By Aniimo has launched as a free-to-play title, and despite some mixed reactions to changes since the playtest, we’ve already put around four hours in and are having a great time with it. We took it for a spin on Steam Machine to sort out a startup issue and work out the best settings for a smooth experience.
Fixing the crash to desktop on startup
Out of the box, Aniimo has some trouble getting going. The current default Proton version causes the game to crash back to desktop right after it reaches the server list. The fix is simple: switch the compatibility tool to Proton 10 (search for it in your compatibility tool list if it isn’t already there) and the game will start up as intended.
We also recommend switching the game to DirectX 12 mode to get the best out of the graphics. One more quirk to sort out before you dive in: Aniimo starts up with its keyboard-and-mouse control template active, which makes it look like gamepad support is missing. It isn’t — just switch the controller layout over to one of the gamepad templates and you’ll get full controller support.
4K performance
Running at full 4K on Steam Machine with low graphics settings and FSR enabled, Aniimo is just about playable, but only in the 30-40 FPS range, and the drops are noticeable — it’s not an especially stable experience at that resolution. If you want to push 4K, low settings is the way to go, or you could lean on Mako frame generation to smooth things out. We’d generally recommend dropping the resolution instead, though, for a much steadier experience overall.
1440p and 1080p: the sweet spot
At 1440p on medium settings, Aniimo generally sits in the 70s and 80s FPS, though the world here changes quite a bit depending on what’s around you. In combat with less terrain nearby, we saw closer to 80-90 FPS, while heavier scenery and water views can drop things into the 60s, and a busy hub full of other players can take a bit of a hit too. Overall, though, medium settings at 1440p perform exceptionally well.
Drop to 1080p and you can bump up to the high preset while still holding a very stable 80+ FPS. At that resolution, you can also afford to back off FSR in favour of TAAU, since 1080p doesn’t need as much help to look good. The visual difference between high and medium mostly comes down to more defined trees, and overall the gap between 1440p and 1080p — both in looks and performance — isn’t especially large.
Our recommended settings
For the easiest route, we recommend running Aniimo at medium settings at 1440p. If you want to push the visuals a little further, high settings with shadows dropped back to medium gets you nearly all of the same performance — medium overall nets you roughly 5-10 more FPS — while still looking noticeably sharper out in the open world.
In battles, expect around 60 FPS with the occasional dip when things get intense, and you may get some loading spikes here and there, but overall performance holds up well. Even in crowded hubs full of other players, the high-with-medium-shadows setup we tested still held over 60 FPS.
Four hours in, level 30, and without spending a penny, we’ve been having a great time with Aniimo on Steam Machine. Let us know in the comments if you’re diving in too, and how your run is going so far.