https://wccftech.com/animal-crossing-new-horizons-accounts-resident-representative/

Animal Crossing: New Horizons is hot right now. Kind of crazy hot. The game has smashed Switch sales records in the UK, delivering bigger launch numbers than major franchises like Mario and Pokemon. Reviews have also been very positive, although a trip to Metacritic reveals a surprisingly mediocre 6.8 user score, and a lot of zero-out-of-10 reviews. So what’s going on? Why is happy-go-lucky Animal Crossing, of all games, being review bombed?

Well, it all comes down to a rather frustrating account restriction. As in the past, multiple players can set up a house in the same village, but the first person who registers an account and sets up and names the island is designated the “Resident Representative.” So, why’s that an issue? Because only the Resident Representative can take on missions to progress and improve the island – everyone else is restricted to only improving their own house and perhaps sometimes contributing resources to a bigger project. Basically, the way it’s set up there’s one real player who controls the fate of the island and everyone else is just there for support.