Game Freak reveals weather-powered laundry game

Game Freak has announced its strangest-sounding side project in years: Ame no Chi Hare Onna, a free-to-play mobile ‘laundry game’ for iOS and Android that folds real-world weather data into its gameplay — and it is being directed by the lead director of the Pokémon series himself, Shigeru Ohmori.

What's actually going on

According to GamesRadar+, the game is co-developed by Chronogate and is set in modern-day Japan. It follows characters called Hare Onna and Kumorin, who can harness the weather and turn it into magic. The title is due to use real-world weather data as part of its gameplay loop, with the precise mechanics still to be detailed — more information is promised via a ‘Hare Onna Club Meeting’ stream and at Tokyo Game Show.

Ohmori has led the Pokémon series since Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire more than a decade ago. The announcement arrives before Pokémon Winds and Waves releases next year, continuing Game Freak’s habit of shipping smaller titles alongside the franchise — from HarmoKnight and Little Town Hero to Tembo the Badass Elephant and, most recently, Beast of Reincarnation.

Why you should care

A weather-driven magical-girl laundry game from the mainline Pokémon director is exactly the kind of left-field experiment Game Freak only gets to make because of the franchise’s success — and those experiments have historically produced genuinely interesting games. Real-world data hooks are rare enough in mobile titles that this one is worth watching purely to see how the mechanic works.

It is also a useful signal about Game Freak’s mobile ambitions. The studio has released mobile games fairly frequently of late, and putting one of its most senior directors on an original IP suggests this is more than a throwaway side project. Tokyo Game Show should tell us how it actually plays.

Our opinion

This sounds absurd, and that is precisely why it might be brilliant. A laundry game that checks the actual sky before you play is the sort of curious idea that gets remembered, and Game Freak’s track record with oddities is better than people admit. We are cautiously fascinated — and genuinely hoping the weather mechanic is more than a gimmick.