I imagine HoYoverse is not expecting to immediately overcome Animal Crossing’s cultural impact.

Characters like Tom Nook and K.K. Slider are video game icons, and it’s going to be practically impossible for Petit Planet to displace them.

But I do think this cosy new effort from the Genshin Impact maker may have a shot at swallowing up some of Nintendo’s market share, if only because the Chinese dev is known to iterate at a pace its Japanese rival will simply be unable to match.

I always thought it was strange that the platform holder pulled the plug on Animal Crossing: New Horizons updates so soon after the Switch game became a pandemic phenomenon.

Subscribe to Push Square on YouTube172k

I know there’s a lot of criticism of the live service model, but I think life sims like this are built for constant updates: furniture sets, cosmetics, seasonal activities – you can basically iterate on these kinds of games forever. Just look at The Sims 4.

This Free Animal Crossing Rival Could Give Nintendo a Serious Headache 2

Having poured hundreds of hours into titles like Honkai: Star Rail and Zenless Zone Zero, I know that’s what HoYoverse is going to do here, across a variety of platforms – including PC and mobile.

Considering the only real analogue available on PS5 right now is Disney Dreamlight Valley – ignoring indie efforts like Starsand Island, which have much smaller budgets – I think Sony should be moving heaven and earth to get Petit Planet on its platform.

The game’s officially set to launch this winter and I got a look at its latest build in the business area at Gamescom last week.

I’ve played this game a bit before, but starting with a more mature save, I was able to appreciate the exploration aspects the game is offering as well.

At its core, this is very much building off Animal Crossing’s foundations, as you construct your own village and invite colourful characters to come and live with you.

This Free Animal Crossing Rival Could Give Nintendo a Serious Headache 3

You can grow different crops, craft various pieces of furniture, and interact with your neighbours.

The camera is pitched identically to Animal Crossing, with the spherical stages rotating as you explore. Emergent activities happen all over your “town” or “village”, so there’s always something to interact with.

Or you can just play dress-up with the various clothes and accessories you’ve unlocked, and change the appearance of your avatar.

Personally, I’m not an enormous fan of the character designs, as they all look like the kind of blind boxes you’d find in Miniso or Pop Mart. This “look” has never been my cup of tea, but it’s enormously popular, as reflected by the short-lived Labubu craze last year.

This Free Animal Crossing Rival Could Give Nintendo a Serious Headache 4

With only an hour to play, I spent most of my time interacting with the Starsea Voyage mode, which is something I didn’t mess about with much during the recent closed beta.

Essentially, this allows you to “drive” out into the cosmos to explore different “Islets”, small little maps with content to discover on them.

For example, on one Islet I found some rare seeds, which I could then take back to my own island to grow. On another, I discovered a hat maker who was willing to craft some unique headwear for me to equip.

I know Animal Crossing has similar content, but I think there’s a greater sense of adventure here, with some actual puzzles and more traditional “adventure”-style gameplay. Based on what I’ve seen, this is definitely the most unique aspect of the game.

This Free Animal Crossing Rival Could Give Nintendo a Serious Headache 5

I think it’s going to be interesting to see how Nintendo and the other platforms view this project. I’m sure Sony would kill to have this game on its console, as like I mentioned there’s no real alternative, outside of Disney Dreamlight Valley.

But I do wonder whether the Mario maker will see this as a threat.

Like I mentioned at the start of this preview, Animal Crossing has a headstart due to its built-in fanbase and established characters – but Petit Planet is going to be free, cross-platform, cross-save, and will have the advantage of HoYoverse’s unprecedented post-release support.

The dev tells me it is planning to bring this game to more platforms than the already announced PC and mobile.

I’ll be flabbergasted if the PS5 isn’t among them, even though I don’t necessarily expect Sony’s console to be the most popular platform for the precise type of experience the dev is delivering.

This Free Animal Crossing Rival Could Give Nintendo a Serious Headache 6

Is Petit Planet the type of game you’d play on PS5 at all, or are cosy games like this not really your cup of tea? Do you think HoYoverse has a shot at stealing some of Animal Crossing’s audience here? Settle down in the comments section below.