Some games want you to sit back and relax.
Orbitals wants you to text your best friend at 2 am and say, “We are piloting a spaceship together next year, whether you like it or not.”
Revealed at The Game Awards 2025, Orbitals is a brand-new, anime-drenched sci-fi co-op adventure from Tokyo indie studio Shapefarm, published by Kepler Interactive. It launches exclusively on Nintendo Switch 2 in 2026, which already feels like a power move.
This is Shapefarm’s first original IP, and it looks like they’re swinging straight for cult-classic energy.
What is Orbitals?
You and your chosen co-pilot play as Maki and Omura, two enthusiastic but hilariously under-qualified explorers trying to save their collapsing space station from a supernatural cosmic storm.
The vibe is retro anime meets cosy sci-fi.
Think early 90s aesthetics, hand-drawn cutscenes, chunky space tools, glowing consoles, and two characters who are probably not paid enough for what they are about to go through.
Expect to:
• Solve asymmetrical puzzles that require actual teamwork
• Fly through asteroid fields without breaking up as friends
• Use weird and wonderful gadgets to open new routes
• Stop and admire backgrounds that look like they were painted on a cel in 1993
• Become emotionally attached to space equipment, because of course you will
Orbitals is built in Unreal Engine 5 and fully tailored to the Nintendo Switch 2 hardware.
Built For All The Ways Friends Play
Orbitals has been designed from the ground up for co-op.
You can:
• Play split-screen with two pairs of Joy-Con 2 controllers
• Use GameShare to share the game to another Switch 2 or Switch device
• Matchmake online with friends
• Use the built-in Switch 2 microphone for crystal-clear GameChat
Basically, if you have a friend, a sibling, a partner, or a local cryptid who loves puzzles, you will be roping them into this.
And yes, this is extremely ND-friendly gaming.
Asymmetrical co-op is heaven for brains that like pattern-solving, role-division, sensory variation, and hyperfocus tasks. Nothing bonds autistic people like yelling “NO, THE OTHER LEVER” in perfect harmony.
Anime DNA Down to the Bone
Orbitals isn’t just anime-inspired. It is anime.
The devs have partnered with Studio Massket, the team behind hundreds of iconic Japanese animated works, to handcraft cutscenes that look straight out of a lost VHS-era classic.
Both English and Japanese voice tracks are included, which means you can choose your flavour of chaos. The whole presentation is drenched in warmth, reverence, and style.
This is the type of game that’s going to have people making fan cams before it even launches.
The Team Behind It
Shapefarm is a Tokyo studio made up of international artists obsessed with Japanese visual storytelling.
Orbitals is their debut title, but it already feels like the start of something special.
Their publisher, Kepler Interactive, has been on a roll with distinctive, art-driven titles like Sifu, Rematch, Pacific Drive, and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. They know how to find the developers who swing for the fences.
Official site: www.orbitalsgame.com
Follow the game on social platforms for updates.
TLDR;
• Orbitals is a retro-anime co-op sci-fi adventure coming to Nintendo Switch 2 in 2026
• Play as two explorers navigating puzzles, asteroid fields, and cosmic storms
• Built entirely around asymmetrical multiplayer with local, share-play, and online co-op
• Gorgeous hand-crafted cutscenes from Studio Massket
• Perfect for puzzle nerds, anime lovers, and anyone who enjoys yelling affectionately at a friend
Orbitals wants two people to save the galaxy together.
We love a low-stakes apocalypse with high-stakes teamwork.
Stay unruly.
