Jimothy, a raccoon from Seattle's Ballard neighbourhood who went viral after resident Kiana Hall filmed him on a stroll, has started appearing inside video games — first through mods, and now officially.
Dexerto reports that World of Warcraft is adding Jimothy to the game following sustained fan demand. Blizzard Entertainment had already posted an in-game tribute to the animal, which Polygon notes would fit the studio's charity pet programme.
The raccoon's unusual silhouette comes from short spine syndrome, a rare genetic condition that leaves the spine significantly shorter than normal. It is seen more often in dogs; veterinarian Dr. Elyse Macartney has said that while the condition brings health issues, many dogs living with it still have long and content lives.
Modders got there first
On Nexusmods, modder triptherift added Jimothy to The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim as wildlife after members of their Discord group asked for it.
I made Seattle's current celebrity mascot for Skyrim. Because I can.
Stardew Valley players have two options. Modder SmolHooman added Jimothy as a custom pet, while kirbysteaks made him a purchasable farm animal, bought from Marnie like any other livestock. In that version he mostly returns trash and seeds, with a chance of Treasure or an Artifact Trove if he is well looked after; he lives in barns by default, and the mod's author recommends ExtraAnimalConfigs for players who want him in coops instead.
Publisher and studio accounts have joined in separately. PC Gamer counted renders from World of Warcraft, an old-school-styled version from RuneScape, a version from Dead by Daylight with glowing eyes and tentacles, a 1930s rubber-hose interpretation from Mouse: P.I. For Hire, and an entry from The Sims. Halo posted a Spartan-armoured Jimothy shared by senior community manager John Junyszek, and placed the raccoon on Master Chief's crashed pod in the original Combat Evolved as well as in the surrounding field in the Campaign Evolved remake.
The mods and posts are unofficial except for the World of Warcraft addition, and no other publisher has announced plans to put Jimothy into a game.
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