All posts tagged in Exploration
Jan 17, 2024
League of Legends is a multiplayer online battle arena that released way back in 2009. It continues to be one of the most played online games worldwide, and now Riot has teamed up with Graveyard Keeper’s developer to take on a whole new genre: farming sims!
Bandle Tale: A League of Legends Story is a delightful farming and crafting sim set in the city of Bandle, home of the furry yordles. You play as one of those yordles, a shy one who lives in Yarnville. It’s an isolated little island obsessed with knitting, but 101-year long apprenticeship has come to an end, and you yearn to see what the world has to offer beyond the portals that connect the world. A party you attend goes awry, though, and the portals collapse as a result!
Equipped with your unique knitting magic, you’ll embark on a grand adventure to restore the portals of Bandle Tale! Team up with some of the champions from League of Legends who will help you in your quest. Encounter a variety of curious creatures. Also gather resources to craft some neat items with, and awaken the magical portals. That’s not all, though! You’ll get to throw parties and festivals for the town to entertain your fellow residents. Grow crops, cook tasty dishes, and even build gadgets to delight your guests with.
Will you restore the portals?
Release Date
Bandle Tale is listed on Nintendo Switch, Steam, Epic Games, and GOG. There is no specific release date, but it is expected sometime this year!
- Jan 3, 2024
Enter a rich world inspired by classic storybook fairy tales in an adorable up and coming game called Farmwand by developer Irreverent Software. You’re a brand new graduate of the Southern Wizarding Academy, and are eager to start your new adventure: life in the great, wide world! Craft your very own wand, ready your robes, and settle on a gorgeous new farm. Explore enchanted forests, brew potions, get to know the local townspeople, befriend some magical creatures, and even solve some mysteries!
Start your magical new journey by customizing your own character with a creator that lets you choose feature shapes, clothes, colors, and more. Then, dive into a deep, vibrant world full of opportunities. Build friendships, fall in love, or even create rivalries. Grow dozens of crops and flowers available in Farmwand. Care for some pretty cute animals like cows, sheep, and horses. Explore exciting areas full of minigames and puzzles that you can solve through magic spells. There’s even a deep lore with festivals, backstories, culture, and history for you to discover!
There’s so much to do in this adorable farm sim, and I can’t wait to get my hands on it!
Release Date
Unfortunately, there is no release date available for Farmwand. You can find it on Steam, though, where you can add it to your Wishlist!
I’m looking forward to Moonlight Peaks releasing this year, and if you haven’t checked it out or tried the demo yet, you should!
- Dec 28, 2023
I truly don’t know where the year went. It’s been an interesting year, and it’s certainly been full of a ton of top-tier games. We’ve seen the release of Palia, a lovely cozy MMORPG that lets you gather friends and strangers alike to farm, mine, and more. The Moonlight Peaks demo dropped recently, too! Then there’s Spells & Secrets, a great roguelite wizarding adventure. dotAGE is the perfect survival city builder. And Roots of Pacha takes top spot for my favorite farming game this year. Some other notable games are Spirit City: Lofi Sessions and Smushi Come Home. But what’s in store for next year? Well, time will tell, but here are nine games to look forward to in 2024!
Little Kitty, Big City
First on the list is Little Kitty, Big City! You play as a kitty who’s lost in a big city. You can hurry on your way and find home, or you can take time to explore this brand new place. Cause a little chaos as you explore, too.Dive into trash cans, knock potted plants off their ledges, and walk through some fresh paint to leave behind your paw prints. Meet stray animals on the streets and become friends with them. Find different adorable hats to wear. Plus, so much more!
Bloomtown
Next up is Bloomtown: A Different Story. You play as Emily and her younger brother Chester as they spend their summer holiday in their grandpa’s cozy and quiet town. Underneath this sleepy little town, however, a demon world is growing and children are going missing. Embark on a grand adventure to save the towns from this mysterious demon world. The demons are the fears and vices of the townspeople that have come to life. As Emily, figure out the mysteries and the disappearances and save the souls of everyone! Face off against giant demons and dungeon bosses in the Underside using a turn-based combat system. Fight alongside your friends, who each have their own sets of abilities, as well as summon your own inner demons. Even capture new creatures to use in other battles by weakening them during combat.
