It is once again that magical time of year. It’s time to deck the halls and put up the tree, and this year, there are some wonderful gaming titles I hope to find wrapped up with my name on them. Here is a list of games I can’t wait to get my hands on this season.
Harvestella
Genre: Farm Sim, Action, RPG, Simulation
Platforms: Steam, Switch
Rating: US T, UK 12+
Developer | Publisher: Square Enix
Harvestella is one of those games that seems to know all of my weaknesses. I love the Square Enix-style, Final Fantasy-like softness to the designs, I love farming sims, and I also love FF combat. Combine all three of these together, and I am dying to try this game. I can’t wait until I actually have some time to devote to it. Maybe next year!
Meanwhile, if you’re interested, here are our impressions of the demo!
Time on Frog Island
Genre: Adventure, Puzzle, Platformer, Indie
Platforms: Steam, Switch, Xbox, Stadia
Rating: US E, UK 3+
Developer | Publisher: Half Past Yellow | Merge Games
This stunning little game was introduced to me by a Twitch streamer that I follow religiously. He played this game, and I instantly fell in love. In Time on Frog Island, you play as a shipwrecked young man who is searching Frog Island for pieces to fix his boat. Players must interact with the frog citizens, fetching and questing everything from fish to love letters to tools for each of their new froggy friends.
We reviewed Time on Frog Island here.
Teacup
Genre: Adventure, Casual, Indie
Platforms: PS4, Steam, Switch
Rating: US E, UK 3+
Developer | Publisher: Smarto Club | Whitethorn Games
Teacup is a wholesome game about a little frog who is trying to gather ingredients for her tea party. I have been hoping to get some time to pick up and play this game since it came out in 2021, but I’ve just been too busy! Here’s hoping 2023 is a better year for diving into new games for me.
Teacup has a review on our site here!
Pupperazzi
Genre: Action, Casual, Indie
Platforms: Xbox, Steam
Rating: US E, UK 3+
Developer | Publisher: Sundae Month | Kitfox Games
This game is all about taking pictures of pups. Players get to interact with all sorts of dogs, grabbing up pictures and posting them to social media. Pupperazzi came out in January of this year, and I have yet to pick it up for myself.
An Airport for Aliens Currently Run by Dogs
Genre: Adventure, Casual, Indie
Platforms: Steam, itch.io, Xbox, Switch
Rating: US E, UK 3+
Developer | Publisher: Strange Scaffold
Yet another wonderful little game introduced to me by a favourite streamer, An Airport for Aliens Currently Run by Dogs, is exactly what it sounds like. You play as one of the last humans in the universe, and you have to make your way from the airport to the airport to see your lovely fiancé. This surprisingly massive and moving game will take many hours to complete, so I’ll need a few days cleared off of my schedule to dive deep into the weird world of doggie-run airports originally designed by aliens.
The Wild at Heart
Genre: Adventure, Casual, Indie, Puzzle
Platforms: Steam, Switch
Rating: US E, UK 3+
Developer | Publisher: Moonlight Kids | Humble Games
Just LOOK at this game. I don’t know the devs or much about what the game is about (I don’t want to spoil anything for myself), but I’m buying this with my Christmas bonus, 100%. It looks SO CUTE. This game looks like it’s been pretty well received on Steam, and I can’t wait to see what this weird little story has in store for me. Our review is here.