2025 Wholesome Direct Showcases Abundance of Comforting Casual Games with Stylish Atmospheres
The Wholesome Direct 2025 is in full swing, and it's all about cozy gaming vibes! After a wild ride of new game announcements, trailers, and release date reveals, we're taking a breather to check out some of these adorable wholesome games. Here are some of the highlights:
Gourdlets Together - The adorable suburban sandbox builder is getting a sequel, allowing you to design your own colorful island filled with veggie pals. Hang out, chat, and level up your fishing skills while crafting buildings, items, and more. Expected to launch on Steam.
Heidi's Legacy: Mountains Calling - Inspired by the classic children's novels, this exploration and management game lets you take on the role of Heidi as she ventures into the mountains. The two-person French studio Humble Reeds is behind this heartwarming adventure.
Milano's Odd Job Collection - Originally developed for the PlayStation 1 in Japan, this quirky collection of wacky part-time jobs is finally making its way to Western markets, thanks to Implicit Conversions and XSEED Games. Deliver pizzas, bake cakes, milk flying cows - the list goes on! This game will be available on Steam, GOG, the Microsoft Store, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and 5, and Xbox Series X.
On-Together - This bottom-of-your-screen idle game introduces a unique multiplayer element, letting you focus together with friends and even compete in fishing tournaments during downtime. Available on Steam.
A Tiny Wander - Explore the mysteries of Hotarumi Valley as "Buu" in this cozy nighttime adventure game. Pitch a tent, build a bonfire, and go fishing, then unravel the secrets of the valley when A Tiny Wander launches on Steam, iOS, and Android.
A Week in the Life of Asocial Giraffe - This adorable indie game follows an introverted giraffe on his weekly adventures. The catch? Giraffe struggles with social interactions, so you'll need to help him keep interactions to a minimum! Coming to PC and Nintendo Switch.
Anxiety Puppy - A 2D interactive narrative game focuses on anxiety, personified as a tiny puppy. Join the pup on a journey through the story, learning to live with anxiety, and giving it a hug when Anxiety Puppy launches on Steam.
Big Hops - Say hello to more froggies in Big Hops, a froggy action-platformer. Explore using your tongue, veggies, and parkour skills to navigate this frog-filled adventure. Coming to Steam.
Capy Castaway - This quirky, narrative-driven adventure game has whimsical vibes reminiscent of Spirited Away and Untitled Goose Game. Play as a capybara and its crow companion as you explore a vibrant world. Coming to Steam.
Clawsome - Collect quirky prizes, meet new characters, and solve clever challenges in this cute puzzle arcade game. Relax and build dioramas when Clawsome releases on Steam.
Dosa Divas - Battle an evil fast food empire in this narrative turn-based RPG about two sisters and their spirit mech, cooking up delicious meals. Coming to Steam, Switch, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X.
Gemporium - In this gem-matches-3 game, inherit a gem shop and prospecting license from your grandmole, build your business, and appeal to loan sharks in Gemporium. Available on Steam.
KuloNiku: Bowl Up - Ever wanted to run your own cozy noodle restaurant? KuloNiku: Bowl Up lets you do just that, with tactile cooking mechanics, colorful, stylized art, and a lighthearted story. Coming soon to PC.
Let's Build a Dungeon - In this ambitious indie game, manage development schedules, advertising campaigns, press relationships, and build the MMORPG of your dreams. Coming to Steam, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
Lynked: Banner of the Spark - This action RPG features waves of enemies, playable solo or in co-op, and lets you return home to craft a thriving town and level up. Coming to Steam, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X.
Mazey Village - Rebuild a small town after a tornado in Mazey Village, finding missing items and villagers scattered in mazes. Available on PC via Steam.
Mecha - Control a wheelchair-bound engineer as you fix the robots in this cute puzzle platformer. Coming to Steam.
Muri: Wildwoods - Clean up a polluted world in Muri: Wildwoods, a cleaning simulation game with a cozy twist. Play as a little mouse armed with a water gun, explore, platform, and solve puzzles in this vibrant world. Coming to Steam this year.
Outside the Blocks - This wholesome model-builder lets you create your own dioramas and lets your creativity run wild!
