, released in North America from 2002 to 2003; and Doubutsu no Mori Card-e+, released in Japan in 2003.

A total of 454 unique e-Reader cards were released across Doubutsu no Mori+ Card-e, Animal Crossing-e, and Doubutsu no Mori Card-e+. If regional variants are counted as separate cards, the total is 771 cards.

Doubutsu no Mori+ Card-e

Doubutsu no Mori+ Card-e logo

In Japan, Doubutsu no Mori+ Card-e, consisting of a total of 335 cards, was released shortly after Doubutsu no Mori+ from February to October 2002 in four series of booster packs. 27 of these cards are promotional cards that were distributed in various magazines, collection files, and figurine sets. The Doubutsu no Mori+ Card-e cards can be scanned on the Game Boy Advance by itself, but not in-game because the initial release of the e-Reader in Japan does not have GameCube compatibility. They can be scanned in-game in Doubutsu no Mori e+.

Doubutsu no Mori+ Card-e features four card types: Character Cards, Town Tune Cards, Sibling Cards, and Game Cards.

Animal Crossing-e

Animal Crossing-e logo

In North America, Animal Crossing-e, consisting of a total of 328 cards, was released shortly after Animal Crossing from October 2002 to May 2003 in four series of booster packs. In the United States, each booster pack retailed for US$2.99. Two of these cards are promotional cards, with one being included with the e-Reader and one being included with issue 163 of Nintendo Power magazine. The Animal Crossing cards can be scanned either on the Game Boy Advance by itself, or in-game while the GBA is connected to the GameCube. All e-Reader functionality was removed from the European version of Animal Crossing, as the e-Reader was never released in the region.

All non-promotional cards from Doubutsu no Mori+ Card-e except one—Katrina (Shrine Maiden)—were localized and released as part of Animal Crossing-e, in addition to 21 new cards: all 15 Design Cards, Character Cards for Farley, Franklin, and Mr. Resetti in his Groundhog Day outfit, both Classic Game Cards, and the Animal Crossing-e sample card.

Doubutsu no Mori Card-e+

Doubutsu no Mori Card-e+ logo

Following the release of Doubutsu no Mori e+ and the e-Reader+ in Japan, Doubutsu no Mori Card-e+, consisting of a total of 108 cards, was released in Japan from June to October 2003 in three series of booster packs. Six of these cards are promotional cards that were distributed in various magazines, collection files, and figurine sets. The Doubutsu no Mori Card-e+ cards can be scanned either on the Game Boy Advance by itself, or in-game while the GBA is connected to the GameCube.

Doubutsu no Mori Card-e+ contains 84 Character Cards for all the game's new villagers and islanders, 12 Town Tune Cards for the game's new K.K. Slider songs, and 12 Design Cards. 10 of the Design Cards were previously released as part of Animal Crossing-e, and two—Falcon Suit and DK Logo—are new to Doubutsu no Mori Card-e+.

Card types

This section could be improved with the addition of images.

You can help by uploading one or more images and including them on this page.
Further details: Lots of screenshots, both in-game and on the GBA

This section could be improved with the addition of images.

You can help by uploading one or more images and including them on this page.
Further details: Lots of screenshots, both in-game and on the GBA

Character Card

The fronts and backs of a special character (left) and villager's (right) Animal Crossing-e Character Cards

Character Cards make up the vast majority of e-Reader cards and are part of Doubutsu no Mori+ Card-e, Animal Crossing-e, and Doubutsu no Mori Card-e+. The fronts of the cards feature artwork of a villager or special character, and the backs contain the following information:

• The character's gender and species
• The character's star sign
• The clothing worn by the villager (villagers only)
• The villager's "pet phrase" (villagers only)
• A profile of the character
• A password (Doubutsu no Mori+ Card-e and Animal Crossing-e only)
• The villager's favorite saying (Doubutsu no Mori Card-e+ only)

Passwords

In Doubutsu no Mori+, sending any villager a letter containing the password printed on the card results in the character on the card sending a letter back that has a chance of containing a random Famicom game. For villager cards, each password has a predetermined chance of the return letter containing a common Famicom game: either 6.25%, 12.5%, 25%, or 50%. Special character card passwords all have a 100% chance of receiving a Famicom game in return.

