On what date did Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer release in Japan?

Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer released in Japan on July 30, 2015.

The Nintendo 3DS spin-off launched first in Japan before reaching other regions: North America followed on September 25, Europe on October 2, and Australia on October 3. Those later dates explain why the Japanese release is easy to confuse with the options in this question.

Happy Home Designer shifts the series’ focus from managing a town to designing homes for animal villagers. Players work for Nook’s Homes, interpret each villager’s requested theme, and arrange furniture, landscaping, and other decorative elements. The game also introduced Animal Crossing amiibo cards, which could bring characters into the design experience.

The title was developed and published by Nintendo for the 3DS. It received mixed reviews, with praise for its creative tools but criticism that its narrow design-focused structure lacked the broader life-simulation activities of the main series. Its later successor, Happy Home Paradise, arrived as downloadable content for New Horizons in 2021.