Childlike fantasies are a great basis for video games: being invited to learn magic, going on an exploration, making friends with cute but powerful monsters. Roco Kingdom blends these fantasies into one big MMO-like adventure centered on monster taming. In Roco Kingdom, developed by MoreFun Studios, players can live out these fantasies by befriending creatures called Jines and then mastering their magic to further their adventures.
Coming out of a playtest of Roco Kingdom, I can’t help but think this just might be a big deal. There’s a special ingredient that Roco Kingdom has that makes a monster taming game really appealing: cohesion. The design of the Jinis is diverse but maintains an underlying design language. While the open world is broad, the sections I explored have quite a bit of density. Tying it all together is a dash of childlike wonder.
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Part of that cohesion is that developer Morefun Studios isn’t working entirely from zero. Roco Kingdom is actually something of a reboot of a Chinese browser game from 2010. That means that the base world-building and Jini design has a bit of a head start on others in this space. This new version is taking those elements and rebuilding them around an open world as a north star.
MoreFun Studios’ Roco Kingdom feels nostalgic in a great way.
That north star does admittedly look like other free to play gatcha games. It can be forgiven for taking a glance at Roco Kingdom and immediately thinking of Genshin Impact. The anime-inspired cel-shaded style typically associated with Genshin doesn’t inspire a sense of uniqueness at first, but the focus on an all-ages experience does create some different priorities. The biomes themselves are a little bit softer, and the character costumes skew in such a way that they’re fun for a kid to wear as an expensive Halloween costume.
The monster taming genre is a robust one with games like Coromon, Cassette Beasts, and Monster Hunter Stories carving out their places – and fans – within it. However, the entire genre continues to circle around its most famous title: Pokémon. Roco Kingdom cannot escape that vortex, and it’s impossible not to think about what it borrows and what it avoids replicating from the iconic brand.
To some degree, Roco Kingdom knows this and leans into that expectation. At the beginning of a player’s journey, they will be given the ability to pick a “starter” Jini, and their classes (what Roco Kingdom calls types) are based on the exact same cycle of fire, grass, and water that Pokêmon does. Naturally, continuing to train and adventure leads many Jini to evolve into more complex and powerful forms, similarly to Pokémon. Several designs share similarities with infamous Pokémon, such as the yellow duck Duckiji compared to Psyduck.
At the same time, surface-level similarities give way to the differences that could make Roco Kingdom a hit. Yes, Duckiji is a yellow duck like Psyduck, but a set of grouchy eyebrows sets the two apart. The way classes interact with each other in combat goes a bit further than the traditional damage multipliers that Pokémon introduced decades ago. The open world is far more thoughtfully implemented than Pokémon Scarlet and Violet could wish to be, if only because Roco Kingdom has buildings players can actually enter.
Beyond the comparisons, the online elements are a promising aspect of Roco Kingdom. Morefun Studios is looking to create a casual, stress-free environment for players, in line with the target audience of kids and teens. There are some generally solid MMO basics to push for that goal. Any Jini can be used as a mount for traveling, and that includes adding a second player as a passenger. A housing system gives players customizable hubs to meet up and watch Jines interact. Players can even hold hands while on their adventure, which is adorable.
On the flip side, Roco Kingdom does have a player-versus-player element to it. Like other monster-taming games, the battle system is turn-based, where players choose between attacking, using a battle item, or switching out their Jini for a new one.
Rocco Kingdom captures the whimsy and connection that Pokémon started decades ago.
Yes, once again like Pokémon. But because classes interact on deeper levels, sometimes an opponent will make an attack that triggers a counterattack, or boosts a stat. In addition, battles use an energy system that moves use different amounts of as a cost. These details add more decision-making to each turn.
With a promised 400 Jines to start with, it’s unclear if PVP will stay a casual fun experience or if a metagame will form. With the right balance, there’s a good chance of a proper competitive scene to form around Roco Kingdom. Morefun wants the training grind to only take around a week for a single Jini to be battle-ready, so there’s some accessibility there. It’s also a possible monetization source to tap, which is worth keeping an eye on.
Plenty of games in the genre have explored mechanics and designs like these. But Roco Kingdom comes away a bit more special due to trying to recapture the childish whimsy that Pokémon does so well. If it can deliver on the premise, to say nothing of keeping it going with planned scenario expansions on a free-to-play game, Roco Kingdom could be a game we all hear much more about in the years to come.
