Aside from just being an interesting, though light, article about "cozy games" and improved mental health, the article itself is a mini cozy game! Neat piece of interactive news media.
Aside from just being an interesting, though light, article about "cozy games" and improved mental health, the article itself is a mini cozy game! Neat piece of interactive news media.
My pain point is time passing too fast (it is too fast no matter how slow it actually is), events happening on certain dates once every 80 day cycles and things like that. I really wish these cozy...
My pain point is time passing too fast (it is too fast no matter how slow it actually is), events happening on certain dates once every 80 day cycles and things like that. I really wish these cozy games did not build upon Harvest Moon so much and instead let you engage with mechanics when you want.
I've mentioned this before, but for me Factorio is a great cozy game. If you disable enemies / know how to deal with them, you build and explore at your own pace and things are as complicated as you want. It is not fluffy or cute, but it is very rewarding mechanically.
Transportation games are also very good at this if you disable competitors and you don't need to fret about profitability / rating too much. Open Transport Tycoon Deluxe (ottd) is great at just letting you build stuff however you want. Lots of mods give you extra buildings to "decorate" your stations and cities.
Check out Graveyard Keeper, it only has a 7 day cycle for events that marches inexorably on. You only rest when you're tired and have a calendar to track everything so if you miss something you'll...
Check out Graveyard Keeper, it only has a 7 day cycle for events that marches inexorably on. You only rest when you're tired and have a calendar to track everything so if you miss something you'll catch it again within an hour or so. It's kinda like Stardew Valley, with crops, larger development goals as you progress (the graveyard, major plot points, subplots), and plenty of fun systems to interact with.
Littlewood is similar but time is based on your energy, so the day ends when you tire. It's also pretty short, but good for replaying if you want to revisit it.
I played Graveyard Keeper a while ago! I remember enjoying it for the most part up until a part where you had to guess recipes. I'll give Littlewood a look. Thanks! I'm currently trying Natsu-mon,...
I played Graveyard Keeper a while ago! I remember enjoying it for the most part up until a part where you had to guess recipes.
I'll give Littlewood a look. Thanks!
I'm currently trying Natsu-mon, 20th century summer kid. It is based on an older video game series where you are a young kid enjoying summer vacation in a small town. It is mostly exploring, meeting people and collecting stuff. The game has timed days but the whole game is fairly short and you are meant to do newgame+ runs. It is very laid back so far.
I just started GYK and I guess I'm a right dumbass (username checks out), but I feel like I've spent more time trying to find where stuff is, how to do x, and things that seemingly should be...
I just started GYK and I guess I'm a right dumbass (username checks out), but I feel like I've spent more time trying to find where stuff is, how to do x, and things that seemingly should be pretty intuitive or streamlined. I'm 4.3 hours in and feel less stressed when I just shut the game off...
Though it does make me want to go back to SDV, except the annual cycle (like trim stated) gets me more riled up than chilled out.
My daighter can't speak English (not native English speakers here) and she loves Stardew - jusz goes around town giving presents to everybody pretending some of the townfolk are her relatives. The...
My daighter can't speak English (not native English speakers here) and she loves Stardew - jusz goes around town giving presents to everybody pretending some of the townfolk are her relatives.
The game is what you make it, you can just stay at home and cook while it's rainy and spend whole day on the beach when sunny. There is no need to do anything in the game, it is up to you.
For cozy games how about: Flower, Stray, Journey, The artful escape, Eufloria, Flow. I reckon what's cozy will vary from person to person. For me they are games that are simple, with intuitive...
For cozy games how about: Flower, Stray, Journey, The artful escape, Eufloria, Flow.
I reckon what's cozy will vary from person to person. For me they are games that are simple, with intuitive controls, consistent gradual progression. Often without real words or NPCs. No big crisis or reveals. Just a chill easy probably short game with minimal peaks and valleys.
I really enjoyed playing Sable a couple years ago. Great calm exploring game! Unfortunately the Xbox and PS5 ports are pretty bad. The best platform to play it on is PC.
I really enjoyed playing Sable a couple years ago. Great calm exploring game!
Unfortunately the Xbox and PS5 ports are pretty bad. The best platform to play it on is PC.
It's true that when I tried playing Sable on my Series X the stuttering was so bad I had to give up. However, I left the game installed and noticed updates being downloaded pretty frequently, so...
It's true that when I tried playing Sable on my Series X the stuttering was so bad I had to give up. However, I left the game installed and noticed updates being downloaded pretty frequently, so it's possible the game is now fixed, at least on Xbox.
