With lawsuits still flying between Pokémon and Palworld, leave it to a Chinese developer to step into the arena with its own next-gen creature catching game.
In truth, despite some similar creature design, Aniimo does very much look like its own thing.
So yes, while you’ll be catching mythical animals with your, er, Pokécubes, the actual gameplay itself looks more akin to Genshin Impact, where you’re assembling squads and switching between different creatures to combine their elemental powers.
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Here’s how dev Pawprint Studio describes it:
“Aniimo is a free-to-play, next-gen creature-catching open-world RPG. On the vast continent of Idyll, you’ll encounter countless unique creatures known as Aniimo. Twine with them and experience the beauty of this world from a completely new perspective and with new abilities.
You can also travel to a metropolis floating in the sky, where you’ll meet other Pathfinders, share stories, and engage in thrilling competitive battles. Choose your Aniimo and embark on an epic journey—one full of exploration, discovery, and adventure!”
The release will feature a social hub area where you’ll be able to interact with other players and decorate to your heart’s content.
Certainly this looks like a more ambitious take on the tried-and-trusted Pokémon formula, but artistically it does feel a bit bland to us; it’s got that generic Unreal Engine flavour to it, doesn’t it?
There’s no release date just yet but the game will playable at PAX East in Massachusetts this weekend, so it looks like the title’s promotional cycle is already well underway.
Is this something you’d be interested in playing at all? Let us know below.