Victor Tan
Love, Ghostie provides a lovely cozy experience where everyone can find love. Pair couples however you want and take as long as you need. Everything you do helps boost relationships and you see your efforts pay off. There is lots of experimentation and progress is slow at first. Love, Ghostie makes relationship pairing fun and is a must-try for any cozy romance player.
Star Fire: Eternal Cycle is easy to pick up and play, but it doesn't do anything to stand out from other roguelikes.
Jelly Troops is fun PvP action where everyone is truly equal except for experience, but it can't work outside of multiplayer.
Gloomy Eyes is a decent puzzle game, but it can be frustrating and doesn't last long enough to help its story themes.
Twinkleby is nothing but house decorating, but it's hard to find a cozy experience as rewarding as this.
Shape of Dreams is an easy-to-learn roguelike built for multiplayer sessions. Different characters work well together and it’s easy to assemble decent powers. Many of these powers are built for multiplayer and there’s little reason to pursue higher difficulties. It’s a solid roguelike with lots of fun but you do need friends to play effectively.
Towa and the Guardians of the Sacred Tree brings a unique roguelike experience where you can experiment for hours. It’s not easy to learn the new concepts, and it is tough to adjust in the beginning. But give the game a chance and you will discover what it has to offer as a satisfying and solid adventure, as you spend hours figuring out how to make your characters shine.
Shuten Order demands full completion and it is exhausting, but it does a good job keeping things fresh.
Heading Out gives you a roguelike driving experience where you must pace yourself and manage your money. The driving mechanics are solid and there are lots of variations to keep gameplay interesting. Once you beat the game, there’s no incentive to replay the game again. It’s a solid yet short roguelike experience that driving fans will enjoy.
Robert on Earth provides a great cozy farming sim experience but it does need time to establish itself and you must progress the story to access all that the game has to offer.
Hungry Meem lets you rebuild an entire civilization through dungeon exploration. Rebuilding a civilization through gathering and cooking food is enjoyable. Not being able to control your Meems is tough and it often feels like the game is constantly holding your hand. It’s a decent management experience but the experience isn’t as fun as it could be.
Troublemaker presents a powerful story about school life, standing up for yourself, and taking responsibility. There is also a decent exploration mechanic when the world opens up. Poor combat systems and bugs get in the way of enjoyment. It’s a decent game on the Switch 2 but it hasn’t held up to modern times.
Echoes of the End has strong puzzle foundations and a good grasp on difficulty, making it the type of challenge that is just right. That said, these puzzles dominate gameplay with action getting less of the spotlight, making for a lack of balance. This is a fantastic pick if you prefer brain-teasers over fisticuffs. But if you were looking for a thrilling escapade, you may be disappointed, as the action in this adventure mostly takes a backseat.
Drill Core is roguelite mining at its finest but it also never manages to solve the problem of repetitive gameplay
Demon Slayer – The Hinokami Chronicles 2 gives you a strong fighting game that draws you into the story just like the original manga/anime. Prioritising teamwork and combos makes you utilise every moveset for maximum effectiveness. It's not an easy game to master, and the story can be finished in a few hours. Fans will love what this game has to offer, but you may not enjoy the game if you've never heard of the Demon Slayer series.
MADO MONOGATARI: Fia and the Wondrous Academy delivers a dynamic mystery dungeon experience filled with comedy. Moving around while fighting and launching magical attacks immerses you in the action. There’s a learning curve with a long tutorial that holds back some of the concepts. Give the game time to show its potential and you will have a memorable adventure.
The Great Villainess: Strategy of Lily is great strategic fun with situations that test you, but you must be prepared to invest several hours into its gameplay.
Crown Gambit has a great political story and tactical gameplay, but it can be dry and has a few bugs that disrupt the experience.
Locomoto brings your dreams of train ownership to life in a cozy environment. You visit destinations around the land while completing tasks. Expanding the train by finding collectibles and personalizing it is enjoyable. There are a lot of simple fetch quests and some visual mistakes are noticeable. For a cozy train experience that lets you manage your own train, Locomoto is fantastic.
The Alters lets you recruit alternate versions of yourself to survive on a desolate planet. It’s a unique concept that ties in with the story and makes you curious about what comes next. Figuring out what to do next can be difficult and having to progress to unlock upgrades feels inconvenient. This game has an interesting concept that knocks the premise out of the park.