This was neat, but broke at the sweeping section for me. While it was a nice little breakdown on the sub genre, any time time they started discussing the benefits, those benefits really seemed to...
This was neat, but broke at the sweeping section for me. While it was a nice little breakdown on the sub genre, any time time they started discussing the benefits, those benefits really seemed to be achievable with any genre of game. Which is really better for everyone involved, as farming sims usually bore me to tears.
Agreed. On Mastodon, someone commented that, for them, Elden Ring is a relaxing game, even when they're dying over and over. For me, I find FFXIV's normal-level dungeons, trials, and raids to be...
Agreed. On Mastodon, someone commented that, for them, Elden Ring is a relaxing game, even when they're dying over and over.
For me, I find FFXIV's normal-level dungeons, trials, and raids to be relaxing. Even when it's not going well, such as when a whole party/raid wipe, it can be still be fun. Even Planetside 2, back when I played it, could be relaxing. I'd post up somewhere and snipe fools. Super chill and fun. Eve Online is another. I'd mine for hours and hours on end. Even though I could get my ships blown up by other player at a moment's notice.
While I will admit Stardew Valley and Harvest Moon are cozy games, the way I play them, it sometimes doesn't feel that way. Because I play them like efficiency games. So if I'm running out of time in a day or season, it can feel stressful.
Dark Souls 2 used to be my "relax" game. The whole "cozy" genre feels deceptive because I'd never have really called Stardew a cozy game myself, it's much more time constrained than Animal...
Dark Souls 2 used to be my "relax" game. The whole "cozy" genre feels deceptive because I'd never have really called Stardew a cozy game myself, it's much more time constrained than Animal Crossing. Animal Crossing I can fall asleep fishing, wake up 30 minutes later and nothing will have really happened. Might've missed a balloon or two but I can cast my rod again and chill.
Stardew, that'll have blown the whole day and I'd be hard pressed not to just restart before it saves. Now, I love Stardew but maybe I've just got a different idea of what cozy is.
It's interesting to me to see Mini Metro described as not stressful. I found it immensely stressful, to the point that I didn't even finish it. Seeing the radials tick down toward failure and...
It's interesting to me to see Mini Metro described as not stressful. I found it immensely stressful, to the point that I didn't even finish it. Seeing the radials tick down toward failure and trying to rush to figure out some way to stop it wore on me.
To contribute a game though: I found Slime Rancher to be pretty cozy. I haven't played 2 so cannot comment on it, but it seems like it would be as well.
I've only played the original Katamari, do the subsequent titles have as a great of a soundtrack as the original? Sings (... I'm going to roll you into my life!)
I've only played the original Katamari, do the subsequent titles have as a great of a soundtrack as the original?
I've mostly played the ps2 - ps3 games (the ps3 one being a collection of levels from previous titles). I'd say yes, but its kind of more of the same, so it does not have the same impact. Pedantry...
I've mostly played the ps2 - ps3 games (the ps3 one being a collection of levels from previous titles). I'd say yes, but its kind of more of the same, so it does not have the same impact.
Is peaceful mode just making the local flora and fauna non-hostile? Or does it remove them altogether? My friends and I are playing Satisfactory right now. Though we've yet to run into more...
Is peaceful mode just making the local flora and fauna non-hostile? Or does it remove them altogether?
My friends and I are playing Satisfactory right now. Though we've yet to run into more aggressive locals. Right now, we're the aggressive ones!
Do people have any suggestions for progressive movement-based games like A Short Hike? I feel like I could play it for literal hours and I'd still find it engaging. I'm basically describing Breath...
Do people have any suggestions for progressive movement-based games like A Short Hike? I feel like I could play it for literal hours and I'd still find it engaging. I'm basically describing Breath of the Wild but ignoring the combat and dungeons, which is exactly how I played BotW and exactly when I stopped playing BotW... What else lets you progressively explore like that?
Surely not what most people would think of as "cozy", but Dwarf Fortress is my pick. Caveat: I've been playing Dwarf Fortress for almost fifteen years now. I don't even remember the learning...
Surely not what most people would think of as "cozy", but Dwarf Fortress is my pick.
Caveat: I've been playing Dwarf Fortress for almost fifteen years now. I don't even remember the learning curve.
(But the game has become a lot more accessible since the paid release.)
There's just something so mesmerizing about designating tunnels to be dug out, meeting halls to be carved, or dormitories to be built, and then watching the dwarves carry out those orders. I find it very relaxing.
