*Aniimo* has been released: behind the *Pokémon* comparisons lies a gacha game that is already dividing critics.

p>Aniimo is officially available starting today, September 16, on PC (Steam and Epic Games Store), PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S—with mobile versions arriving on September 23, as announced by Pawprint Studio.In our earlier report this month, we covered "Twining"—the process of fusing with a captured Aniimo. Now that the game is in players' hands, the rest of the equation is visible, and not every aspect is equally convincing.

Shortly before launch, the studio removed the random rune system from creature progression, offered refunds for certain investments players had already made, and clarified the spawn conditions for rare Prismana-type Aniimo, which should now appear more frequently in the wild.These tweaks directly address the areas where critical opinion is most divided: 80.lv describes a visually stunning world but notes a mixed reception, citing technical issues typical of an early-stage release and a progression system that feels all too familiar to free-to-play veterans.CGMagazine awards it a 7, particularly praising the concept of playing as an institute researcher studying Aniimo rather than the standard "trainer" archetype.

There is already a full list of achievements and trophies to hunt—a detail that will speak volumes to a certain segment of the audience: Palworld only added them post-launch, and Pokémon games on Nintendo consoles have never featured them.However, the comparison to Game Freak's franchise remains a difficult one to sustain in the long run; it is one thing to impress early on with a polished world, but quite another to maintain a free-to-play gacha game for months without losing the interest of free players.