Animal Crossing: City Folk is the Wii incarnation of the Animal Crossing series. As in the previous version, players assume the role of a new resident in a town populated and run by animals. Players can interact with townsfolk, write letters, send presents, dig for fossils, fish, catch bugs, etc... Time in the game uses the internal Wii's clock and calendar. As such, time and seasons happen at the same time as in real life. Therefore, some events only happen at a certain day of the week, or even on special days in the year (such as Christmas on December 25th).

Additions include a city center, with some new shops and some others which were already in the previous instalments. The game also uses the Wi-Fi connection with the classical Nintendo's "codes": players are able to visit their friend's village. The game is compatible with the Wii Speak system, which means players can use the microphone to speak with each other.