Remember how mad your parents got over you playing video games and ignoring your chores, such as cleaning your room? Well, another game in the genre I call “chore gaming” is coming out on Steam on September 30th, 2026 (tomorrow as of this writing), called Monster Museum: Tidy Up the Collection. The closeness many of these monsters hold to a certain Nintendo owned property is amazing. We saw the lengths Nintendo would go to over Palworld – I wonder how long far they will go with Monster Museum?
A Monster of a Mess to Clean Up
Unlike other, similar, titles that have you sorting one million of something nearly identical, Monster Museum is keeping the challenge much more palatable. This monster sorting title only challenges you with around 2,500 pieces to work with.
Each monster has different evolutions and everything – come on, did they feed an AI Pokemon and prompt “make something lawsuit ready”?
Anyhow, as with most of these, it appears to be an overwhelming mess at the beginning that gradually gets easier as you sort – I refuse to call it “play”, this is a chore.
Don’t Tell Nintendo
From the very obvious Charizard in one room to the various other creatures shown in the trailer, it appears Monster Museum will be a slam dunk for Nintendo if they pursue legal action. Knowing Nintendo, they likely will once they learn of this release.
I am not adept at what Pokemon evolved into so I cannot point out a ton of potential infringements but oh so many of these creatures look familiar.
That could be a bad thing or a good thing depending on how you look at it, and if you are Nintendo or not.
At the bottom of the Steam page there is a graphic claiming “Made by Humans” but then there is a reviewer stating that the developer has participated in AI game development jams. Their only other title available on Steam does feature an AI use disclosure statement.
As I have stated before, my stance on AI is neither here nor there as long as the end result is something I enjoy. What is your stance on these chore games and AI use in game development? Let me know in the comments below (or link me to your posts about your feelings on either topic).