Coming to Steam and PlayStation!
Chilltown
Third on the list is Chill Town! This game promises to be a soothing blend of idle game and life sim. You run around collecting resources on a beautiful island. Catch bugs, visit the shops or town hall, fish, farm, and tame cute creatures. Unleash your creativity in build mode and create your perfect home using a variety of different decor items. Even add your personal touch to the outside of your home with benches, light posts, and more. Plus, take care of your very own furry friend!
Coming to Steam!
Horticular
Horticular is a relaxing garden-builder with a little magical twist. You’ve been summoned by mysterious gnomes to restore an abandoned garden. Immerse yourself in a magical world with a day-night cycle, weather patterns, and adorable animals. Meanwhile, build your dream garden with hundreds of unlockable items. Create lush flower gardens and flourishing crop plots. Attract creatures by fulfilling their requirements and taking care of them. You’ll need to fight off decay and corruption by using the magic within your garden. You’ll also get to rename inhabitants to personalize your gardening experience. And if you want to prove your abilities, enter the in-world competition, plus much more!
Coming to Steam!
Critter Cove
Next on the list is Critter Cove, an open-world life sim set in a post-apocalyptic world. You’ll restore an old town, and sail across a gorgeous archipelago. Collect relics and treasures as you explore. Fish for a variety of sea life. Craft everything you might need from tools to decor. You’ll even get to find new residents to invite to your town. And so much more! There’s tons to do in this game, and it’s all up to you to restore it to its former glory.
Coming to Steam!
Chef RPG
Next up is Chef RPG! The beautiful little seaside town of White Ash harbor is your new home, and once was a thriving tourist destination. Now, it’s up to you to help revive the town using your experience as a traveling chef. In Chef RPG, you’ll run your very own restaurant to serve up delicious dishes in order to attract tourists back to town. Hunt, harvest, and shop for the ingredients you’ll use in your cooking. Build a thriving restaurant and become a successful chef!
Coming to Steam!
Tavern Talk
Sixth on the list is Tavern Talk, where you find yourself to be the owner of Wayfarer’s Inn. It appears to be a normal inn in the middle of the world, but looks can be deceiving. And you can infuse beverages with magic that can influence someone’s fate. You’re known for helping the people of the realm via these magical drinks. Listen to the stories of the unique cast of beautifully designed adventurers that come in. From boasting about their glory or commiserating about failures, you’ll experience a variety of different personalities and tales. Help them find a place that feels like home by building relationships and creating an inviting environment inside the inn. Craft different interesting drinks, while you’re at it, but be careful what you serve. Your drink choices will alter their fate and the path their quests will take. Your choices shape the story of Tavern Talk!
Coming to Steam!
SunnySide
Welcome to SunnySide. You’ve just purchased your first plot of land located in an aging town in Japan’s countryside. Your goal is to create a homestead you can be proud of. You’ll learn to collect your own water, generate power, grow crops, craft food, care for your animals, and much more in order to help your local economy. You’ll get to ferment soy sauce, grow and grind your own flour, and even make cheese. Then, you can take it all a step further and cook recipes using your homemade ingredients. SunnySide also features a colorful cast of characters for you to interact with. Life in the small town is peaceful, but not without its problems. What sets this game apart from the other farm sim games is that it seeks to combine modernism with the old.
Coming to Steam!
Meetlight and the Secrets of the Universe
In the last game on the list you play as Anna. Anna has faced a terrible tragedy and lost her spouse. Now, she has taken over her great-uncle’s forge and become the new blacksmith. You’ll build your house from scratch (and decorate it too!), customize your character’s appearance, and befriend animals, nature, and your neighbors (some are even romanceable!). You’ll even be able to complete quests for the villagers or trade with them. With the loss of your spouse, you’ve gained the ability of clairvoyance, which you’ll slowly develop and perfect as you play. Enter the magical world of energy where you’ll meet new inhabitants, explore lost places, and discover the secrets of the universe. In this 3D open-world, with 19 places to visit on the map (so far), there’s just SO much to do and see. Plus, there’s farming, animal companions, cooking, and alchemy for you to enjoy!
Coming to Steam, with plans for Switch, Xbox, and PlayStation!