Shepherds! - Guide colorful flocks through beautiful landscapes in this co-op party game. Play solo or with friends on Steam and download a demo now.
Shiba Sweet - Become a novice chef and inherit a dessert shop from your retiring grandma in Maowoo's Shiba Sweet. Create the ultimate bakery by baking, selling, and upgrading to unlock new recipes. Coming soon to PC.
Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar - Times are tough, but you can help Zephyr Town's bazaar thrive again by raising animals, crops, selling treats, and rebuilding the community. Coming to Steam and Nintendo Switch.
Tales of the Shire - A Lord of the Rings game set in Middle-earth, inspired by Hobbit life, where you fish, garden, decorate your hobbit hole, and explore. Coming to Steam, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X on July 29.
Town to City - Develop and grow your city in this cozy city builder. Create the municipal masterpiece you've always dreamed of when it launches on Steam.
Townbox - This single-player sandbox town builder focuses on creativity, self-expression, and building a bustling town. Coming soon to Steam.
Wholesome Games Presents - Wholesome Games presents a selection of unique indie titles, including:
- Fishbowl - An emotional slice-of-life story told over the course of a month. Alo moves to a new city, experiences grief, and discovers herself while staying in touch with loved ones through video calls. Gameplay includes sorting puzzles and arcade matching games, alongside a branching narrative. Coming to Steam and PlayStation 5.
- Is This Seat Taken? - A delightful puzzle game where you have to accommodate unique people by meeting their various requirements in various scenarios. Coming to PC, iOS, Android, and Nintendo Switch in August.
- MakeRoom - Create your own dioramas and furniture pieces, or fulfill design requests for clients, in this wholesome, adorable experience. Coming to Steam on August 7.
Release Dates and Demos
Discounty - Take over a supermarket and manage it all, including organizing, decorating, and meeting the locals and their demands. Demo available now, with a full release on PC via Steam, Epic Games Store, and GOG, as well as Xbox Series X, PlayStation 4 and 5, and Nintendo Switch on August 21.
Everdeep Aurora - A demo of this combat-free 2D adventure is available to try during Steam Next Fest, or wishlist it before it launches on Steam and Nintendo Switch on July 10.
Hotel Galactic - Build the tourist getaway of your dreams with voxel art in Hotel Galactic. Available on Steam on July 24, with a console release planned for the 1.0 launch at a later date.
ISLANDERS: New Shores - A new take on the wholesome city builder genre, ISLANDERS features a unique minimalist style, more than 50 unique levels, and a competitive gameplay loop for players who want to rack up high scores. Available on Steam, Xbox Series X, Nintendo Switch, and PlayStation 5 on July 10. A demo is available now on Steam.
Monument Valley 3 - Explore shifting architecture and rising tides as a little apprentice in this imaginative and award-winning puzzle game. Available on PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and Nintendo Switch on July 22. A demo is available now on Steam.
The Berlin Apartment - A touching collection of six stories told by a handyman refurbishing an old apartment in Berlin, Germany. Each story features a unique genre, protagonists, and atmosphere, with relics from the past uncovering the apartment's history. Coming to PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X in November.
Collector's Cove - Build your own boat and travel to diverse islands, discovering fabled crops and fish as you customize your boat and companion. This relaxing take on farming sim games is coming to Steam and the Epic Games Store. A demo is available now.
Danchi Days - Rebuild a quaint village in Danchi Days, a charming retro-inspired adventure game. Available on Steam, and a demo is available now.
Gecko Gods - Play as a gecko on an adventure in an old archipelago, uncovering ancient puzzles and risen tides as you explore and experience a lost island civilization. Available on PC, Nintendo Switch, and PlayStation 5 with a demo available now.
Haunted Paws - This co-op horror game lets you experience a haunted mansion with a friend while playing as two brave pups. Cozy, co-op, and lightly terrifying, Haunted Paws has a demo available now on Steam.
Leaf Blower Co. - Rake in the leaves and tackle new challenges in this relaxing blue-collar sim game. A demo is available now on Steam.
Letters to Arralla - Deliver letters and packages in a whimsical RPG as you unlock new areas, meet locals, and uncover secrets in Letters to Arralla. A Steam demo is available now.
