When I was a young man, playing cozy games wasn’t even on the table. That option didn’t cross my mind once. The gaming “sessions” were wild and there were dark days during summer breaks where I wouldn’t see the light of the day for the whole week. That’s not even exaggerating. There was a new expansion? A lot of new content? New gear to be farmed? I’ve spent day and night in those dungeons.
Many years have passed since those days and a lot has happened. I’ve been working on myself and I made a lot of changes. I’d love to believe that I have a better work-to-gaming-to-personal-life balance. And with those changes I learned to appreciate and love playing cozy games.
What Are Cozy Games?
Cozy games are the type of video games that have a relatively easy gameplay (compared to other games), little to no violence, can be paused at any point and overall they’re designed to feel relaxing and comforting.
These sorts of games usually focus on exploration, decorating, farming, crafting, storytelling, and/or daily routines. You get the point though, right? After a long day of work or long day in school, the last thing you need is to come home and get stomped 100 times in a row by some random boss in a game.
Or to make things even worse, play some sort of competitive game online and have some random 9 year old calling you a noob and other names. So whatever doesn’t include either of those is a cozy game in my books.
Why Are Cozy Games Rising In Popularity?
I’ve been thinking about this question for a while now and while the answer seems obvious, the truth is much more complicated than that. Yes, they are relaxing and most of them are designed to look cute, which is a balm to the soul in this crazy world, but that’s not the main reason for their rise in popularity.
What actually plays a huge part in the success of this genre is unfortunately all the other games. We reached the point where the games are trying to be either too hard, too competitive, or it’s filled with a bunch of content that just takes too long to finish. It’s nice to watch someone else struggle with them but as a regular person, it can get overwhelming. Especially if you’ve got other things going on in your life.
That’s the main reason most gamers prefer cozy games nowadays. Easy to jump in, easy to play, they can be paused or shut down at any given moment. Lack of responsibility is what attracts them.
Conclusion
I hope this clears up why the hype for cozy games is increasing. Whenever I get overwhelmed or just feel like cozying up and doing nothing, I pick up a Steam Deck and play either Stardew Valley, Minami Lane, or some new game that I stumble onto during my workweek. One relaxing session and I feel rested and ready to take over the world. Do you like playing cozy games? What’s your favorite? Do you have any other ritual that helps you unwind?
Pavle is the founder of PlayForge and its lead writer and reviewer, covering PC, PS5, and mobile games, a with a focus on RPGs, MMOs, FPS games, and more. He’s been gaming since the PS2 days and now writes in-depth reviews and guides to help players find their next obsession and get gaming insights from real players, not just critics. His reviews are honest and transparent, but he always tries to stay positive, because in his opinion, almost any game can be fun if you look at it the right way.
In his free time, he likes to (obviously) play more games, spend time with his family, theorycraft about various media with his wife, and watch anime. So yes, he’s a complete nerd, even if he’ll never admit it.