- Dec 21, 2023
Ready for another list? This time it’s a list of games released this year that are perfect for console users. Whether they’re receiving a new one for Christmas or you’re just searching for some cozy games to get your console owner, this list is a good place to turn! Many of these games are on more than just Xbox and PlayStation, but sometimes it’s hard to weed out what is or isn’t. At any rate, these are all cozy games that should meet some needs. Relaxing farming sim, cute survival craft, cozy exploration, spell-slinging dungeon exploration, intriguing conversations, and potion making are all here.
So here are 6 cozy games for the console!
Lego Fortnite – Xbox and PlayStation
Lego Fortnite is a brand new mode in the popular game where you play as a Lego figure. Play solo, or with up to seven other people and explore a fun new world. It’s a survival crafting game, so you’ll need to collect resources for crafting. Build weapons, homes, and many more useful items. Recruit villager NPCs as you expand your base of operations. They’ll be able to collect resources and battle enemies with you!
Harvest Moon: The Winds of Anthos – Xbox and PlayStation
Harvest Moon: The Winds of Anthos is the most recent entry in the franchise. Ten years ago, a great calamity. A volcano erupted and the Harvest Goddess and Harvest Sprites used the last of their power to keep the inhabitants safe, but it isolated the villages from each other. Some people were even trapped outside their villages. Ten years after the eruption, you find a message in a bottle containing an SOS message, and with the help of your inventor friend and others, you’re on a mission to revive the Harvest Goddess and Harvest Sprites and a mission to reconnect the villages. Farm in different biomes, raise a variety of animals, take part in different festivals and contests, so much more!
Coffee Talk Episode 2 – Xbox and PlayStation
Coffee Talk Episode 2: Hibiscus & Butterfly is the second episode in the Coffee Talk series. In it, you play as the proprietor of a cozy little coffee shop that’s only open at night. Set in an alternate present-day Seattle, join a cast of fantasy characters and serve up some delicious hot drinks as you explore the world by listening to their stories. Even use your phone to follow their lives outside of the coffee shop via social media, and return lost items to further influence the story.
Mail Time – PlayStation
In Mail Time, you’re a newly minted Mail Scout in the cozy forest of Grumblewood Grove. It’s your first day on the job, and you’re full of unbridled enthusiasm for your new adventure. With your cute little mushroom hat, over 46,000 character design combinations, and a bag full of mail, it’s up to you to deliver all of the letters to the inhabitants of Grumblewood Grove. You shouldn’t dally, but Mail Time is a relaxing adventure. Run through the forest, jump over obstacles, and even use letters to glide your way around the forest to reach your destinations. Explore 8 different colorful areas and meet 15 unique characters with their own stories and charms.
Spells & Secrets – PlayStation
Spells & Secrets is a captivating rogue-lite adventure where you use different spells to fight your way through dungeon levels. You’re a first-year student at the esteemed wizard Academy of Greifenstein, eager to learn together with your fellow magic users. However, something odd has happened to the school on your very first day there. It’s now over-run by magical creatures, and of course it’s up to you to defeat those creatures, save your classmates, and save the school.
Potion Craft: Alchemist Simulator – Xbox and PlayStation
Potion Craft: Alchemist Simulator takes inspiration from medieval manuscripts and medical books. Play as an alchemist who runs their own shop. Grow your own ingredients or haggle with traveling merchants to buy them. Use your various tools to brew potions using those ingredients. Even experiment to concoct new types of potions, then sell your wares in your shop!
Looking for more ideas? Check out this list of the 15 Best 3DS Games of All Time. You can also find a list 5 Games Perfect for Your New Steam Deck, and 5 Farming Games for Your New Switch.
- Dec 20, 2023
We’re another week closer to Christmas and I can’t wait! I love going around the neighborhood looking at people’s decorations. I think that’s part of why ACNH having lights in trees feels so satisfying to me. What else is super exciting about the Christmas season, is the new gaming systems and games you get! And with Steam Decks being fairly popular, what better way to celebrate the approach of the holiday with some gift ideas for that system?
The following list only features games that have been Steam Deck verified, to save the gamer in your life some troubles and heartache!
