GameCube Classic Chibi-Robo Getting Spiritual Successor from Original Developers

In 2005, Nintendo and developer Skip, Ltd. released Chibi-Robo! on GameCube. In the decade that followed, the little robot would appear in multiple games spanning various Nintendo consoles. Unfortunately, the character has been missing since 2015’s Chibi-Robo! Zip-Lash, and there has been no indication that Nintendo plans on bringing back the series. While Skip, Ltd. is no longer around, several series veterans have created Tiny Wonder Studio, and the developer’s first project is a spiritual successor to Chibi-Robo! which will be known as koROBO. 

Like so many other spiritual successors out there, koROBO will mimic a lot of the concepts that people love about the original game. In koROBO, players will take on the role of a tiny robot that must handle various tasks around a home, including cleaning and watering plants. Of course, the robot will have to stay charged to keep helping, and he’ll have to find patches of sunlight to refill his solar battery. In a funny twist on the original Chibi-Robo! game, the robot is not some top of the line robotic pal; instead it’s actually a knock-off (hence the “ko” in the game’s name). That’s a pretty funny way of approaching the spiritual successor concept! 

Original Chibi-Robo! veterans returning for koROBO include directors Kenichi Nishi and Hiroshi Moriyama, composer Hirofumi Taniguchi, and artist Hikarin. Chibi-Robo! Zip-Lash director Keita Eto is also returning. With so many people closely associated with the series, it seems like a safe bet that koROBO will be able to capture the heart and feel of the series. In a press release, Nishi talked about the game’s upcoming Kickstarter campaign. 

“Our goal is to create a game that everyone can enjoy, so koROBO is intended to be a cozy and comfy game that we hope everyone will fall in love with. The core of koROBO is all about bringing people together and working towards a better tomorrow and this campaign, combined with your support, is a wonderful opportunity to bring fans of video games together – something that would make our tiny hero proud,” writes Nishi. “The future is a dream we all share! Let’s make it a reality together.”

The koROBO Kickstarter campaign will begin on July 22nd, and will run through August 23rd. The developers aim to bring the game to both PC and modern consoles. Nothing has been said about a Switch version, but given that the audience for this game will likely be Nintendo fans, hopefully we’ll see it on the platform. Of course, that could largely depend on the Kickstarter’s success. Readers interested in the campaign can learn more right here. 

Are you excited to check out koROBO? Did you play Chibi-Robo! on Nintendo GameCube? Share your thoughts with me directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp, on Bluesky at @Marcdachamp, or on Instagram at @Dachampgaming!