Aniimo Closed Beta Trailer Reveals New Free-to-Play 3D Creature RPG Multiplayer
Developer Pawprint Studio has released a brand-new trailer for Aniimo, its upcoming free-to-play creature-collecting RPG. The game is slated to arrive on Steam, the Epic Games Store, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S in the near future, and this latest video is timed to celebrate the start of Aniimo’s Closed Beta. That beta has now gone live on Steam for a limited audience of fans worldwide.
Aniimo was first revealed during the June 2025 Xbox Showcase. Pawprint Studio’s official pitch frames it as a “free-to-play, creature-catching open-world RPG” where players explore the world of Idyll. It has also drawn frequent comparisons to a 3D Pokemon-style experience, largely because of its monster-catching loop and the way its collectible creatures are presented. Earlier this year, during the Summer Game Fest Future Games Show, Aniimo received an official release window set for Q3 2026, alongside news that a global closed beta would happen before launch.
Pokemon Legends: Z-A is also scheduled to receive an update on July 15 that “completely changes the way the game is played.”
Aniimo’s Closed Beta Trailer Shows Off Forms, Zones, and Co-Op Social Play
Pawprint Studio’s new Aniimo trailer is a compact, stylized look at what players can check out during the global closed beta that’s just started. Running for about a minute and a half, the video highlights multiple beta features, including newly introduced Aniimo forms as well as a range of multiplayer modes and social options.
One of the more notable additions shown in the trailer is a water-themed area called “Crescent Bay.” The video also introduces “Nimbi delivery service,” described as Aniimo’s social hub. In that hub space, players can buy new clothing options, drop by a pet park, and trade Aniimo with other players.
- Aniimo is in a global closed beta that is currently accessible on Steam, the official game launcher, and iOS and Android.
- The beta signup window opened on June 6, but once the test began, new signups are no longer available for additional access.
- There’s no official confirmation yet on whether a public beta is planned, though the Q3 2026 release window suggests a full launch is likely soon after.
At the moment, the closed beta is active across multiple platforms, but the flow for players has changed since the initial registration period. While registration opened on June 6, the beta is now open for select participants only, and new players cannot register to gain entry. Pawprint Studio has not confirmed whether a public beta will be offered later, but with the game’s Q3 2026 launch target, players may not have to wait long once the closed beta period ends.
While Pawprint Studio has kept a large portion of Aniimo under wraps since the game’s June 2025 announcement, the last few weeks have brought a noticeable increase in details. Around three weeks before this closed beta trailer, the studio released a longer Aniimo Gameplay Showcase video.
That showcase included nearly eight minutes of in-engine footage, giving fans fresh looks at new Aniimo-powered traversal moves. It also showed a third-person catching approach that mirrors the feel of Pokemon Legends: Arceus, plus examples of real-time combat. The result was a clearer view of how the game’s exploration, capture mechanics, and battles may connect once players are actually in control.
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Why Aniimo’s “Twine” Transformation Mechanic Matters
One of the biggest design differences that sets Aniimo apart from Pokemon and other monster-collecting titles is that it allows the player to become one of the creatures they’ve caught. Pawprint Studio refers to this mechanic as “Twine.” The Gameplay Showcase trailer includes multiple examples of how Twine plays in practice, including moments where the player transforms into a cactus-like Aniimo to land melee attacks. Another example features a gumball machine octopus Aniimo that fires bubble-based ranged attacks.