My Time at Sandrock
My Time at Sandrock is the long awaited sequel to My Time at Portia. And just like the prequel, this one takes place in a post-apocalyptic world 330 years after the Day of Calamity destroyed a lot of modern technology. You accept the role as a builder of Sandrock, a desert community. Gather resources to build machines, befriend locals, fight enemies, and lead the town to economic prosperity! Uncover the backstories for over 30 NPCs while you forge friendships with them. Complete side quests, play fun minigames, and even team up with a friend to play the game together!
APICO
APICO is a lovely game where you leave your boring city job and return to Port APICO, where you grew up, and return to your beekeeping roots. The APICO islands feature a set of lush, beautiful environments for you to explore. Each biome has its own breed of bees for you to discover. Gather resources to use in your studies or crafting. Make and sell Apicola (honey) and other beekeeping items you will discover. Play fun beekeeping minigames, without the stings! More importantly, breed different cross breeds of bees and discover 30 new species to help repopulate the APICO islands with. Plus, uncover the secrets of the islands while you explore.
I even have a review of APICO here, if you want more information!
Cornucopia
Cornucopia offers the same comfortable features players have grown to love from the farming game genre, but in a lovely 2.5D pixel art style. You plant 52 types of fruit trees, 15 types of berry bushes, and grow 52 different crops, including their different artisan varieties. Sell crops or cook them up in one of 200 different recipes! There’s also logging, fishing, mining, and pet breeding to occupy your days. Also enter the pets into competitive races or use them to help you fight monsters. Then, kick back and relax with some crafting and decorating. Unlock furniture and decorations to turn your farm into your favorite getaway. Make friends with Cornucopia’s NPCs, too. Who knows, maybe one of the over 47 NPCs will catch your fancy! Romance them, go on dates, and unlock their romantic cut scenes. Even marry one, start a family, and decorate their room in your house.
While the Iron’s Hot
Play as a simple journeyman blacksmith in While the Iron’s Hot. You’re looking to become a master blacksmith. This game features an exciting combat-free experience. Journey to the mystical lands of Ellian where you’ll meet a cast of quirky characters. Explore tunnels full of puzzles and resources. Master every step of the blacksmithing process. Smelt ore, turn metal into ingots, and shape them into useful items. Use your skills to repair machinery to open up new areas to explore. Craft equipment that helps you explore new regions. Even work hard to restore the defunct blacksmithing town of Stal. Revitalizing the village just might prove to Eillian’s artisans that you’re worthy of being a master blacksmith!
Loddlenaut
In Loddlenaut, you play as an interstellar custodian who has been hired by the spacefaring mega corporation GUPPI to clean up their mess. They’ve inundated GUP-14 with pollution, and want you to restore the planet. This is an open-world ocean adventure where you’ll get to explore this beautiful alien planet, along with the corporate ruins of GUPPI. You’ll find remnants of their buildings, ships, and machinery that have all sunken to the bottom of the game’s ocean. Use your bubble gun, clean up the trash, remove oil spills, and uncover clues about the past inhabitants. Unlock better gadgets to help you clean up different types of ocean pollution. Recycle the trash you collect and use it to craft items. Even befriend cute little axolotl-looking creatures called loddles!
Did you get a new Switch instead? Or perhaps you got one for someone and want some games to go with it. Either way, check out my list of 5 Farming Games for Your New Switch!
- Dec 13, 2023
Step into Percy’s shoes as he embarks on an adventure to find his missing relatives in Bilkins’ Folly. With your beloved dog Drayton by your side, explore a series of odd islands while digging up buried treasures and solving puzzles. There’s something weird and foreboding going on with the disappearance of your grandfather and mother, and you’ll need to discover what it is!
The Visuals
Bilkins’ Folly awed me with its beauty and witty charm. The character designs and scenery are absolutely delightful. Colors pop without being overwhelming. Animations are done well, and move smoothly. The dog moves and feels like a real dog, and the setting transitions beautifully from one area to the next. The whole thing is visually just charming and gorgeous.
Drayton and Other Characters
Bilkins’ Folly almost immediately equips you with a trusty companion named Drayton. What I really love is that the Drayton is useful and not just an annoyance. He doesn’t simply follow you. He’s a lovely dog that will sniff out buried treasure as you walk by it. Plus, as you level up his skills, he can help out in more ways. IWhat really endears me to Drayton is that he never got in my way. Being able to walk through him helped with that, but it was refreshing to have a useful companion that wasn’t a hindrance.
