This article was originally written for TheNintendoVillage.com, a website I founded and ran from 2018 to 2021.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons has finally arrived for the masses and seeing so many people playing the game and sharing their photos and videos on social media is a joy to see!

On top of that we also have a steady and enjoyable online mode with everyone flocking to each other’s islands to steal borrow from their friends.

But there is so much on offer in New Horizons that we thought it might be a good idea to put a little guide together on the bits and pieces you may have missed while frolicking on your desert island getaway.

How To Catch Bugs

It may sound simple, but it’s not expressly mentioned anywhere in the early part of the game. There are essentially three speeds at which your character can move around their paradise:

Walk – Tilt the control stick slightly to tiptoe. This is especially useful when catching those tricky bugs. You can also tiptoe when you’re bug hunting by holding down A with your net equipped. Then all you need to do is release A to swipe up the critter in question.

Run – Tilt the control stick fully to run round the island at your heart’s content.

Sprint – Hold down the B button and you’ll now sprint around the place at full pelt. It’s the quickest way to get from one side of the island to the next, but be careful you don’t scare away any rare bugs or fish whilst you’re running around like a madman!

How To Buy Medicine

Timmy the Tanuki can be located early in the game in the Resident Services tent along with Tom Nook. He’s where you go to sell all your unwanted items for those sweet Bells needed to pay off your debts.

You can also buy furniture and other items from Timmy. At first glance there’s not a lot on offer, however, if you press the R button you are presented with more goodies to buy including tool sets, fruit, and DIY sets. It’s worth picking up the Beginner’s DIY set to get a few more furniture recipes to build here too!

This may seem blindingly obvious to most of you, but we’ve heard far too many stories of people missing this one, including myself and our own Phil Myth, who ran around with a severe wasp sting unaware medicine was available to purchase in the shop.

How To Craft Quicker

The final piece from Tom Nook’s tent is the crafting bench. Watching the same animation play out of your character building the particular item you’re crafting can be a bit repetitive after a while. Happily, if you mash the A button during the animation it speeds up the process!

The same goes for customisation too, so you can get back to your island just that little bit quicker - new tools in hand.

How To Get 8 Hits On A Rock

Hitting the rocks each day will yield various materials for crafting, with one rock a designated ‘bell rock’. This will spit out bags of cash every time you clock it. Each of these rocks can be hit up to 8 times, though if you’re too slow you may miss out on the maximum number of hits - and thus the maximum amount of material and money you can get your globular mitts on.

One way to avoid missing out is to dig three holes in a line behind you before you start whacking the rock with your axe or shovel. This prevents your player being pushed back too far, meaning you don’t need to adjust your stance before going in for another whack.

Make sure you’ve not eaten any fruit before hitting the rocks as that will cause them to break apart completely. They will return after a day or so, but you’ll be missing out in the meantime! Which leads us nicely onto…

How To Get Rid Of Stamina

Go to the toilet. No, we’re not joking. You’ve been able to sit on a loo in previous Animal Crossing games, and it usually treats you to a flushing sound when you hop off too. But in New Horizons, the porcelain throne actually serves a purpose.

If you’ve eaten some fruit to build up stamina in order to move trees - for example - popping a squat will get rid of them. This means that you can safely hit rocks in the pursuit of crafting materials and bells, without accidentally destroying them. Result!

How To Grow A Money Tree

You’ll occasionally come across a glowing spot whilst you’re out and about. If you whip out your shovel you’ll dig up a bag of bells. Happy days! It’s tempting to pocket the cash straight away of course, but if you rebury the bells in the glowing spot from whence they came, a tree sapling will pop up. A few days later you’ll have your very own money tree!

Once you’ve shaken the cash down though the tree won’t spawn any more like a fruit tree would, so feel free to chop it down for wood if you so choose!

How To Switch Tools

You should definitely spend some Nook Miles to get the tool ring as soon as you can, it makes selecting your tools a whole lot easier. In the meantime though (and afterwards if you prefer), you can quickly cycle through your tools using the left and right directional buttons on the left Joy-Con (or the D-Pad if you’re using a Pro Controller).

Thanks to all the NV friends and followers who suggested tips on Twitter. If you have any more hints and tips let us know down in the comments!