Reviewed on: PlayStation 5
Platform: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Publisher: THQ Nordic
Developer: Tarsier Studios
Release: February 13, 2026
Rating: Mature

Reanimal is an adventure game: you press forward, avoid untimely deaths, collect keys, and work with your partner to escape. But Reanimal is also a punctual game about the cost of war, and the children, always innocent, whose lives will forever be marred by the actions of adults – endlessly greedy, cruel, and disgusting. Developer Tarsier Studios has crafted its best gameplay yet, with cinematic cinematography, macabre puzzles, and a dynamic use of mechanical and engaging verbs. Its co-op design, however, is lacking, making little use of playing with someone beside you or in your headset. Playing with the AI instead solidifies that Reanimal is best played alone, soaking in the bloodshed Tarsier asks you to endure. 

Watch Our Reanimal Review:

As the name implies, animals play a significant role throughout the five-hour duration of Reanimal – they are metaphors for what the worst of humanity can become when their fangs come out, and the twisted and bloodthirsty creatures that will pursue you endlessly in this hell. Animal lovers beware: I bludgeoned raucous seagulls to death with a crowbar, listened to pigs squeal until they couldn’t anymore in a barn lit ablaze, and fired missiles at hulking horses, amongst other things. It was graphic and gruesome, but it was the only way to save the protagonist’s friends, and so I trudged on. This game is not kind, but it is touching in an admittedly sick way, revelatory of the struggles of children whose streets have become trenches and how far they must go to reclaim the innocence they deserve. 

Your enjoyment with Reanimal as a game will depend on how far you’re willing to follow these kids through hell to rescue that innocence.

Controlling the Boy with an AI companion controlling the Girl, his sister, reduces the dissonance that otherwise appears when laughing,yelling, and thinking out loud with someone on the couch next to you, playing as the Girl (and no, you don’t get to choose who plays as who). This somber journey is best played in silence, and the lack of smart co-op mechanics proves that point. As I searched for keys to unlock doors while hiding from elongated men, stretched and deformed to an almost unrecognizable state, I forgot the Girl was with me, save for her occasional grunts. While hiding from that same man, now ironing the cold and gray skin of the dead spilling out of every nearby apartment building, I never worried about whether the Girl was sneaking successfully to the next room over. In co-op, though, the communication between me and the person I played with shattered the tension, piercing an atmosphere crucial to the formula. 

A few strong moments do counter my feelings on the co-op. I enjoyed playing together for miniature combat arenas and boss fights that amp up the stakes and drama that the dreary, slow, and methodical puzzles keep at bay. The same goes for chase scenes, reminiscent of ‘90s platformers where I ran toward the screen, jumping over boxes and sliding under planks while sprinting away from something I can only describe as a perverse cross between a man and a lamb. 

 

Though I love this specific style of adventure game, its formula has waned in recent years as it felt like developers have struggled to introduce new terms to the diegetic vocabulary of the genre’s mechanics – I can only jump over gaps, open up trap doors that require two sets of hands, and solve simple environmental puzzles for so long. Tarsier is aware of this, adding a variety of verbs like shoot, beat and bludgeon, throttle, aim, and drive to the adventure lexicon, and Reanimal is the most arresting game yet of this ilk in some time. 

Its audio design matches the gameplay in stride, but the same can’t be said for its visuals – though horrendously gorgeous (and it runs perfectly), the various settings are bleak and drab. Fitting of the narrative, yes, but my eyes had little to feast on in an undisclosed apartment building, a sandy overrun highway, and a wartorn metropolis. The monotony of Reanimal’s grays does, however, allow explosions of color to shine with otherworldly terror and mystique. 

Reanimal is a simple game with a challenging subject matter. Those looking for a fun co-op experience should look elsewhere, as it is neither great as a shared experience nor fun. But it is thought-provoking and stimulating, and if you can stomach combat suicide, animal harm, and more – all proxies for the effects of war on the people who wage it and the victims of that destruction – Tarsier has created something worth wrestling with. 

Score: 8.25

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Konami has announced a new Silent Hill Transmission that will air on Thursday, February 12. The broadcast will share new updates on upcoming titles, including the mysterious Silent Hill: Townfall, which was first announced in 2022.

The broadcast will begin at 4:00 p.m. PT/7:00 p.m. ET and will likely be streamed to YouTube and Twitch (though Konami has not yet confirmed how to watch). Although Konami confirms that Silent Hill: Townfall will be a topic of discussion, it does not specify what else the Transmission has in store other than sharing “the latest updates from the Silent Hill series.”

Silent Hill: Townfall was announced during the first Silent Hill Transmission in October 2022, and is the only remaining project from that showcase that hasn’t released (the show also revealed the Silent Hill 2 remake, Silent Hill f, Silent Hill Ascension, and the film Return to Silent Hill). Next to nothing has been shared about Townfall since then; all we know is that Screen Burn (formerly known as No Code), the studio behind Observation and Stories Untold, is developing it. Townfall is also being co-produced with Annapurna Interactive. 

You can check out its original teaser trailer below:

Beyond Townfall, the other Silent Hill project confirmed to be in production is Bloober Team’s remake of the first Silent Hill game, which was first revealed in June 2025. There’s a good chance we’ll hear more about that title, but anything else beyond that is anyone’s guess.

February 12 is a big day for showcases, as the Silent Hill Transmission airs not long after an hour-long PlayStation State of Play. What do you expect or hope to see during the Silent Hill Transmission? Let us know in the comments. 

Developer and publisher Unknown Worlds Entertainment has revealed that Nintendo Switch 2 Editions of Subnautica and Subnautica: Below Zero are launching next week, on February 17. The upgraded editions of these uber-popular underwater survival games will bring enhanced resolutions and frame rates to deep-sea adventures, alongside other improvements like optimized Joy-Con 2 controls and more. 

Plus, if you already own Subnautica or Subnautica: Below Zero on Nintendo Switch, you can upgrade to the Switch 2 editions for free via the Nintendo eShop. Unknown Worlds says both games have received graphical improvements for Switch 2 – when docked, players can expect 1440p resolution, while handheld mode supports 1080p. The games run at 60 FPS, docked and handheld, and the optimized Joy-Con 2 controllers enable more precise movement and refined interaction. 

"What has always made Subnautica special is the community around it, from the stories players share to the discoveries they make and the sense of wonder that comes from exploring an unknown world together," Unknown Worlds producer Michael Varette writes in a press release. "Bring Subnautica and Subnautica: Below Zero to Nintendo Switch 2 is about welcoming new players into that community, while giving longtime fans a chance to explore these worlds again in a way that feels fresh, smooth, and more immersive." 

Subnautica and Subnautica: Below Zero launch on Switch 2 next week on February 17. 

Elsewhere in the world of Subnautica, Unknown Worlds has released a fifth developer vlog for the in-development Subnautica 2, and it focuses on new multiplayer features. 

For more, read Game Informer's reviews of Subnautica and Subnautica: Below Zero. 

Are you going to check out these games on Switch 2 next week? Let us know in the comments below!