Nekonome Launches Shogi Game KIOU on iOS, Android, and Steam
KIOU enters a market dominated by titles like Shogi Wars by offering unlimited free matches and character-driven features, positioning itself as a potential gateway to attract younger players to competitive shogi.
Key Facts
- Nekonome Co., Ltd. released the competitive shogi game KIOU on June 12, 2026 for iOS and Android, and on June 14, 2026 for Steam (PC).
- The game features the KIOU AI, created by professional shogi player Hiroki Taniai 5-dan, which suggests moves during matches.
- The character cast includes voice actors Nobuhiko Okamoto (Shiro Okaniya) and Rina Hidaka (Mikuri Nanase).
- The pickup rate for featured characters in limited-time event gacha is 2.500%, which a Game Spark play report notes is high compared to many games' typical 1% rate.
- A monthly 'AI Analysis Pass' subscription provides evaluation value graphs, move evaluations, and recommended sequences for post-game review.
Reporting from 3 sources: 4Gamer.net, ASCII.jp, Game Spark.
Nekonome Co., Ltd. released the competitive shogi game KIOU on June 12, 2026 for iOS and Android, followed by a Steam (PC) version on June 14. The game is free-to-play with optional in-app purchases. It features the KIOU AI, created by professional shogi player Hiroki Taniai 5-dan, which suggests moves during matches. Players can choose from online, ranked, casual, and CPU battle modes, with time settings including the Fischer rule, 3-minute sudden death, and 10-second shogi. The game also includes a cast of characters with voice acting, an affection system, and effects for strategies. The Android version is currently distributed as an APK file from the official website, with a Google Play release planned later. A monthly subscription for AI analysis is available. The game aims to appeal to both beginners and advanced players.
The game is set in a "relaxed fantasy" cafe called Cafe KIOU, where characters include kemomimi girls and boys, a nun, a kunoichi, and modern students. The character cast includes voice actors Nobuhiko Okamoto (Shiro Okaniya) and Rina Hidaka (Mikuri Nanase). Okamoto is known as an amateur shogi dan holder, and Hidaka played the main heroine in the shogi anime "The Ryuo's Work is Never Done!"
To collect characters, players use an "Enmusubi" gacha system. The pickup rate for featured characters in limited-time event gacha is 2.500%, which the Game Spark play report notes is high compared to many games' typical 1% rate. Gacha also yields accessories that change board and piece design and BGM, and gifts that raise character intimacy. Raising intimacy to max and using a special gift unlocks a "Master-Disciple Contract" that unlocks all system voice lines.
The game includes hundreds of tsume shogi puzzles with 1-move and 3-move checkmate patterns. In CPU matches, players can display a "Move Guide" that suggests natural moves. The "KIOU Awakening" feature, activated with a ticket, changes the screen background and has an AI suggest candidate moves. A monthly "AI Analysis Pass" subscription provides evaluation value graphs, move evaluations, and recommended sequences for post-game review.
Nekonome Co., Ltd. is based in Chuo-ku, Tokyo, with Representative Director Sean Kudo. The LINE "KIOU Official Shop" offers in-game currency "Kiseki Stones" at 5% off compared to in-app purchases, and allows purchase of an additional set of some one-time special sets.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 3 cited sources below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.