Jimothy the viral round raccoon is taking over gaming

Jimothy, a suspiciously spherical raccoon spotted scuttling around Seattle, has gone viral for his unique — possibly spine-related — shape. Now the gaming world's brand accounts are falling over themselves to claim him.

World of Warcraft kicked things off with a render of what Jimothy would look like as an in-game pet, and honestly the demand is there. RuneScape followed with an Old School-style version, and Dead by Daylight went full Dead by Daylight — glowing eyes, glowing chest, and inexplicable bloody tentacles. Mouse: P.I. For Hire gave him the most tasteful treatment, dropping Jimothy into its 1930s rubber hose film noir world alongside protagonist Jack Pepper. The Sims, meanwhile, produced something deeply unsettling — less raccoon, more human in a raccoon suit. Halo senior community manager John Junyszek shared a Spartan-armored Jimothy that is technically a human crumpled onto all fours with an elongated neck and feet, which is somehow less disturbing than the Sims version. Halo also double-dipped, editing Jimothy into Master Chief's crashed pod scene from the original Combat Evolved and its remake.

Viral animal crossovers with game brands are nothing new — the internet has a long history of adopting a creature and watching studios race to be the funniest account in the replies. Jimothy's roundness makes him unusually versatile as a design subject, which probably explains why the crossovers have landed better than most.

The wave shows no sign of stopping, and it's probably only a matter of time before Fortnite awkwardly crams Jimothy into a mech suit to satisfy hitbox requirements. Until then, the crossovers are genuinely charming — even the terrifying ones.