Nintendo has finally issued official information regarding the now-infamous "tulip glitch" that affected Animal Crossing: Wild World players.
The glitch found players logging in to the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection with their Wild World games recieving a rather mysterious letter containing random characters. Attached to the letter was an item that would take the form of a red tulip if planted — unlike regular tulips, it could be planted in the stone tile outside buildings — or if placed in the home, an invisible, immovable piece of furniture that could not be picked up again.
Nintendo's official word on the matter is as follows:
I received a mysterious letter in Animal Crossing: Wild World which contains a "Red Tulip." What is this?
If you received this letter as a result of logging into the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection network on January 26, it was the result of a temporary internal error with the communication tool used to upload the letters onto the network.How does the "Red Tulip" interfere with game play?
If sold or planted outside, nothing out of the ordinary is known to occur at this time; however, if placed on the floor of your living room, the Red Tulip will render the spot where it's placed useless. As a result, other items cannot be placed on or moved across it.Was this the result of someone hacking into Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection?
No. This was the result of a temporary internal error with the tool used to upload the letters onto the network.What do I do if I have received this letter?
If you received the letter, please delete it. If you have the item in your inventory, please place it in the recycle bin for disposal.If I already placed the "Red Tulip" in my home, how do I get rid of it?
At this time, we have not determined how to remove the item from a player's home. We're continuing to look into this issue and will be sure to update this FAQ if a solution is found. Nintendo sincerely apologizes for this inconvenience and we're working to ensure this doesn't happen again.