Leif Or Redd Not Appearing - Troubleshooting Guide

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New ChecklistAll ListsMy ChecklistsAllBugsFishSea CreaturesArtGyroidsSongsBugsBugsFishFishSea CreaturesSea CreaturesArtArtGyroidsGyroidsSongsSongsAll ListsMy ChecklistsHow creative can you get with your first free checklist?Create a free accountLeif or Redd Not Appearing - Troubleshooting GuideBy Abby Lee Hood, Angie Harvey, Janet Garcia, +161 moreUpdated: Jul 11, 2022 9:10am UTC

The 1.2.0 update for Animal Crossing: New Horizons brought with it plenty of changes, including two NPCs who add new gameplay elements. If you don't have Redd or if you don't have Leif, these reasons might be why along with some potential fixes.

Leif or Redd Not Appearing - Troubleshooting Guide

First, make sure your game is up to date. Even if you updated on April 22, double check that the update was successfully downloaded.

You can check your version in the main Switch menu by hovering over Animal Crossing: New Horizons and pressing the + button. Then, You can read the version number right below Animal Crossing: New Horizons. It should say Ver. 1.2.0. as shown below. If it doesn't then that's probably your problem.

If you update Animal Crossing after getting Isabelle's morning message, you likely won't have Leif or Redd that day.

If your game is correctly up to date, Isabelle should have started your day with a message about Nature Day and possibly a message about a "suspicious character." However, you won't instantly get Redd if you don't meet certain requirements.

How to Unlock Redd

Not everyone can just get Redd and the art expansion to the museum. You need to have done these things in order to get Redd:

• Upgrade your museum and have at least 60 items donated.
• Blathers mentions that he's considering adding "fine works of art" to the museum.

If you did not get that message from Blathers (the earliest you could have gotten it was on April 22 after the update) Redd will not show up. However, once Blathers mentions the expansion, you should see Redd roaming your island the next day.

An easy way to check and see if Redd even showed up is by going to the small beach on the north side of your island. You should see his boat. You won't be able to enter until you talk to Redd. He'll be somewhere on your island.

How to Get Leif

As mentioned above, you should get Leif if you updated Animal Crossing to the 1.2.0 version. Isabelle will announce Nature Day in the daily announcement.

However, if you log on and get an Isabelle daily message prior to updating to 1.2.0, you'll need to wait a day for Leif to appear.

You can still visit other islands to buy shrubs and flowers from their Leif. Each Leif sells different flowers and shrubs anyway, so we recommend shopping around if you can. You can also still get Nature Day Nook Miles tasks without Leif appearing on your island so long as your game is up-to-date.

After updating, talk to Tom Nook and he'll let you know about Nature Day! One IGN staff member did not have Leif and was still able to complete Nature Day tasks. You can see all Nature Day tasks and rewards on the Nature Day page.

Given Leif's comments when first introducing himself, it is likely that Leif will only start appearing on your island once you have helped Timmy open Nook's Cranny - similar to Mable of the Able Sisters. If you have recently started life on your island, be sure to pay off your first loan and then talk to Timmy to begin the task of helping to build Nook's Cranny!

You can also try time traveling back a day by adjusting the system clock, opening the game to register the day change, then return to the current day to see if you get the Nature Day announcement and Leif. We have not tested this but it is an option for you to try. You can learn more about time travel in the Time Travel Guide.

Found an easy workaround? Let us know what you've discovered in the comments.

Up Next: Time Travel Guide

PreviousHow to Get a Perfect 5 Star Island Eval RatingNextTime Travel Guide

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Animal Crossing: New HorizonsNintendoInitial Release: Mar 20, 2020Learn moreGo to comments