Maybe I should have got an ant colony as a kid?
Anyways, if you'd like to try the game out, it has a free version on the developer's website with ASCII graphics, or you can get the paid version with an actual tileset on Itch or Steam.
I was actually playing DF for the first time recently! I tried learning from the official wiki but it's a bit too... robust. Once I learn it I'm sure it will be one of my favorite games.
I was actually playing DF for the first time recently! I tried learning from the official wiki but it's a bit too... robust. Once I learn it I'm sure it will be one of my favorite games.
The tutorials by Blind that @hungariantoast linked are a really great starting point before diving into the whole wiki. Though the wiki is very good, it's better to start using it once you already...
The tutorials by Blind that @hungariantoast linked are a really great starting point before diving into the whole wiki. Though the wiki is very good, it's better to start using it once you already know some of the basics, and Blind's content is really good for those.
Aside from just being an interesting, though light, article about "cozy games" and improved mental health, the article itself is a mini cozy game! Neat piece of interactive news media.
My pain point is time passing too fast (it is too fast no matter how slow it actually is), events happening on certain dates once every 80 day cycles and things like that. I really wish these cozy games did not build upon Harvest Moon so much and instead let you engage with mechanics when you want.
I've mentioned this before, but for me Factorio is a great cozy game. If you disable enemies / know how to deal with them, you build and explore at your own pace and things are as complicated as you want. It is not fluffy or cute, but it is very rewarding mechanically.
Transportation games are also very good at this if you disable competitors and you don't need to fret about profitability / rating too much. Open Transport Tycoon Deluxe (ottd) is great at just letting you build stuff however you want. Lots of mods give you extra buildings to "decorate" your stations and cities.
Check out Graveyard Keeper, it only has a 7 day cycle for events that marches inexorably on. You only rest when you're tired and have a calendar to track everything so if you miss something you'll catch it again within an hour or so. It's kinda like Stardew Valley, with crops, larger development goals as you progress (the graveyard, major plot points, subplots), and plenty of fun systems to interact with.
Littlewood is similar but time is based on your energy, so the day ends when you tire. It's also pretty short, but good for replaying if you want to revisit it.
I played Graveyard Keeper a while ago! I remember enjoying it for the most part up until a part where you had to guess recipes.
I'll give Littlewood a look. Thanks!
I'm currently trying Natsu-mon, 20th century summer kid. It is based on an older video game series where you are a young kid enjoying summer vacation in a small town. It is mostly exploring, meeting people and collecting stuff. The game has timed days but the whole game is fairly short and you are meant to do newgame+ runs. It is very laid back so far.
I just started GYK and I guess I'm a right dumbass (username checks out), but I feel like I've spent more time trying to find where stuff is, how to do x, and things that seemingly should be pretty intuitive or streamlined. I'm 4.3 hours in and feel less stressed when I just shut the game off...
Though it does make me want to go back to SDV, except the annual cycle (like trim stated) gets me more riled up than chilled out.
I can recommend Wylde Flowers, it lets you control a lot of the time aspects both by day, movement speed, and seasonal changes.
I'll give the demo a go, thanks!
There's also an infinite money hack (you can turn it off in settings as well) so all the chill vibes
My daighter can't speak English (not native English speakers here) and she loves Stardew - jusz goes around town giving presents to everybody pretending some of the townfolk are her relatives.
The game is what you make it, you can just stay at home and cook while it's rainy and spend whole day on the beach when sunny. There is no need to do anything in the game, it is up to you.
I'm not sure if it's worth full price yet.
I've never played Stardew myself but there are SO MANY mods for that game, I'm sure you could mod out the stressful parts!
Timberborn can be relaxing and cozy...except when the long droughts appear! Then it's like "Oh god, did I dam up enough water?"
For cozy games how about: Flower, Stray, Journey, The artful escape, Eufloria, Flow.
I reckon what's cozy will vary from person to person. For me they are games that are simple, with intuitive controls, consistent gradual progression. Often without real words or NPCs. No big crisis or reveals. Just a chill easy probably short game with minimal peaks and valleys.
I really enjoyed playing Sable a couple years ago. Great calm exploring game!
Unfortunately the Xbox and PS5 ports are pretty bad. The best platform to play it on is PC.
It's true that when I tried playing Sable on my Series X the stuttering was so bad I had to give up. However, I left the game installed and noticed updates being downloaded pretty frequently, so it's possible the game is now fixed, at least on Xbox.
