Last year in May we were treated to a Wholesome Direct covering some of the new games due to be released. This year we have had another Wholesome Direct, a showcase, made by a large group of independent developers and publishers, that presented the kind of games that LadiesGamers promote, Wholesome and Indie.
75 upcoming games releasing on various consoles and handhelds. Most of them on Steam, but we did hear some mention of the Nintendo Switch too. However, as we have seen in the past, Steam is often the first big step of a game being released and then arriving on consoles later. Below is our pick out of the titles shown in the direct and the Wholesome Direct video for you to watch.
The Garden Path – Steam 2021
An upcoming sandbox game where players uncover a long-forgotten garden and help it grow anew to attract vegetable inhabitants and curious animal travellers. Far from your old life, you find yourself a new wilderness – a life once lived in these dense woods, waiting to be rediscovered.
The Garden Path explores the quiet moments of a life well-lived, where your garden will grow to reflect both the passing of time and your own design. Time here runs in concert with the real world, and the passing of seasons heralds new encounters and a new story to weave. Designed to be played as and when you wish, The Garden Path features a wealth of stories, activities and distractions to be experienced at your own pace.
Letters a Written Adventure – Steam Late 2021
Letters is a coming of age story about a shy girl named Sarah, learning how to find the right words.
You move through her pen pal letters and chat messages in a nostalgic journey from childhood to young adulthood. In a branching storyline, you’ll learn more about her life, friends, fears and dreams, making decisions along the way that will influence what kind of person she’ll grow up to be.
Garden Story – Steam & Nintendo Switch 2021
Unify a broken community as the newly-appointed Guardian of The Grove. Traverse a vibrant island to combat invasive Rot, inspire its inhabitants, and rebuild your home. You won’t have to do this alone: fruity friends await, ready to lend a hand!
Concord, the youngest grape in The Grove, is now a Guardian, and it’s their job to help restore the island. That’s a lot to shoulder for a grape barely off the vine… and more than a few inhabitants are sceptical they have what it takes. Fortunately, Concord has friends like Elderberry, Rana, and Fuji on their side! With their help, you can take on the dangerous Rot and find ways to encourage other residents to assist in the efforts.
Moonglow Bay – Steam 2021
Moonglow Bay is set along the Eastern Canadian coastline during the 1980s and offers players a diverse and emotionally charged story, complemented by a relaxing, slice-of-life fishing RPG. You play as a rookie angler, struggling to fulfil your partner’s final wish by keeping a business afloat in the face of impending bankruptcy.
With your journal and rod in hand, explore the furthest reaches of the ocean, from frigid glaciers to boiling geysers, and learn to cast nets, set traps and fish through the ice, documenting over 100 varied aquatic species while uncovering the secrets of Moonglow Bay.
Dordogne – Steam & Nintendo Switch 2021
The debut title from French indie studio Un Je Ne Sais Quoi, a game called Dordogne, is a charming and wholesome adventure in hand-painted 3D watercolour, coming to PC and Nintendo Switch in 2021.
Dordogne is a narrative adventure game in which you play as Mimi, a young woman visiting the house of her recently deceased grandmother who left her letters and puzzles to solve. To do so, Mimi will revisit her childhood memories and reconnect with the little girl who marvelled at everything.
Cloud Jumper – Steam Coming Soon
Cloud Jumper is a chill game about exploring the Sky. Take the wheel of a tiny flying tug boat and launch yourself through a beautiful pixel world, filled with floating islands, colourful characters and ancient secrets.
The Sky has been torn apart and is in need of your help. For a thousand years, the Infinite Lighthouse offered protection against the Storm; but now, its light has been snuffed out. Islands once connected are now isolated and lost. But you are a Cloud Jumper, gifted with the lost power to sail through the Storm. Jump across the Sky and help those in need; uncover ancient relics; craft creative recipes and enhance your Ship. Only by forging a path up to the Roof of the World can you relight our ancient protector and reconnect the people of the Sky.
Freshly Frosted – Steam 2021
A dozen dazzling doughnut dilemmas await you, that’s 144 and, perhaps more puzzles to please your particular puzzling passions. To excite and delight there are mechanics galore; from splitters to pushers, mergers and cloners, randomizers, teleporters, and more!
What’s your favourite doughnut? Sweet and sprinkled, a jolly jelly-filled, perhaps a marvellous maple bar? What about one shaped like a pumpkin, a snowflake, or a star! Discover many a whimsical shape as you explore a sweet skyscape of pastry possibilities.
Unpacking – Steam 2021
Unpacking is a zen puzzle game about the familiar experience of pulling possessions out of boxes and fitting them into a new home. Part “item Tetris”, part home decoration, you are invited to create a satisfying living space while learning clues about the life you’re unpacking.
Over the course of eight house moves, you are given a chance to experience a sense of intimacy with a character you never see and a story you’re never told.
Moonshell Island – Steam TBD
When mysterious creatures begin to threaten the peace, you must journey to find the source of the trouble and to recruit islanders to a safe haven, Crabby’s Cabana Club. As the club population grows, more services become available to aid you on your quest to uncover the secrets of Moonshell Island.
