Acornia: Mirror Worlds preview – Tinykin developer Splashteam has created another captivating adventure

After playing and loving Tinykin back in 2022, I’ve been eager to find out what developer Splashteam has been working on next. Today, all has been revealed with the announcement of Acornia: Mirror Worlds, an action-adventure game that, in the same vein as Moonlighter, has you managing a shop and defeating enemies in order to gather materials.

That’s where the differences begin and end, though. In Acornia, you’re cast as a squirrel. And rather than travelling to a far-off dungeon to fight enemies, you can switch to a more dangerous world at any time with the touch of a button. Yes, the old dual dimension mechanic is at play here, but with you completely in control of how and when you switch, it seems to work very well.

I’ve been lucky enough to get my hands on an early build of Acornia: Mirror Worlds, and I’ve played through the first couple of hours of the game. In terms of art style, it’s clear to see that this is from the same team of talented people that brought us Tinykin. But in terms of gameplay, it feels very different indeed. Not that that’s a bad thing: I’m two hours in, and I’m completely hooked.

In the regular dimension, as I’ll call it, the land of Acornia: Mirror Worlds – a large tree that’s been damaged due to corruption seeping in from the dark dimension – everything is peaceful. You can collect fruit off trees, meet the townsfolk, run your shop, and generally have a nice, relaxing time. Switch to that dark world – known as the Duramen dimension – though, and the very same map becomes much more ominous, plagued with enemies. By firing gathered materials with her mouth, your squirrel protagonist can fight against them, picking up valuable resources as she goes.

Not only will those resources be used to craft items you can sell in your store, they will also be used to gradually rebuild the village back in the regular dimension. There’s a lot to rebuild, and a number of story quests will lead you through what’s most pertinent – but you also have some player agency to tackle certain areas under your own steam. Over the course of the preview I’ve only explored a small part of Acornia’s tree, but it’s safe to say there’s a lot to sink your teeth into here.

While the adventuring plays a sizeable part of the game, the main focus of Acornia: Mirror Worlds is in running your shop, crafting items and expanding the town. The end goal of venturing into the corrupted dimension is always to gain materials, which in turn can be used to improve your shop and the town. It means that Acornia can perhaps feel a little repetitive at times, but if you enjoy that steady gameplay loop of gathering, crafting and expanding, you’re going to absolutely love this.

And, thankfully, I do. Games where I can fix and improve something over time – whether it’s an object, a shop, or a whole village – are my favourites, and there’s something so fulfilling about seeing those improvements accumulate. Starting with a vegetable patch and ending with houses, supermarkets, parks and more, seeing Acornia come together is already a real joy. I absolutely cannot wait to experience the full game, and Acornia: Mirror Worlds is now high on my most anticipated games list for 2027.

Acornia: Mirror Worlds is coming to PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Switch and PC in 2027.