In recent years, I’ve gotten more and more into cosy games, specifically anything farming or tycoon management related.

While I’ll always enjoy a good open world adventure, I find cosy games easier to get into after a long work day, and that they require less energy and brainpower.

For me at least, cosy games allow you to be creative and do a variety of tasks to progress such as crafting, farming, mining and foraging, as opposed to fighting enemies and following a large scale storyline.

In this article, I’m sharing my experience with some of the new games I tried in 2024, along with some older, beloved favourites.

1) Best New Release: Fields of Mistria

Out of all the new games I tried this year, this one took the cake (and it’s not even out of early access yet!)

Fields of Mistria is like a cuter, more magical version of Stardew Valley—with farming magic, dragons, and adorable animals that you can accessorise. One of my favourite things to do in farming games is forage, and there’s tons of opportunity for this.

Plus, I like every single one of the NPC characters (multiple of which you can romance) and I think the developers did a great job giving them storylines with depth, diverse identities, and making them fun and interesting to engage with. They even change outfits every season!

2) Best Older Game: Dinkum

This is not a new release, but it’s on my list because it’s one of the games I played most throughout 2024. Developed by James Bendon, this remains my favourite farming game to date, set in an Australian setting with dangerous and adorable Aussie animals.

I love the mix of play styles between Minecraft and Animal Crossing, and the creative freedom to build your dream town, unlock upgrades, and go through stunning seasons year round.

The developer keeps adding updates to the game as it gets closer to finalisation (the most recent one being the Flaming Winter update) and I haven’t even gotten close to completing a single playthrough yet so there’s still heaps of content for me to discover for the first time.

3) Best Survival Game: I Am Future

This is a close runner up because I sank a lot of hours into this one. I Am Future is a survival game which has a farming component, except the farming is essential to keep your character alive because you need to eat. Set in a post-apocalyptic world, you are tasked with scavenging for parts and building your own shelter with contraptions to make your life easier.

It’s a very relaxing, calm game to play and took some time to progress to each new area, which kept me engaged for days on end. I really loved the concept of this game and had a lot of fun playing it, building out each area, and unlocking new technology and craft options.

4) Most Interesting Concept: Chef RPG

Chef RPG is another early access game with a unique world which initially hooked me, along with interesting game mechanics.

You are tasked with opening and running a restaurant, including cooking various dishes and setting the menu each night. It’s a really fun concept, and each dish has it’s own mini game to ‘cook’ the meal. 

There’s plenty of foraging and shopping that needs to be done to source the ingredients for new recipes. Overall, I really like this game and will be playing more of it as new updates are added.

5) Most Engaging Overall: Traveller’s Rest

This game had me in a chokehold for a number of weeks when I first bought it, and I enjoyed it enough that I would come back to it eventually.

Similar to Chef RPG, you are tasked with running and managing a tavern. You set the drinks on tap, along with the food menu, and ensure people receive their orders. You grow your own ingredients along the way to keep your tavern running, which can be a tricky balance of time-management to get right.

There was a point in this game where I started running my tavern a little too well (which I know is the point, and you’re supposed to be able to progress to more difficult scenarios), but part of what kept me engaged was trying to keep up with the orders.

Once I had enough staff and stocks to keep my tavern running (and I struggled to progress to more challenging levels) it became repetitive very quickly, so just be aware that this is a game that is the most fun when you’re progressing regularly.

6) Most Adorable: Little Kitty, Big City

I played this game over two straight days and enjoyed every minute. It’s a fun, simple puzzle game where you play as a cat trying to make it’s way back home.

I enjoyed interacting with the different characters in the game, unlocking different abilities, and completing the challenges within the game. Overall, it’s a very fun game and a good way to pass the time if you own a switch and are on a long flight, or need a simple wind-down game for the evening.

7) Biggest Potential: Echoes of the Plum Grove

I played this game a handful of times and I could definitely see myself playing it again, but it didn’t engage me long enough to really get the most out of the game, which is something I’d love to see improved.

What I love about this game is the interesting concept. It’s a farming game in a cute, paper-mario art style, but it also has a sinister twist where your decisions have consequences—for example, you can poison your neighbours.

There is a generational aspect to this game where yourself and other villagers will get married, have children, and eventually die, resulting in you playing on as your character’s offspring. Over time, you grow closer to the townspeople as you get to know new faces and see your neighbours grow old.

It’s a fantastic game, and hopefully I’ll get more out of my next session playing it.