Pokemon and Palworld alike Aniimo reveals a new critter alongside a release window - and it's this year

There's been a lot of successful Pokemon clones and creature collectors of late, but I think Aniimo might be the cutest (and the fluffiest).

You might recognise this new open-world creature collector ARPG mashup from its debut at the Xbox Games Showcase 2025 at last year's Summer Game Fest.

Up until now, we've not had a release date beyond a loose '2026', but developer Pawprint Studios just dropped that it's launching in Q3 2026 as part of the Future Games Show Summer Showcase. So that means we can get our hands on those little critters sometime between July and September, which really isn't long away at all.

Wishlist Aniimo on Steam now

In the game, you travel to a continent known as Idyll, which is your open world that's filled with various Aniimo. (There's even a new one in this FGS trailer that you can watch above.)

Aniimo are magical creatures that you can collect, evolve, and battle with them. There will be tonnes to discover, with some elusive and only appearing at certain times of day, weather conditions, or "phenomena".

You can even twine - or merge - with your Aniimo to gain their skills that you'll need to solve puzzles, use in battles and other challenges, which sounds pretty awesome.

Aniimo is launching on PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, iOS and Android in Q3 2026, but you can wishlist it right now on Steam.

If you're looking for more excellent games from today's Future Games Show, have a look at our official Steam page.

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Sam Loveridge is the Brand Director and former Global Editor-in-Chief of GamesRadar. She joined the team in August 2017. Sam came to GamesRadar after working at TrustedReviews, Digital Spy, and Fandom, following the completion of an MA in Journalism. In her time, she's also had appearances on The Guardian, BBC, and more. Her experience has seen her cover console and PC games, along with gaming hardware, for a decade, and for GamesRadar, she's in charge of the site's overall direction, managing the team, and making sure it's the best it can be. Her gaming passions lie with weird simulation games, big open-world RPGs, and beautifully crafted indies. She plays across all platforms, and specializes in titles like Pokemon, Assassin's Creed, The Sims, and more. Basically, she loves all games that aren't sports or fighting titles! In her spare time, Sam likes to live like Stardew Valley by cooking and baking, growing vegetables, and enjoying life in the countryside.