Animal Crossing’s New Cozy Competition Gets a Release Date

Many Animal Crossing fans have been feeling the lack of a new game. It’s been almost five years since Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and the live service elements of mobile game Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp have been shut down. With the confirmation that the Nintendo Switch 2 is indeed on the way, many have their hopes set on a new Animal Crossing game soon. In the meantime, another cozy franchise has finally confirmed the release date for its latest game. Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time will release worldwide for all platforms on May 21st, 2025.

Fantasy Life is an RPG and life sim hybrid series developed by Level-5. The first Fantasy Life game came out for the Nintendo 3DS in 2014, and while it never quite reached Animal Crossing levels of popularity, it has a dedicated fanbase. It was followed by an online mobile game called Fantasy Life Online, which built on the multiplayer component. Much like Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp, the mobile Fantasy Life game is no longer supported (at least, not in the West).

Fans of Fantasy Life, and anyone looking forward to a new, rich open world RPG with life sim elements, have had an eye on Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time for quite a while. It was announced in 2023, the same year the mobile game went offline. At that time, it was supposed to release the same year, but got delayed to 2024, then again to April 2025. Now, the release date has yet again shifted, landing on May 21st, 2025. This is the first time an exact day and time have been announced, so it looks as if this latest release date for Fantasy Life i is likely to stick.

What is Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time About?

While many cozy gamers have compared Fantasy Life to games like Animal Crossing: New Horizons. After all, the game includes adorable chibi-style characters that give off a similar adorable vibe to the inhabitants of Animal Crossing. There’s also decorating, cooking, and crafting components that will almost certainly scratch that Animal Crossing itch. Then of course, there’s the fact that you’ll design your own personal island in Fantasy Life i. And yes, the game will have a multiplayer element where friends can visit one another’s islands, much as Animal Crossing: New Horizons does. However, there are a few key differences to keep in mind.

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Fantasy Life i has more of an RPG flavor and overarching mission/plot compared to cozies like Animal Crossing. Players will delve into dungeons and engage in combat, something that many cozy gamers are divided on. Some love a good trip to the Stardew Valley mines, but others aren’t here to swing a sword when they’re trying to chill out. There’s also a (legitimate) time travel component, putting players in the role of traveling between the past and present to help save a destroyed kingdom.

Players will also be able to choose different “lives” aka professions, giving them specific skills to focus on mastering. This, alongside the game’s massive open world, makes Fantasy Life i much larger in scope than Animal Crossing, while still offering a similar cozy vibe for those eager to collect, craft, and cook. When it launches on May 21st, Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time will be available on Nintendo Switch, PC via Steam, PS4, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S.