And yes, you CAN pet the dog!
Characters look, and act, different from each other, too. There’s no mixing up someone with another character. Each one has their own engaging backstory. They also speak their own version of “Simlish” speech and I love it. It sounds like utter nonsense, but lends a bit of levity to the whole thing.
Puzzles
You know what else awed me? My apparent lack of puzzle solving skills. I thought I was a great puzzle solver, but Bilkins’ Folly proved me to be otherwise! There are so many different types of puzzles and riddles, though, you’re bound to have a great time. From seek and find items, riddles, maps showing where to dig, cryptograms, and so much more are in this game.
There’s not really a way to be permanently stuck, either. The game is set up so that even if you come across a puzzle now, it may just need to be solved later. Your tools or hints may not be complete until later. That leads to a lot of running around, but it’s great for sight-seeing! The running around does get exhausting, though.
Final Thoughts
If you love vast amounts of puzzles, Bilkins’ Folly is for you. The delightful visual and fun characters make for an engaging game, too. Plus, the overarching story is interesting and gives the whole thing an ultimate goal. It’s a great combination of elements!
I give this:
You can find Bilkins’ Folly on Steam, Nintendo Switch, and PlayStation now!
- Dec 13, 2023
Are you looking for a simple, but gorgeous exploration game with no combat? Then Submerged: Hidden Depths is perfect for you! This game is a self-described third-person “relaxploration” adventure where you simply explore a the ruins of a world. You take on the roles of Miku and Taku. Miku is cursed with a mysterious power that she’s determined to use for good, and Taku simply doesn’t want it to tear them apart.
Submerged: Hidden Depths will take you on a relaxing, low-stakes journey through the submerged ruins of a drowned city. There, you’ll discover the crumbling remnants of skyscrapers and streets as you search for the secrets of what happened. You’ll encounter obstacles along the way, and will need to solve puzzles to overcome them. You’ll simultaneously learn the story of the brother and sister pair as you explore the ruined city, too. Plus, you can collect items and upgrade your trusty boat!
Ready for your laid-back adventure?
Release Date
You can find the game on Steam, Epic Games, PlayStation, and Xbox now. And while Submerged: Hidden Depths is a sequel, it’s not necessary to have played the first game. However, you can find the first game, Submerged, on Steam, too!
Eastshade is another beautiful walking simulator.
- Nov 30, 2023
Have you ever wanted to be a wand maker? Have you wanted to open your own shop, collect necessary materials and sell the wands you craft by hand? Wonder Wandelier might be perfect for you, then! In this adorable game, you do exactly that. Of course, you’re trying to work off a massive debt within 30 days, but that’ll be easy, right?
Play as Wonder Wandelier’s leading lady, Pucelle, who’s destroyed her apprenticeship. A clumsy 16-year-old wand-making student at Grimora Magic School, Pucelle now finds herself running the old wand shop called Wonder Wandelier. Her clumsiness has not only damaged the shop owner, but the tools needed to make wands. Now, it’s up to her to fix her mistake, restore the business, pay off the debt, and prove she’s ready to graduate!
You’ll need to venture out into the wilds of Wonder Wandelier in to gather necessary materials for the shop. Take a partner with you and forage for materials, discover treasures, and even unravel mysteries! Just be careful as the world beyond The Portal slowly drains your energy. If you pass out while foraging, your partner will have to carry you home, but they can only carry so much! You may lose precious materials so your partner can bring you safely home. You may also encounter aggressive wildlife you’ll have to dispatch.
When in the shop, Pucelle will work on her wand-making skills. Some wands require rare materials and higher craftsmanship, but they sell for more money. She’ll also need to haggle with the patrons of Wonder Wandelier in order to fetch the best prices for her goods. Haggling won’t come easy, though. You’ll need to build a relationship with them, study their mood, and set the right atmosphere to achieve the right price!
Will Pucelle succeed at paying off her debt and graduate?
Release Date
You can find this adorable game on Steam! There is currently no release date listed, but you can add it to your Wishlist. There’s also a demo for you to try out.
Want to run a different magical shop? Check out Potionomics!