In Animal Crossing, sending any villager a letter containing the password printed on the card results in the character on the card sending a letter back that contains a unique item. If the password is specifically sent to the villager on the card, there is a 60% chance that the letter they send back will contain a common NES game instead of their normal gift.

While Doubutsu no Mori Card-e+ cards do not have passwords, sending any villager a Doubutsu no Mori+ Card-e password in Doubutsu no Mori e+ results in the player receiving a letter containing either a decorative plate, shop signboard, or Tom Nook's autograph card.

Scanning on the GBA

An example of a message displayed when scanning an Animal Crossing-e Character Card on the GBA by itself

Scanning a Doubutsu no Mori+ Card-e Character Card on the GBA by itself displays one of two passwords. In Doubutsu no Mori+, sending any villager a letter containing one of the passwords given results in the character on the card sending a letter back that contains a unique item. In Doubutsu no Mori e+, sending any villager a letter containing one of the passwords given results in the character on the card sending a letter back that contains either a decorative plate, shop signboard, or Tom Nook's autograph card.

Scanning an Animal Crossing-e or Doubutsu no Mori Card-e+ Character Card on the GBA by itself displays only a message from the card's character.

Scanning in-game

In Animal Crossing and Doubutsu no Mori e+, Character Cards can be scanned at the e-Reader Transfer Machine (eTM) in the post office. This results in the character on the card sending the player a letter that contains a unique item.

In Doubutsu no Mori e+ only, villagers' and islanders' Character Cards can also be scanned at the wishing well. Scanning a card here results in the villager or islander on the card moving to the town or Animal Island, respectively.

Town Tune Card

The front and back of an Animal Crossing-e Town Tune Card

Town Tune Cards are part of Doubutsu no Mori+ Card-e, Animal Crossing-e, and Doubutsu no Mori Card-e+, and they each contain a Town Tune arrangement of a K.K. Slider song. Scanning a Town Tune Card on the GBA by itself plays a chiptune arrangement of the song on the card. In-game, the cards can be scanned at the Town Tune board to set the Town Tune to the one on the card.

In Doubutsu no Mori e+ only, all the new K.K. Slider songs except "My Place", "Forest Life", and "To the Edge" must be scanned at the Town Tune board before the player can request them for K.K. Slider to perform. Additionally, speaking to a specific special character after scanning one of the new songs' cards results in the character giving the player an aircheck of the live version of the song.

Design Card

The front and back of an Animal Crossing-e Design Card

Design Cards are part of Animal Crossing-e and Doubutsu no Mori Card-e+, and they each contain a unique design, often based on other Nintendo franchises. Scanning a Design Card on the GBA by itself displays a comment from Mable about the card's design. In-game, the cards can be scanned at the Able Sisters to add the design to the player's design collection.

The layout of Design Cards differs between Animal Crossing-e and Doubutsu no Mori Card-e+ cards.

• Animal Crossing-e cards feature three images of a player showcasing the design on the front: one wearing the design, one wearing the design and facing backward, and one wearing the design while also holding an umbrella with the design on it. The backs feature artwork of Sable and Mabel alongside the design itself.
• Doubutsu no Mori Card-e+ cards feature one image of the player wearing the design while posing on the front, while the back shows the design itself and an image of a player wearing the design while posing and facing backward.

Sibling Card

The front and back of an Animal Crossing-e Sibling Card

Sibling Cards are part of Doubutsu no Mori+ Card-e and Animal Crossing-e, and they contain two sets of dot codes, one for each character on the card. The fronts of the cards feature artwork of two related characters against a unique background, and the backs contain a password for each character along with a conversation between the two.

Functionally, Sibling Cards are identical to Character Cards except that they have two sets of dot codes and two passwords.

Game Card

The front and back of an Animal Crossing-e Game Card

Game Cards are part of Doubutsu no Mori+ Card-e and Animal Crossing-e, and they are used solely on the Game Boy Advance, where they allow the player to play a minigame involving various villagers. The fronts of the cards feature artwork of a player, and the backs describe the game contained on the card. Game Cards have two sets of dot codes that contain the game data.

