Spring is quickly approaching, and if you needed any proof of that– look no further than the newly melted snow in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Personally, while I like the winter season, I do get extremely excited when Spring returns. However, if you’re like me, you may not be playing much of ACNH these days. Or maybe you still are but you’d like to branch out to other games with similar vibes. Either way, this is a list for you!
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Here’s a list of Ten Cozy Games Perfect for Lazy Spring Afternoons.
10. What Comes After
This game was developed by the same creators as Coffee Talk, another game you may find on cozy game lists that centers on simply drinking coffee and having conversations with strangers. What Comes After is a short game about Vivi, a girl who is going on quite a unique train ride. But the game at its core is about learning to love yourself. A review in the LA times had this to say about the game:
“When I completed the game, I wanted to run outside of my downtown L.A. apartment to hug strangers, feed every stray cat, water every plant and just embrace the world.”
I find that pretty darn cozy.
9. Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town
This game is a 3D remake of the 2003 game of the name Harvest Moon: Friends of Mineral Town. In the same vein of fan favorite cozy game, Stardew Valley, the personaizable character in Friends of Mineral Town kicks things off by restoring their grandfather’s farm. This game has a soft aesthetic, the romanacble NPCs are adorable, diverse, and interesting, and there’s nothing cozier than a farming sim. This game has been on my personal wishlist for a while, and it is a game that is very loved. Spring seems to be the perfect time to pick yourself up a copy.
8. Wytchwood
This one is for my appreciators of gothic fables and fairytales. Wytchwood has stunning visuals– it looks like a moving popup book. You play as a mysterious witch in the woods, and you get to explore the colorful world of the game while collecting magical ingredients, crafting, and brewing spells. While the feel of this game lends itself to being a great Fall time game, I think it’s also an excellent choice for a rainy Spring Sunday.
7. Astroneer
This game is great for players who like setting goals and achieving accomplishments without worrying about an overarching storyline. It’s just a sandbox adventure that tasks the player with colonizing planets, creating structures, and collecting resources. Each planet that the player can explore comes with its own unique challenges to complete. The game is playable on multiple consoles, as well as PC, but has been praised by Nintendo Life as being perfect for the console.
6. The Last Campfire
The Last Campfire is another softer adventure that explores themes of finding one’s way home and searching for meaning. It tells the story of “a lost ember trapped in a puzzling place.” This is a cozy game I would recommend to fans of the Legend of Zelda series. It’s beautiful to look at, and it’s simple while still offering the player a solo experience that will stick with them.
5. Cozy Grove
Perfect title aside, this game is a great fit for anyone who likes Animal Crossing or Stardew Valley. Similar to the aforementioned games, the player has outdoorsy chores to accomplish. There’s also cute furniture you can decorate with, sweet ghosts to befriend, and a soft and welcoming color palette.
This is definitely a game for my cottagecore gamers.
4. My Time at Portia
I just bought this game on the recommendation of a friend. While the character creator proved to be a bit difficult to toggle with (at least for me on the Switch,) and some of the character design is… certainly unique, it’s still a charming game. Again, like in Stardew Valley where the game begins with you inheriting your grandfather’s farm, this game begins with you inheriting your father’s workshop. This means that the game relies on collecting resources and crafting as its main focus, but there is also other ways to participate in the world, including a favorite mechanic of mine: romanacble NPCs!
3. Slime Rancher
“Slime Rancher is the tale of Beatrix LeBeau, a plucky, young rancher who sets out for a life a thousand light years away from Earth on the ‘Far, Far Range’ where she tries her hand at making a living wrangling slimes.”
There’s no point saying much else– this game is adorable. It’s colorful, fun, cute, and just totally immerses the player in the world. It only recently saw a handheld release on the Switch, and I think it was a great choice. The game also has an upcoming sequel where we will get treated to even more slime cuteness.
2. Kynseed
Kynseed, again, has a lot of similarities to Stardew Valley (listen, it’s a cozy game staple for a reason.) However, the things that make Kynseed unique are why I included it. Kynseed is about living life, growing, making choices, dying, and legacy. You get to raise a family, have a farm, run a business, and travel. And when you die, you step into your children’s shoes and continue on. You get to shape this family tree, a tree that blooms from a magical acorn you’re given at the beginning of the game. It’s important to note that at the moment, Kynseed is still an early access game, so it may still have kinks to work through. On the upside though, if you start playing it soon– that means you’ll get to see the game grow and change as it gets closer to its final version.
1. Night in the Woods
And now we’ve reached what I am unashamed to say is my favorite game of all time. Admittedly, this game is a bit different than all the other games listed. It’s subject matter is a little darker. There’s themes of death, grief, mentall illness, and cult mentaltiies. But on the flipside, there’s also themes of friendship, family, self discovery, and coping. The world is rich and vibrant and free for exploration, but it’s the characters that make this game. Even outside of the main characters, there are so many background characters and small interactions to enjoy in between the bigger moments. I know this game may seem like an odd choice for a “cozy game,” but I think this game is like being wrapped in a warm blanket and sipping a cup of tea while you reflect on your life in a quiet way. Its emotional heart, its soundtrack, its catharisis– that’s what makes it cozy. It’s the kind of game that really leaves a mark on you, something that, very much like a small town you grew up in, you may find yourself revisiting sometime when you feel lost.
