After a long day at school, dealing with the usual drama and anxieties of college, I sit down at my desk, wondering what game I can play to cool down and relieve some stress. I open “Kind Words 2,” a charming game about exchanging letters with strangers, accompanied by lo-fi music.
I’m greeted by an adorable deer, notifying me of some mail to catch up with from the last time I played. Strangers across the internet have reached out with touching messages and advice and I return the same to them.
Cozy games like “Kind Words 2” have been taking over the gaming space lately, especially as independent developers have gained more attention by using social media and sales tactics on platforms like Steam.
Cozy games are by far the most versatile genre, with themes ranging from farming to power washing (yes, that is not a typo).
A long-time master of this genre is the famous Japanese gaming company, Nintendo, with its franchise, “Animal Crossing,” having existed in this space for over two decades. “Animal Crossing” sets you in a village inhabited by curious cartoon animals that speak in a funny gibberish language. Your role is to develop the town, giving you free rein to use your creativity to make a pretty village of your own, home to many adorable animal residents.
With eight games released since the first installment in 2001, “Dobutsu no Mori” (“Animal Forest”), the “Animal Crossing” franchise has sold more than 70 million copies in total. Its latest game, “Animal Crossing: New Horizons,” has racked up most of these sales, reaching more than 40 million copies sold. “New Horizons” was a game-changer for the franchise, putting you on a deserted island instead of a cozy village and it seems that fans received the experiment well.
Many cozy games, however, exist within the space as “independent games,” or familiarly called indie games (made by indie developers or indie devs). The most famous, by far, is farm-life simulation and open-ended role-playing game (RPG) “Stardew Valley,” made by indie dev ConcernedApe. Released in 2016, the game continues to be popular and loved today, having over a million active players.
Another strong attraction and feature of cozy games is their soundtrack. Cozy game soundtracks tend to mirror their game perfectly, with lo-fi, classical and jazz genres of music a strong favorite in the space. Devs tend to release the soundtracks for fans to buy and listen to outside of gameplay, too.
Of course, the “independent” aspect of many of these games ultimately means they remain very niche, with relatively small communities and not so much fame as large AAA games (games with high-budget, high-profile development and published by large, well-known companies) like “Super Mario Bros.,” “Call of Duty” and “Grand Theft Auto V.”
Still, the communities of these games tend to be fiercely loyal, maintaining consistent player numbers, unlike the fluctuating player counts of larger games, which often have up-and-down lifespans. The revenue isn’t too bad, either, with even recent games like “Tiny Glade” and “Little Kitty,” “Big City” raking in $5.7 million and $4.3 million, respectively.
The developers, typically small and dedicated teams, are also very active within their community, something not usually seen with bigger games. It’s common to see the devs appear in-game or leave you messages using in-game features.
So, as I sat down to play “Kind Words 2” for the 10th time this week, I sent a request for help with this article: “Any recommendations for cozy games?” Here are some of the suggestions I received from other players, who are identified by their initial (all letters sent have only your initial on them, as the “Kind Words” devs take great care not to allow personal information to be exchanged):
1. “Stardew Valley.” As already mentioned, this game is one of the most popular in the cozy game space. Set in a town in the middle of nowhere, you have a vast variety of options for how you want your story to go and what relationships you want to build with the different residents of the town. Build your farm, explore the town and develop your own story. “‘Stardew Valley’ is a must-have, but it’s also one everyone’s heard of,” said S #1 (as stated above, players are only identified by their initials. Players with the same initials have been numbered in the order they responded).
2. “Tiny Glade.” An adorable free-form building game, with not much else to it. Sit back, relax and build whatever you want with the tools the game gives you. The game is gridless, allowing you to paint and build freely. There is no combat, no mistakes, only your imagination, a quality emphasized by the developers, Pounce Light. “We’re making a stress-free game focused purely on building,” the Swedish indie studio said on its LinkedIn. “There will be no management, no fiddling with resources, no combat – just kick back and make something pretty and chill.”
3. “Spiritfarer.” A mellow take on the cozy game genre from Canadian studio Thunder Lotus Games, “Spiritfarer” makes you the ferrymaster to deceased souls traveling to the afterlife. Build your boat to explore the game world, care for your spirit friends and release them into the afterlife. “‘Spiritfarer’ is a pretty cozy game, although in a sad way,” S #1 said. “You’re helping spirits to the afterlife.”
4. “Tunic.” A puzzle-solving RPG, “Tunic” is set in a ruined fantasy world, where the player controls a fox hero on its journey to free a fox spirit trapped in a crystal. Inspired by 1980s Nintendo Entertainment System games like “The Legend of Zelda,” it won Outstanding Achievement for an Independent Game at the 26th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards. “A very cute puzzle game full of wonder, secrets and such incredibly satisfying puzzles,” said S #2.
5. “Mini Metro/Mini Motorways.” Developed by New Zealand studio Dinosaur Polo Club, “Mini Metro” and its follow-up game, “Mini Motorways,” are simple puzzle strategy games where you must make the most efficient public transportation routes. The design is extremely simplistic, featuring a light gray background and grids for building fast and efficient routes using colored blocks and lines on the screen. “I play this to unwind on particularly hard days,” said S #2.
6. “GRIS.” A platform-adventure game by Spanish developer Nomada Studio, “GRIS” follows the female protagonist of the same name on her journey to regain her singing voice and come to terms with the passing of her mother. As of writing, “GRIS” has sold over three million copies and won several awards, including Best Indie Game at the Italian Video Game Awards and Games for Impact at The Game Awards 2019. “‘GRIS’ is a beautiful and meditative game,” said S #1.