The games involve scanning villagers' Character Cards, and each villager has different stats for each game. There are a total of eight minigames, each with an A and B variation:

• Animal Relay – Boy (1) and Boy (2)
• 3-Legged Race – Boy (3) and Boy (4)
• Tug of War – Boy (5) and Boy (6)
• Who's Dunnit? – Boy (7) and Boy (8)
• Animal Jumprope – Girl (1) and Girl (2)
• Matchmakers – Girl (3) and Girl (4)
• Fireworks Show – Girl (5) and Girl (6)
• Fortune Telling – Girl (7) and Girl (8)

Each version of each game has two to three passwords that are given to the player under certain circumstances. Sending one of these passwords in a letter to any villager results in a character sending the player a letter with a unique item.

There are "SP" versions of Fireworks Show and Fortune Telling that are contained on the Boy & Girl and Girl & Boy Doubutsu no Mori+ Card-e promotional Game Cards, respectively.

Classic Game Card

The fronts and backs of the Ice Climber (left) and Mario Bros. (right) Classic Game Cards

There are two Classic Game Cards: Ice Climber (N01) and Mario Bros. (N02), both released only in Animal Crossing-e as part of Series 4. Scanning these cards on the GBA by itself displays a message from Tom Nook, and scanning them in-game at the eTM results in Tom Nook sending the player a letter containing the Ice Climber or Mario Bros item, respectively. These cards are the only way to obtain these items.

Animal Crossing-e sample card

The front and back of the Animal Crossing-e sample card

A promotional Animal Crossing-e sample card (04-E001) was bundled with the e-Reader in North America as part of a five-card sample pack and was used to promote the e-Reader card functionality in Animal Crossing. When scanned on the GBA by itself, a message appears telling the player to scan the card in Animal Crossing at the eTM in the post office. Scanning it in-game results in the player receiving a letter containing "K.K. Ska".

List of e-Reader cards

Click on the appropriate image or text below to view a list of e-cards in that series.

Doubutsu no Mori+ Card-e

• 

  Series 1
  (2002)

• 

  Series 2
  (2002)

• 

  Series 3
  (2002)

• 

  Series 4
  (2002)

• 

  Promotional
  (2002–2003)

Animal Crossing-e

• 

  Series 1
  (2002)

• 

  Series 2
  (2003)

• 

  Series 3
  (2003)

• 

  Series 4
  (2003)

• 

  Promotional
  (2002)

Doubutsu no Mori Card-e+

• 

  Series 1
  (2003)

• 

  Series 2
  (2003)

• 

  Series 3
  (2003)

• 

  Promotional
  (2003)

Gallery

This section could be improved with the addition of images.

You can help by uploading one or more images and including them on this page.
Further details: Need images of different regions promotional advertisements/flyers/etc. Example of one here. Also need images of North American and promotional packaging. For example, the sleeves promo Famitsu cards came in.

This section could be improved with the addition of images.

You can help by uploading one or more images and including them on this page.
Further details: Need images of different regions promotional advertisements/flyers/etc. Example of one here. Also need images of North American and promotional packaging. For example, the sleeves promo Famitsu cards came in.

Packaging

Booster Boxes

• 

  Doubutsu no Mori+ Series 1

• 

  Doubutsu no Mori+ Series 2

• 

  Doubutsu no Mori+ Series 3

• 

  Doubutsu no Mori+ Series 4

• 

  Doubutsu no Mori e+ Series 1

• 

  Doubutsu no Mori e+ Series 2

• 

  Doubutsu no Mori e+ Series 3

Promotional

• 

  NES Link design card for Animal Crossing attached to an insert included in Nintendo Power

Screenshots

• 

  The letter received from a lazy villager after sending them the password on their Character Card and receiving an NES game

• 

  The letter received from a jock villager after sending them the password on their Character Card and receiving an NES game

• 

  The letter received from a cranky villager after sending them the password on their Character Card and receiving an NES game

• 

  The letter received from a normal villager after sending them the password on their Character Card and receiving an NES game

• 

  The letter received from a peppy villager after sending them the password on their Character Card and receiving an NES game

• 

  The letter received from a snooty villager after sending them the password on their Character Card and receiving an NES game