The Yo-kai Watch franchise will be taking a break from television, but new plans are afoot. Level-5 CEO Akihiro Hino tweeted the news on February 24, 2023, saying that while the current Yo-kai Watch anime will be “taking a break”, more is in the works for the franchise as a whole.
Hino also included a photo of what looks like an entirely new character along with his comment.
テレビの妖怪ウォッチはいったんお休みしますが、妖怪ウォッチの流れをくむ、次なるすげえのを考えているので、妖怪好きな人はちょっと待ってて！ pic.twitter.com/DWZ4kRWJjG
— 日野晃博 (@AkihiroHino) February 24, 2023
The tweet mentioned that the Yo-kai Watch anime (a.k.a. the Yo-kai Watch TV series) will be taking a break. However, Level-5 is working on “the next amazing thing” in the world of Yo-kai Watch. Hino urged fans to be patient “for a short while,” as Level-5 prepares to make a formal announcement. The image attached to Hino’s tweet shows a cat-like creature with pink coloration and elements reminiscent of various iconic Yokai from the franchise.
Hino did not specify a schedule or timeframe for that announcement, but the wait might not be too long. Level-5 will broadcast its Vision 2023 livestream event in early March 2023. Though a new Yo-kai Watch project has yet to be announced, and is not on the official docket of featured titles, there’s a chance that the company may make a surprise announcement.
The current Yo-kai Watch anime series is called Yo-kai Watch ♪ (Yo-kai Watch Reborn in English). It began airing in 2021, and was something of a revival for the original Yo-kai Watch series, starring original protagonist Nathan Adams and his companion Yokai Jibanyan and Whisper. Given the announcement, once its broadcast concludes, it may be the last anime project in the franchise for a while.
Yo-kai Watch games are available across multiple platforms. The most recent, Yo-kai Watch 4, is available on the Nintendo Switch in Japan. An English localization has not been announced.
