Summary
- Cozy games offer a relaxed pace for players seeking slower, stress-free exploration experiences.
- Sky: Children of the Light and "Sable" are great examples of cozy exploration games to enjoy.
- Developers focus on creating vast, beautiful worlds with minimal combat, emphasizing peaceful exploration.
The exploration genre is crowded with survival games, or games that induce stress in players through combat and complex systems. However, there are some developers who want their players to engage with their worlds at a more relaxed pace. Cozy games have carved a niche for themselves in the modern gaming landscape with gamers looking for slower-paced, relaxed experiences.
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Exploration is the perfect genre for cozy games, as people's desire to explore goes hand in hand with their desire to relax and simply enjoy the beauty of the world they are discovering. These are the best examples of exploration games for players looking for a cozy experience.
10 Sky: Children Of The Light
A Vast Cozy World To Explore
Sky: Children of the Light
- Released
- July 18, 2019
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Thatgamecompany
- Publisher(s)
- Thatgamecompany
- Genre(s)
- RPG, Adventure, Indie Games
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
Thatgamecompany's newest game is set in a world where the light has faded, and the world has become clouded. Sky tasks players with traveling around this once-beautiful land to relight the beacons that will restore the world to its former beauty alongside others on the same journey.
Thatgamecompany made its name with games like Flower and Journey. Sky is the next evolution of their cozy exploration formula. The game world is vaster than any they've built before, and its social element is an extension of Journey's own novel approach. Sky is an MMO cozy exploration game unlike any other, allowing players to soar through the clouds and seek out little secrets in every corner of the world.
9 Cozy Grove
Cozy Island Full Of Cozy Bears
Cozy Grove
- Released
- April 8, 2021
WHERE TO PLAY
Cozy Grove is a game about a young spirit scout waking up on a mysterious island inhabited by bear spirits. The spirit scout must help the spirits fulfill their unfinished business to help them find peace.
This game is as cozy as the title suggests. The island of Cozy Grove is entirely devoid of conflict, and the aim is simply to help the spirits and decorate the scout campsite at a relaxed pace. More of the island gets revealed as players help the spirits. The island, while not large, is packed with things to do and seasonal quests as the world reflects real-life seasons.
8 Sable
Explore A Mysterious World On A Hoverbike
Sable
- Released
- September 23, 2021
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Shedworks
- Publisher(s)
- Raw Fury
- Genre(s)
- Adventure
- Platform(s)
- PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
A young tribesperson must set out on their hoverbike to explore the world and find her calling. Players take control of Sable as she explores the world, meets interesting characters, collects masks tied to various vocations, and discovers the mysteries of ancient ruins. Sable, at its heart, is a coming-of-age story.
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The gameplay loop consists of getting on a hoverbike, traveling to various locations of interest, talking to people, and completing fun quests for them. The hoverbike starts off as a relatively slow mode of traversal but can be upgraded to be much swifter and makes the exploration very enjoyable. There is no combat in Sable — just pure, unbridled discovery.
7 Season: A Letter To The Future
Exploring A World On The Brink Of Change
Season: A Letter to the Future
- Released
- January 31, 2023
WHERE TO PLAY
Season: A Letter to the Future tells the story of Estelle, a young woman from a small village, as she explores the world. Equipped with a journal, a camera, and a recorder, Estelle photographs, draws, and records video and audio to preserve as much of the world as possible before an impending cataclysm that will change the world forever.
Games rarely explore an apocalypse story so poignant or human as this one. That's where Season's real strength lies. It is the ideal game for players who seek to enjoy a deeply emotional apocalypse narrative at a slower pace.
6 Eastshade
A Painter On A Beautiful Island
Eastshade
- Released
- February 13, 2019
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Eastshade Studios
- Publisher(s)
- Eastshade Studios
- Genre(s)
- Adventure, Open-World
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
This game's narrative begins with the protagonist on a ship sailing to his mother's home island, only to wake up on the island after a shipwreck, having lost all his supplies and money. He must then complete quests and paint to earn money and explore the island.
Eastshade's Island is a beautiful and varied location, which helps as players are often required to paint the landscape for patrons. The gathering and crafting mechanics are simple, avoiding any semblance of grinding or overcomplexity. The painting mechanic, while not the most involved, is a neat little addition.
5 Wytchwood
A Crass Witch In A Cozy World
wytchwood
- Released
- December 9, 2021
WHERE TO PLAY
Wytchwood is the tale of an old witch who simply wants to rest. The witch has forgotten much of her life until a figure from the past comes to collect on an overdue contract. This sets the witch on a journey of exploration.
This is a very different experience from most cozy exploration games. The characters aren't wholesome, and there is a lot of strangeness and dark magic in the world of Wytchwood. It involves a lot of ingredient gathering and crafting, which is unusual for the genre. However, Wytchwood pulls it off spectacularly without sacrificing the coziness.
4 Caravan SandWitch
Explore The Sands In A Caravan
Caravan SandWitch
- Released
- September 12, 2024
WHERE TO PLAY
- Publisher(s)
- Dear Villagers
- Genre(s)
- Adventure, Puzzle
- Platform(s)
- PS5, Nintendo Switch, PC
Caravan SandWitch follows a young woman in a sci-fi dessert setting as she looks for her missing sister after receiving a distress signal. Surrounded by people who are eager to help, the young woman must find ways to keep traveling deeper into the wasteland in her trusty caravan.
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Players must explore caves, ruins, and the wilderness to find items to upgrade the caravan in a satisfying gameplay loop. The characters along the way are nothing but helpful as the game instills a sense of camaraderie throughout its plot. Caravan SandWitch is one of the most wholesome games in recent memory.
3 Beacon Pines
A Cozy Mystery Adventure
Beacon Pines
- Released
- September 22, 2022
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Adventure, Visual Novel
- Platform(s)
- PC, Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
Beacon Pine's titular town is filled with mysteries, like Luka's mother's disappearance. When Luka and his friend Rolo stumble across mysterious events in an abandoned warehouse, they decide to unravel more of the town's mysteries alongside Beck.
This is a narrative game foremost, with choices that lead to branching paths and multiple endings. It plays like a cozy puzzle game. However, the main gameplay loop is driven by exploration as the player must search for new words that open up new story paths, ultimately leading to an elusive happy ending.
2 A Short Hike
But A Big Adventure
A Short Hike
- Released
- April 5, 2019
WHERE TO PLAY
As the name implies, A Short Hike is a game about a young bird going on a hike up a mountain and meeting hilariously weird characters in a world of anthropomorphic animals.
A Short Hike is a cute, silly, and fun game. The climbing mechanic is aided by an actually fun collectathon as each new feather found increases the player's stamina. The humor in the game is great with some very funny dialogue. The simplicity of the graphics aids rather than hinders the experience. A Short Hike can be finished in one sitting but manages to pack a lot in the short runtime.
1 Journey
A Timeless Masterpiece
Journey
- Released
- March 13, 2012
WHERE TO PLAY
Thatgamecompany's seminal masterpiece is set in a mysterious world following an apocalyptic event that nearly wiped out the beings that inhabited it. The story follows one such being as they explore the ruins of the old world to learn its history and uncover the truth behind the catastrophe.
Journey was an early example of a cozy exploration game. While relatively linear, the game's world is gorgeous and filled with secrets and optional exploration — including a novel approach to surprising seamless co-op. Journey is a true masterpiece that all fans of cozy exploration must experience.
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