LEGO Mario, Zelda Are Cool and All, But LEGO Really Should Be Doing More With This Nintendo IP in 2026

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LEGO has exciting plans for 2026, including sets based on the upcoming Spider-Man 3 movie, as well as new additions for Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter fans. They’re also continuing their partnership with Nintendo to create more LEGO sets inspired by Nintendo games. Rumors suggest a large, over 1,000-piece set featuring Ganondorf from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is in development, along with a new Mario Kart set. This Mario Kart set will reportedly include a dedicated package for Luigi, featuring the character, his kart, and a related accessory. While all of this sounds fantastic, many fans, including myself, are hoping to see LEGO explore the world of Animal Crossing further.

Okay, I know I’ve been spoiled with all the LEGO Animal Crossing sets lately, and maybe it sounds a little much to ask for more, but I just can’t help it – I’m a huge fan! The game fits the LEGO style so perfectly, I really think they could keep making sets for ages. Right now, for 2026, all we know about is one little polybag, and honestly, it makes me a bit envious when I see something as impressive as the Ganondorf set from Zelda. Getting a Julian minifigure and a tiny painting is sweet, but it feels like that shouldn’t be all we get. I’m hoping LEGO will surprise us with some bigger sets, but I’m trying not to get my hopes up too much since there aren’t any rumors about them. Seriously though, I have a ton of ideas for sets they could make!

LEGO Animal Crossing Sets That Still Need to Happen

Thus far, there have been 15 proper LEGO Animal Crossing sets, which are:

  • Julian’s Birthday Party (Julian with hat)
  • Bunnie’s Outdoor Activities (Bunnie)
  • Kapp’n’s Island Boat Tour (Kapp’n and Marshall)
  • Isabelle’s House Visit (Isabelle and Fauna)
  • Nook’s Cranny and Rosie’s House (Tom Nook and Rosie)
  • Maple’s Pumpkin Garden (Maple)
  • Fly With Dodo Airlines (Wilbur and Tangy)
  • K.K’s Concert at the Plaza (K.K. Slider, Isabelle with red outfit, and Audie)
  • Stargazing With Celeste (Celeste)
  • Leif’s Caravan and Garden Shop (Leif and Poppy)
  • Able Sisters Clothing Shop (Mabel and Sasha)
  • Blather’s Museum Collection (Blathers and Lily)
  • Creative Houses: Seasons of Fun (Stitches, Fuschia, and Fang)
  • Goldie’s Cozy House (Goldie)
  • Julian’s Beach Painting (Julian)

This LEGO Zelda lineup is great, and it will likely take a while for it to have as many sets as Animal Crossing. However, Animal Crossing has so many beloved characters and places that still deserve their own LEGO sets. Pascal, the cute otter who collects scallops, immediately comes to mind. I especially enjoyed finding him a scallop every day when the diving feature was new, hoping to get some DIY recipes. He’s funny and has charming animations, making him a perfect candidate for a set. A set could feature the island pier and some simulated water, and could include a popular Octopus villager like Zucker or Marina.

Image via Nintendo

Beyond a Pascal-themed set, I’d really like to see a LEGO version of Brewster’s cafe, filled with charming details and a lively, coffee-enthusiast villager like Dom. Flick and CJ are a popular pair in the Animal Crossing community, so a larger set centered around fishing and bug-catching would be fantastic. It could include a handheld net and fishing rod, plus some fish and bug decorations. Another set that’s long overdue would feature Redd, the art dealer known for selling both forgeries and real artwork. A set with Redd’s boat and a clever villager – perhaps Raymond, the popular newcomer from New Horizons – trying to spot his fakes would be really appealing. Finally, the most iconic character still missing a LEGO set is Gulliver. A set focused on digging, with a shovel and beach tiles, and a Gullivarrr minifigure would be perfect.

These five ideas would create sets similar in size to what we currently have. However, it would be great to see Nintendo take some risks with how they design Animal Crossing LEGO sets. A really large build, like the Great Deku Tree, would be an amazing collector’s item. For a massive Animal Crossing set, how about a giant gyroid, like Lloid, that you build piece by piece? Alternatively, an island filled with gyroids would be a refreshing change from the typical smaller sets featuring a character and maybe a villager. While LEGO’s Animal Crossing collaboration has been pretty extensive, many of my favorite characters haven’t gotten their own set yet, so I’m hoping for another wave of releases.

As a huge Animal Crossing fan, I was so excited to see Mr. Resetti back in New Horizons with the 3.0 update! It got me thinking – he’s such a memorable character, he’d be perfect for his own set of amiibo figures, don’t you think?

Polybags Shouldn’t Be the End All Be All, But They Can Be a Boon For LEGO Animal Crossing

Image via LEGO, Nintendo

LEGO polybags are often enjoyable, fast builds and a way to get unique minifigures. However, I’m worried about the polybag planned for 2026. It appears to be the only LEGO set coming out this year, and I’m concerned it will be similar to what happened with the last Animal Crossing polybag. Instead of a brand-new Villager character to collect, we just received another version of Julian with a minor outfit change. That felt like a missed opportunity, and I’m worried the next polybag will follow the same pattern – offering a new accessory with a recolored, existing minifigure instead of something truly exclusive.

With so many villagers in Animal Crossing – hundreds, in fact – it’s unlikely LEGO will release full sets for everyone. Polybags – small, inexpensive LEGO packets – could be a great solution! LEGO and Nintendo could partner to create dozens of the most popular villagers as polybags. Many characters would work well in this format – for example, my favorite, Roald the penguin, could come with a weight set to reflect his sporty personality. Other villagers could have accessories that match their hobbies or appearance. Imagine Judy with a colorful swingset, Cherry with a gothic table and chairs, or Lucky with bandages representing his injuries – these would all make fantastic polybag sets. Hopefully, we’ll see at least one original polybag design this year instead of another rehash, but I’m not optimistic.

image via LEGO, Nintendo

Let’s hope LEGO and Nintendo continue making Animal Crossing sets beyond 2026, instead of stopping after just one small set. This partnership has been wonderful, creating some really cute builds, and the Animal Crossing world still has plenty more to offer. Even if larger sets aren’t in the future, releasing a few – not just one – small polybag sets with brand new, exclusive mini-figures would be a fantastic way to keep fans like me happy. I understand we’ve been lucky so far, and it’s great to see other franchises like Zelda getting LEGO sets now, but there’s still potential for more Animal Crossing releases in the future.

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2026-01-12 05:36