2024 was a fantastic year for gaming. Sure, the Triple-A space might not feel the same about that year, with plenty of stinkers that make perusing YouTube for lists of 'Worst of 2024' quite a robust and enjoyable experience... But in the Indie Space, it was a rich year once again, proving the supremacy of the unbound, creative minds. While I was considering writing my selection of games I enjoyed the most that year, I struggled to categorize them. Going by genre felt most obvious but also most boring and by the book. Didn't feel like something that I would get behind either - too dry, too lacking in whimsy that I cherish in my life.
So, I've made my categories based on the things I like the most in my gaming experiences. And today I'd love to talk about the MOST RELAXIC VIBE - games that are like a warm blanket upon my soul. That soothes me after a long day of working, that eases my tension, and put me at ease. There is an abundance of such titles nowadays, with wholesome, cozy games sprouting every month. I am one of the core consumers of such titles, always eager to add a new relaxing romp to my extensive collection.
There were many of them this year that I enjoyed, and so I had to make a rigorous selection - most of those I hadn't yet managed to review. This will be amended in the coming weeks, but the thing is, I am still just playing them and enjoying them - and I prefer to write a review once I feel I am done with the title. As for our nominees, let's start with...
TINY GLADE is a little miracle. A wondrous toybox of a game, that has no goals, no objectives, no pressures... And yet sparkles your creative mind so much that you're going to have a vision of what you want to achieve crystalize instantly. It's a very easy game to describe too! You have a tiny glade and a set of tools to build your castles, houses, and whatever else your ingenuity can conjure using the excellent bits and bobs given to you. The magic lies in two things here - the vibe and the smoothness of the game's building blocks.
The vibe - it is impeccable. The game is soft, and gentle, have almost a painterly style to it. With a selection of multiple biomes affecting the atmosphere as well as full control over the time of day or night, you can set your scene to your liking. Taking a good set of pictures of your creation is half of the fun! And then, there are cute sheepies wandering around, adding a bit of life to the scene - pettable, cute, flying on their little umbrellas. Adorable.
The smoothness is the powerhouse of this whole game. If it was just a toybox with a selection of predetermined components, it would run itself dry in a few hours of fun. But the genius minds behind this game made it so each component 'melds' with everything else in a brilliant procedural way. Stacking two buildings together doesn't look bad, ever, because at the interjections the game will generate visuals to match your intent. It feels so organic and natural. It is also a delight to discover new interactions, and remember them for future use - every tool has so many possible outcomes that despite the seeming scarcity of options, the creative possibilities are impossibly vast. You can spend countless hours crafting your scene, and well... many people do, sharing their creations online. It's pretty magical.
Ever wanted to govern your slice of the peaceful neighborhood? Now you can! In MINAMI LANE you're responsible for, well... a lane. A nice street that will grow into a bustling, relaxing spot for the townfolk to catch a bite to eat, drink their boba, walk in the park, and so on. It's a casual management game, in which you control the steady growth of your strip by editing the recipes in your shops, caring for the street cleanliness and beauty, just... Making it a perfect spot to catch a breath and unwind for your charming chibi people.
It's a very relaxing game because, despite the management bit requiring some fiddling to get everything just right, there aren't any ways to... fail. Not completely, anyway. Sure, there are goals and tasks placed in front of you to fulfill, but you'd have to do a lot of things very badly and get yourself into a bind. Our helpful Tanuki keeps guiding the player through it all to get a better grasp of how the simple, clear-cut systems work.
It grows, as you learn, into something more demanding, but never overwhelming. More shops, more people, more tastes to satisfy, and requirements to meet. But it's always a relaxing, soothing experience, a soft and tender inspection of the growing street that you curate to your liking.
Catching creatures can be quite an addictive loop. I believe there's even a bit of a well-known franchise dedicated to the concept, hm? But what if we removed the more aggressive components from it, added a much more pleasant touch of serenity, and twisted it with a musical bit? That's FLOCK, in short - you're an aerial explorer with your trusty bird, tasked with cataloging and adding to your titular flock a collection of peculiar creatures.
