Put the kettle on because we’ve got to talk about what makes a game cozy.
Things got mighty spicy over on Twitter recently when one YouTuber posed a similar question to the cozy gaming community and it’s where we’re starting today’s discussion.
Welcome to my “Let’s Talk” series where I deep dive into topics within the gaming industry that are trending, shedding light on their impact, exploring different perspectives, and sparking meaningful discussions among gamers and industry enthusiasts alike.
Join me as we unravel the latest news, trends, controversies, and everything in between, navigating the ever-evolving landscape of cozy video games together.
These Cozy Gaming Lists Make No Sense!
A statement was made by one YouTuber to other content creators that grabbed the attention of some well-known YouTubers within the cozy gaming space: “Swear some of the games that have been making the cozy lists on YT make absolutely no sense. I’m trying to understand but I can’t. I get it some of y’all think Elden Ring is cozy but we both know that’s not what people are looking for when they search ‘cozy games’.”
The statement came from Miss Bubbles who holds a ‘Wholesome Space for RPG, Indie, Cozy & Farming Game Lovers’ on her YouTube Channel.
In a follow-up tweet, she highlighted the problem with the lack of a clear definition for the cozy game genre, stating, “Sure we still have not established what cozy means… but let’s put it this way; Are you going to call an adventure game a horror one if it isn’t? Or a survival game with no shooting involved a FPS? Some things just don’t make sense.”
The tweet received over 10K views and the responses varied considerably which only further highlighted how subjective the term ‘cozy games’ is.
She’s quite right too as many cozy lists on YouTube do indeed have some questionable games on them.
Coco Games shared her 7 Creepy Games for Cozy Gamers which included Little Misfortune and Inside, both psychological horror games. Then there’s Pure Xbox with his 15 Cozy Games You MUST Play This Winter on Xbox Game Pass featuring Persona 5 Royal – a violent RPG with mature content.
Eeowna, who has over 70K subscribers and whose channel has a ‘large focus on all games comfy cozy’ on Nintendo Switch had an interesting viewpoint: “See for me I feel like the beauty of the term cozy is the fact that it isn’t a genre it’s a vibe. And I absolutely love hearing what cozy means to each content creator and why. If we all had the exact same view on games, YouTube would be incredibly boring.”
If Cozy Games Are Subjective What’s The Problem?
Here’s where I stand on the matter – I got into cozy gaming because I’m a sensitive person.
It’s taken me many years to accept that being easily overwhelmed and emotional is nothing to be ashamed of.
I used to live in excruciating pain from Endometriosis and Adenomyosis.
Since my hysterectomy and excision surgery, I changed considerably. But mostly I’ve learned to accept myself and not be ashamed of my health because none of it was my fault. When you’ve been called a liar and a fake over several decades it can take its toll on you and start to make you think you’re going crazy!
My natural response now is one of disgust (actually feeling physically nauseous) when I see any horror, gore, or sexualization of women in overly violent games.
Whenever I see or hear something that makes my stomach turn it stays with me and upsets me the more I think about it.
My poor fiance gets the brunt of my anger when he scrolls through the horror films on Netflix and they start auto-playing. Also, I refuse to watch real life documentaries about criminals and will go out of my way to avoid overhearing a conversation about upsetting topics.
To quote Rocky, “The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows, it’s a mean and nasty place” and at the end of the day, I use entertainment to relax and reset when the outside world gets a bit much.
So here’s the problem I see with allowing any game to ‘feel cozy’.
When a person like myself goes searching for the best cozy games on the internet and stumbles across a seemingly wholesome video only to be surprised by a trailer for a horror game, a violent RPG, or an anime that is overtly sexualizing girls it can be incredibly upsetting.
These lists by the way often do not offer a warning to the viewers that they may contain violent games that some people may find upsetting, unlike disclaimers that are used when promoting these types of games.
Where Is The Line Between A Comfort Game And A Cozy Game?
Getting back to the Tweet, one commenter had this to say: “I feel like what people should be calling them is ‘my comfort games’ like they aren’t cozy but maybe they make you feel comfortable and happy. That’s a better classification.”
Personally, I have recently found comfort in Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade, an action-packed JRPG which I’ve been playing on easy for the story more so than the gameplay.
It’s comforting to me because I’ve had a secret crush on Cloud Strife ever since I was a young girl. Plus the music and the other characters are so familiar at this point that they feel like friends. Not to mention my 11-year-old cat is called Tifa!
However, as a turn-based fighting game, it is most certainly not a cozy game and I’m pretty certain that the developers over at Square Enix would wince hard if someone said it was.
On Steam, you can filter your search by popular user-defined tags. The genres the developers select will be the initial tags for a game with user-defined ones getting added by the community as time goes on.
The tag ‘Cozy’ is among them and if you check it out you’ll see that every game looks wholesome, cute and relaxing.
Every thumbnail is brightly colored and inviting. They all look like games you wouldn’t mind your kids playing.
So why aren’t they simply called gentle games?
Not every game I would personally class as a cozy game is on there either like – Disney Dreamlight Valley, Coffee Talk and A Little to the Left – all games I’ve enjoyed playing on a rainy day and even featured on cozy game lists myself.
Does that mean they aren’t cozy?
Are cozy games actually just games for kids in disguise?
Honestly, we’re just making it up as we go along. Coziness is subjective and it would be impossible for a game developer to encompass every quality that every individual found comforting. I particularly like thunderstorms and can fall asleep while they rage outside, while my fiance hates them and won’t get a wink of sleep.
What Makes a Game Cozy?
The fact that folks are having this debate on public forums like Twitter is only a good thing.
It shows the need for not only a definition of what makes a game cozy but also that cozy games continue to grow in popularity.
Cozy Gaming is not merely a temporary trend that emerged during the 2020 lockdowns and will diminish over time. Rather there exists a demand from content creators and gamers who actively seek them out for their comforting aesthetics, mechanics, and storylines.
Instead, it is essential to establish a distinct and dedicated space for cozy games within the gaming industry and I feel this may take some time to conclude.
If I were to give an example of a game I think encompasses what a cozy game is I would say that it’s Kinder World.
Kinder World is a mobile game about houseplants, healing, and practicing kindness.
Lumi Interactive is a female-founded mobile game studio with one goal – to make the world a kinder place.
This is one mission I can get behind and feel that if we’re going to head into the future with a definition of what a cozy game is then Kinder World has it nailed.
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