Llamalandia - Build your own llama sanctuary in this cozy farm game. Available on Steam. A demo is available now.
Mafate - Become a mailman in Mafate and send messages across the Indian Ocean while experiencing a lost island civilization. A demo is available now on Steam.
One Move Away - Help players tell their own stories by packing belongings to move to a new chapter in their lives while revisiting the items left behind. Available on Steam, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X. A demo is available now.
Puni the Florist - Become Puni, a former office worker/florist with a talking flower on her head, in this adorable indie game. A Steam demo is available now.
The Great Coffee Caper - Solve mysteries and uncover the thief who stole all the town's coffee beans in this playful and comedic adventure game. Available on Steam, with a demo available now.
Game Updates and Kickstarters
Little Kitty, Big City - This game invites you to join a lost kitty on a journey to reunite with her family in the big city. A content update will be released this summer, featuring new characters, new hats, a new cat customization feature, and a new area of the neighborhood with new stories to explore. Available on Steam, Xbox consoles, PlayStation consoles, and the Nintendo Switch.
Luma Island: Pirates - Luma Island gets a major update on June 20, adding new Lumas, outfits, a new pirate cove filled with mini-games, temples, traps, and treasures. Plus, new gameplay modes, including "Cozy," "Adventure," and "Hero" modes, improve accessibility for more players.
Winter Burrow - This woodland survival game has a painterly aesthetic and tells the story of a little mouse exploring, gathering resources, and enduring the winter in a cozy burrow. The game has undergone a rework of the main character's design, a new logo, and is coming to PC, Xbox consoles, PlayStation consoles, and the Nintendo Switch. The game will also launch day one on Xbox Game Pass. During the Wholesome Direct, the team announced Winter Burrow is coming to Nintendo Switch.
Surprise Shadow Drops
Camper Van: Make it Home - Organize and customize your camper van as you unlock a story of self discovery in a beautiful outdoor setting. Available now on PC.
Fireside Feelings - A heartfelt narrative experience where you respond to questions posed by a warming campfire, hearing the answers of other players. Available now on PC.
Instants - A unique puzzler that combines narrative, puzzle, and creativity elements to tell the story of generations. Available now on PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, and Nintendo Switch.
Omelet You Cook - A wholesome roguelike that puts you right in the heart of the cafeteria, delivering omelets to picky students and staff members. Available now on PC.
Out and About - Forage for wild plants and fungi, then cook them up to make tasty recipes and herbal remedies. While foraging, you'll meet locals, learn their stories, and help rebuild your community after a storm. Available now on PC in playtest form, with consoles planned for release in 2026.
Seasonala Cemetery - Take care of a living, breathing cemetery, where the world changes dynamically based on the seasons. Available now for free on Steam and itch.io.
Squeakross: Home Squeak Home - A cute puzzle game where you collect hundreds of decorations and stickers as you solve and transform puzzles to build your living space. Available now on PC via Steam and itch.io and Nintendo Switch.
The Guardian of Nature - An action-adventure game with a hand-drawn and animated art style, featuring unique puzzles as you explore this solarpunk world. Episode 1 is available now, with more episodes on the way. Coming to PC, Nintendo Switch 2, Xbox One, and mobile.
Vending Dokan! Kozy Kiosk - Run your own vending machine business and customize your kiosk to make it stand out from the crowd. Available now on Steam.
- The quirky puzzle game, Anxiety Puppy, is coming to Steam and focuses on anxiety, personified as a tiny puppy, providing a unique gaming experience.
- In the upcoming cozy city builder game, Town to City, players will create the municipal masterpiece they've always dreamt of, available on Steam.
- The gaming lifestyle meets technology and entertainment with Milano's Odd Job Collection, a wacky collection of part-time jobs available on Steam, GOG, the Microsoft Store, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and 5, and Xbox Series X.
- For PC and Xbox Series X gamers, future updates for Little Kitty, Big City include new characters, hats, customization features, and a new area to explore.
- The heartwarming adventure game Heidi's Legacy: Mountains Calling, inspired by classic children's novels, will be available on PC.
- Abreast with the latest in technology and entertainment, Xbox Series X will also feature Dosa Divas, a narrative turn-based RPG about two sisters and their spirit mech, cooking up delicious meals.