This was neat, but broke at the sweeping section for me. While it was a nice little breakdown on the sub genre, any time time they started discussing the benefits, those benefits really seemed to be achievable with any genre of game. Which is really better for everyone involved, as farming sims usually bore me to tears.
Agreed. On Mastodon, someone commented that, for them, Elden Ring is a relaxing game, even when they're dying over and over.
For me, I find FFXIV's normal-level dungeons, trials, and raids to be relaxing. Even when it's not going well, such as when a whole party/raid wipe, it can be still be fun. Even Planetside 2, back when I played it, could be relaxing. I'd post up somewhere and snipe fools. Super chill and fun. Eve Online is another. I'd mine for hours and hours on end. Even though I could get my ships blown up by other player at a moment's notice.
While I will admit Stardew Valley and Harvest Moon are cozy games, the way I play them, it sometimes doesn't feel that way. Because I play them like efficiency games. So if I'm running out of time in a day or season, it can feel stressful.
Dark Souls 2 used to be my "relax" game. The whole "cozy" genre feels deceptive because I'd never have really called Stardew a cozy game myself, it's much more time constrained than Animal Crossing. Animal Crossing I can fall asleep fishing, wake up 30 minutes later and nothing will have really happened. Might've missed a balloon or two but I can cast my rod again and chill.
Stardew, that'll have blown the whole day and I'd be hard pressed not to just restart before it saves. Now, I love Stardew but maybe I've just got a different idea of what cozy is.
If anyone has any suggestions/examples of these cozy games, I'd love to hear them.
Seconding A Short Hike. Cute visual style, humorous writing, interesting exploration, fun low-stakes challenges and puzzles.
It's interesting to me to see Mini Metro described as not stressful. I found it immensely stressful, to the point that I didn't even finish it. Seeing the radials tick down toward failure and trying to rush to figure out some way to stop it wore on me.
To contribute a game though: I found Slime Rancher to be pretty cozy. I haven't played 2 so cannot comment on it, but it seems like it would be as well.
Slime Rancher was great... Until I got to the part where everytime I turned around my Ranch was falling apart and covered in evil slimes.
We love katamari! For real though I've played every game you mentioned and they're all great and fit the vibe.
Until you get to the cow-bear level, or the hot-cold level....
(actually I'm not sure if those levels are in that specific title)
I've only played the original Katamari, do the subsequent titles have as a great of a soundtrack as the original?
Sings (... I'm going to roll you into my life!)
I've mostly played the ps2 - ps3 games (the ps3 one being a collection of levels from previous titles). I'd say yes, but its kind of more of the same, so it does not have the same impact.
Pedantry corner: If I'm not mistaken, the song you are singing is "Qué será será" and actually says "I wanna wad you up into my life" https://katamari.fandom.com/wiki/Que_Sera_Sera
Indeed it is! I've probably listened to that some a hundred times and always heard it as 'roll'!
Peaceful mode factorio is my resource management pick :)
Is peaceful mode just making the local flora and fauna non-hostile? Or does it remove them altogether?
My friends and I are playing Satisfactory right now. Though we've yet to run into more aggressive locals. Right now, we're the aggressive ones!
I believe it removes the hostile aliens. Usually they attack your base in growing waves.
Do people have any suggestions for progressive movement-based games like A Short Hike? I feel like I could play it for literal hours and I'd still find it engaging. I'm basically describing Breath of the Wild but ignoring the combat and dungeons, which is exactly how I played BotW and exactly when I stopped playing BotW... What else lets you progressively explore like that?
Surely not what most people would think of as "cozy", but Dwarf Fortress is my pick.
Caveat: I've been playing Dwarf Fortress for almost fifteen years now. I don't even remember the learning curve.
(But the game has become a lot more accessible since the paid release.)
There's just something so mesmerizing about designating tunnels to be dug out, meeting halls to be carved, or dormitories to be built, and then watching the dwarves carry out those orders. I find it very relaxing.
Maybe I should have got an ant colony as a kid?
Anyways, if you'd like to try the game out, it has a free version on the developer's website with ASCII graphics, or you can get the paid version with an actual tileset on Itch or Steam.
For learning the game, Blind's tutorial let's play and quick tutorials series are pretty good.
I was actually playing DF for the first time recently! I tried learning from the official wiki but it's a bit too... robust. Once I learn it I'm sure it will be one of my favorite games.
The tutorials by Blind that @hungariantoast linked are a really great starting point before diving into the whole wiki. Though the wiki is very good, it's better to start using it once you already know some of the basics, and Blind's content is really good for those.