Make friends and help them fulfil their dreams Distract yourself with fun puzzles, sidequests and minigames
Explore the diverse landscapes of Moonshell Island Fight off “nomsters” and use the loot in delicious recipes.
Build upgrades for Crabby’s Cabana Club using island resources.
Witchy Life Story – Steam 2022
Witchy Life Story is a humorous witchy life narrative sim where you tend your garden, craft spells, befriend the local villagers, and help sort out their lives and yours too, or will you?
Play as a young witch, who’s a member of the illustrious von Teasel family. The only problem is you aren’t illustrious. After a few “mishaps”, you’ve been sent to the village of Flora to help the villagers hold a harvest festival. If the festival is a success, all is good. But if not, it’s no more training for you!
Alekon – Steam Out Now
Photograph dozens of whimsical creatures, solving puzzles to get them to strike collectable poses! Befriend the creatures through unique quests and minigames, from snowflake design to tuning and playing crystal harps, to organizing parties!
Journey through your imagination to photograph whimsical creatures, known as fictions, each embodying a concept, from Rainy Day Magic to Micro Management. Wander through the realms and interact with fictions in their environment to get them to strike collectable poses.
Amber Isle – Steam Date Coming Soon
Amber Isle is a shop management, social sim set in a quaint, friendly world of prehistoric animal villagers called Paleofolk! Tasked with opening the only shop in a small, sleepy village, you find yourself crafting and selling items to solve unique problems of the unusual clientele. A table big enough for a brontosaurus, a water-proof picnic set for a plesiosaur, or a special toothbrush for a sabre-toothed cat!
TASOMACHI: Behind the Twilight – Steam Out Now & Nintendo Switch 2021
Yukumo is a young girl traversing the world in her beloved airship. Upon arriving at a particular Far Eastern town to run some errands, her airship suddenly breaks down. She decides to explore the town to search for parts for repair. The town has fallen silent with no trace of the people who live there, the only inhabitants being a strange cat-like species.
Tasomachi is an independently developed adventure game that lets you freely explore the beautiful world created by designer nocras. Assuming the role of young female protagonist Yukumo, fix your beloved airship by exploring the mysterious town covered by the Twilight Mist to collect hidden Sources of Earth and help restore the town’s lost brilliance. Enjoy this unique world with an Eastern fantasy twist, complemented perfectly by composer Ujico*’s mystical soundtrack.
Hoa – Steam & Nintendo Switch Coming Soon
Hoa is a beautiful puzzle-platforming game that features breathtaking hand-painted art, lovely music, and a peaceful, relaxing atmosphere. Experience the magic of nature and imagination as you play the main character, Hoa, on her journey through breathtaking environments back to where it all began.
Step into a painting that lives. Explore a vast world of meticulously crafted sceneries of stunning hand-painted art. Keep an eye out for delightful magical creatures along the way. Most of them want to be friends, some might even tell you a little story or two. Cuteness guaranteed.
Wytchwood – Steam 2021
Wytchwood is a crafting adventure game set in an expressive land of gothic fables and fairytales. As the mysterious old witch of the woods, you will explore a strange countryside, collect magical ingredients, brew sorcerous enchantments, and pass your twisted judgement upon a capricious cast of characters and creatures.
Lovingly rendered storybook art style Gather, collect, grow and craft bizarre ingredients: Toxic toadstools, the eye of newt and bottled fear. Research and concoct devious spells and sorceries. Turn greedy into frogs! Trick the wicked with cunning curses! Explore an allegorical world of tall tales, uncovering colourful personas and fantastical narratives. Use your wit and guile to solve puzzles and best the strange monsters of the forest.
Mythic Ocean – Steam Out Now & Nintendo Switch July 2nd 2021
What would you do if you were friends with the gods, and your influence on them could change the universe? Mythic Ocean is an atmospheric and charming adventure where you’ll befriend a pantheon of gods under the sea, help them find themselves, and make choices that shape the creation of a new world. Explore all the outcomes. Which god will rise above? What kind of world will they create? You decide but choose wisely.
Beasts of Maravilla Island – Steam & Nintendo Switch Out Now USA, EU TBC
Embark on your adventure as an aspiring wildlife photographer in the hidden, magical jungles of Maravilla Island. Explore this mysterious island and solve puzzles to discover extraordinary creatures, interact with them in their natural habitat, and photograph the enchanting, unique behaviours you reveal! Check back soon for our review of Beasts of Maravilla Island on the Nintendo Switch
The Gecko Gods – Steam & Nintendo Switch 2021
Explore a mysterious island as a tiny lizard. Complete ancient puzzles, effortlessly climb cliffs and eat bugs as you make your way across an island civilization lost to time.
The Wholesome Direct Indie Showcase
There really is too much to recap from the Wholesome Direct. The 75 games that have been show very much fit with LadiesGamers. If you want to see for yourself which one appeal to you, check out the entire hours long direct below.
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