REANIMAL Wins Excellent Swedish Design Award Presented by Prince Carl Philip

REANIMAL has received one of Sweden’s most significant design honours, with Tarsier Studios’ co-op horror adventure selected for the 2026 Utmärkt Svensk Form award.

The award was presented by His Royal Highness Prince Carl Philip of Sweden during a ceremony on August 27. Organised by Svensk Form, Utmärkt Svensk Form translates as Excellent Swedish Form and recognises outstanding work across the country’s design disciplines rather than separating recipients into conventional categories.

That makes REANIMAL an especially interesting selection. Video games are often praised for art direction in isolation, but the jury considered the way Tarsier combines visual design with environmental storytelling, atmosphere and player interaction. Its citation highlighted how the game encourages players to explore, interpret what they encounter and construct meaning from its fragmented world.

Svensk Form describes Utmärkt Svensk Form as its most prestigious distinction. The award was originally established in 1983 and has now been revived to recognise Swedish design that combines artistic quality, strong ideas, relevance and craftsmanship.

For Tarsier Studios, the honour also places game development within a much broader Swedish design tradition. Studio CEO Oliver Merlöv said the recognition was particularly meaningful because of the different creative influences its developers bring to their work, which combine to produce something distinctive.

Released in February, REANIMAL follows an orphaned brother and sister attempting to rescue their missing friends and escape an island shaped by the darkest pieces of their past. It can be played alone or through local and online co-op, with a shared directed camera deliberately used to heighten claustrophobia and tension.

The game marked Tarsier’s return to the type of unsettling cinematic horror associated with its earlier work on Little Nightmares and Little Nightmares II. Its distorted creatures, damaged landscapes and interpretive storytelling now appear to have earned recognition beyond traditional game-industry awards.

REANIMAL has continued expanding since launch. The Prisoner, the opening chapter in a planned three-part Expanded World DLC campaign, is available now and introduces two new characters exploring war-ravaged areas of the game’s world.

REANIMAL is available on PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and Nintendo Switch 2. More information can be found through the official website.