And what a colorful bunch of goobers they make! The creativity behind them might be deceptive at first - after all, many of them are just... colorful blobs. Barely even a shape! But the magic lies in their more complex set of behaviors. Each creature has its things - unique sounds they make, masking within the environs. Some are easily spooked, others only come at night, and others still only appear under certain circumstances. They are each different enough that finding a new one is always an exciting prospect.
FLOCK may not be addictive, but it can sink its hooks into you - it's hard to put it down until you complete the story bit. And for completionists and collectors, there are more demanding achievements to keep you playing and finding more and more creatures. Also, you have sheep - strange blobby sheep, but they are cute and generate for you a currency in the form of wool to outfit yourself with snazzy cosmetics. It's a fun extra system on top. With stellar soundscapes, awesome music, and highly unique style, the game stays with you and is always a dreamy descent into wholesome, cozy exploration.
I am not a huge aficionado of visual novels, however lately I've been branching out into them. After all my favorite game of all time, forever - DISCO ELYSIUM - could easily be branded as such, as it is a book you play through. TAVERN TALK had a very simple draw for me - I'm a sucker for baseline fantasy tropes, and being an innkeeper for various vagabonds and adventurers sounded like a lot of fun. And so, I had to give it a try.
The game is pretty rudimentary - you learn and craft new magical drinks to give to your customers to help them on their quests, which is a fun bit of gaming. But the key part of the experience is the stories; Each character - and it feels like there are dozens of them! - come with their own questline. And when I say 'they own', I mean it literally; After all, THEY are the daring brave adventurers, you are their staunch supporter in offering them refreshment, rest, and most of all - a keen ear to listen to their struggles, issues and triumphs. Not all of those stories will keep you engaged, but there are so many of them on display, that it will be hard to find a set of characters you won't be interested in.
On top of that, you gather odd bits and pieces of information to help form quests for your patrons, helping them in another way. It's a slow burner, a game to enjoy over several evenings at your own pace; It has the coziness up the wazoo, gentle in visuals, sounds, and pacing. It will never demand much of you, but even in its lulls, it has just enough charm to keep you going, delving in, experimenting with your drinks, and listening to another troubled soul.
THE VERDICT
There can be only one winner, and the decision wasn't easy. I enjoyed all of the nominees, obviously, and each has their moment in the spotlight and a place in my memory. MINAMI LANE has the coziest vibe of them all, it was impossible not to smile when playing it. FLOCK was spectacular thanks to its visuals and soundscapes, hooked me in bait, line, and sinker, making me complete in a couple of sittings. TAVERN TALK with its easy setup and soothing pacing was a great way to ease a mind after a tough day, and with a rich cast of interesting characters, it was a delight to play through...
However, there is nothing like TINY GLADE.
TINY GLADE is miraculously delightful. It is a genius set of design choices that work better than the sum of its parts would indicate. You have just a few tools at your disposal, but the ways they interact with each other are second to none. The vibe of each scenery is superbly crafted, offering a variety of moods to build your concept on. It supports tiny, miniature dioramas that you can easily polish over an hour or two in the evening as well as fast, spanning projects that can take you a month or more to consider complete. The creativity on display is astonishing - just go and visit the Tiny Glades Reddit channel to see the deluge of amazing works that people produce daily.
For me, TINY GLADE is the ultimate toybox game, nailing the idea of having no prescribed goals, because they know very well that you - the player - will rapidly find ideas to materialize. Each discovery of two objects interacting, generating a new outcome is a brilliant moment of joy. Not only for the sheer enjoyment of the moment but by unlocking a new thought in your Mind Cabinet - a new thing to craft into your future builds. It fuels itself and never runs out of steam.
So if you haven't checked TINY GLADE out yet and are hankering for a relaxing game that will last you a lifetime, be sure to check it out.
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