Meccha Chameleon
About
Overview
Meccha Chameleon is a multiplayer casual video game developed by Japanese indie game developers Lemorion_1224 and Haganeiro. Players control white bipedal characters and take on the role of either hunters or chameleons. The core match structure is based on hide-and-seek: chameleons try to blend into the environment, while hunters must find them before time runs out.
The game was developed in two months, with reused components and assets from earlier projects extending the broader development timeline to four or five months. It was developed on Unreal Engine and uses Epic Online Services for matchmaking. By August 2026, the game had sold more than 20 million copies and reached a peak of over 340,000 concurrent players on Steam. It also won the Movement Award at the 2026 Japan Game Awards.
Gameplay
Meccha Chameleon splits players into hunters and chameleons. Hunters search the map for hidden players, while chameleons disguise themselves by painting their characters to match the surroundings. Chameleons can appear as blobby or cube-shaped characters, and can choose petite, normal, or plump sizes. They can use coloring tools such as a color picker and eyedropper, select poses such as curling up or lying down, create clones, and use different size options to help them hide.
The game includes three modes. Infection turns a caught chameleon into a hunter. Double starts with everyone hiding before switching everyone into hunting, with victory going to the player who finds the most people or finds everyone first. Reverse Chicken Race gives players time to paint themselves before their paint jobs are displayed on pedestals for others to observe and later search for.
Chameleons can taunt hunters with a whistling sound, and a forced taunting setting can trigger taunts after a set period. Chameleons can also use a free camera mode to explore the map or spectate the hunter. Public and private lobbies support up to 24 players, with 2 to 12 players recommended. Official maps include Hide-and-Seek Mansion, Indoor Country, Sewer, Backrooms, Penguin Hotel, Sugarland, and Osaka.
Release
Meccha Chameleon was announced on May 15, 2026, and released for Windows via Steam on June 10, 2026. The Windows release lists Lemorion 1224 as developer and publisher. It became available on GeForce Now on June 27, 2026. A Nintendo Switch 2 version was released on September 9, 2026, after a Nintendo Direct announcement.