Wholesome Gaming Round-Up 2025-8

Welcome to our Wholesome gaming news!

This week, we have news about My Nintendo Gold Points being discontinued, a release date for Book Bound and about The Electrifying Incident by Draknek & Friends. There will be an updated demo for Doloc Town during the Steam Next Fest, new Piczle Cross: Rune Factory on Switch, a major update for Trash Goblin, sliding-tile puzzle Tile Tales: Pirate is coming and Tales of the Shire delayed again.

My Nintendo Gold Points Discontinued

Nintendo has sent out news that the Gold Points that you could earn just by buying games will be discontinued. Beginning at 9:30 p.m. PDT on March 24th, 2025, you will no longer be able to earn My Nintendo Gold Points. Here’s what they put on the My.Nintendo.com website:

Gold Points will no longer be earned for digital purchases on Nintendo eShop after 9:30 p.m. PDT on March 24th, 2025.
Gold Points will no longer be earned on physical games that release after March 24th, 2025. For physical games that released on or before March 24th, 2025, Gold Points may still be earned by registering eligible titles within one year from the original release date of the game.
All earned Gold Points will continue to be valid and redeemable for 12 months after they are issued.

Check your own My.Nintendo.com page for more info.

Release Date for Book Bound

Book Bound is a cosy bookshop simulation game where you use a range of items to decorate your shop and make it truly yours. You can pick the books in different genres you would like to sell and help customers find the books they want most. And we now have a release date: March 6th, 2025.

Although not in the demo version that you can currently enjoy on Steam, the full version of Book Bound will allow you to create and publish your own books! That sounds great because based on your own inspiration, you can not only create the book but also the book title and cover with as many chapters as you like. After it’s released, you can also sell it in your store. And be on tenterhooks to see if someone buys it!

The Electrifying Incident by Draknek & Friends

We seriously loved A Monster’s Expedition, and when Paula reviewed it she gave it our highest rating. She said this is a must-play game for puzzle fans and one of the best puzzle games she played in 2024. So it’s fun to see the monster reappear in another game by Draknek & Friends!

The Electrifying Incident will have you and the monster explore a mysterious facility and manipulate the many electrical hazards and locked doors to find a way deeper, towards the source of the problem. Your only tool: a mechanical grabber-arm allowing you to lift and move boxes from afar. And as the reactor is malfunctioning, it could go into meltdown at any moment!

The game will be released on Steam in April, and there’s a short demo available to show you how it will work.

Updated Demo for Doloc Town

Doloc Town is coming with an updated Steam Next Fest demo. The Steam Next Fest starts on February 24th and lasts until March 3rd. Doloc Town invites you to step into a cosy, pixel-art farming adventure set in a vibrant post-apocalyptic world and combines farming simulation with exploration and discovery, creating a charming blend of genres. The game is described in the media as: “if Stardew Valley, Terraria, and Fallout had an adorable, pixelated baby.”

In Doloc Town, you start with a barren farm, managing crops, building up automated production, and strategizing against environmental challenges like acid rain. As you cultivate your land, you can also unlock skill trees to enhance your farming abilities. Beyond the farm, you can explore the game’s semi-open world, encountering warm-hearted NPCs, collecting relics, and uncovering ancient technology across biomes ranging from lush forests to eerie ruins. Combat also plays a role, with customizable drone companions that support you in defending your homestead against hostile creatures.

New Piczle Cross: Rune Factory

Deverloper Score Studios has released Piczle Cross: Rune Factory on the Nintendo Switch! The biggest game they have made so far as they tell us on BlueSky, and as I gave Piczle Cross: Story of Seasons our highest rating last year, this is great news.

So if you like nonogram puzzles on Switch and love your Rune Factory, be sure to check it out!

Major Update Trash Goblin

Trash Goblin, the shopkeeping game from Spilt Milk Studios, has just received its third major content update, Deep Clean, now available on Steam Early Access. This update focuses on improving cleaning tools and adding new features to make tidying up even more satisfying.

The Deep Clean update introduces upgrades to essential tools like the Chisel, Sponge, and Soak Tub. The Chisel now has two upgrade levels, with variations like the “Lance” for precise, directional cleaning and the “Cross” for wider damage spread. The Sponge and Soak Tub improvements also speed up the cleaning process, making it easier to tackle grimy trinkets.

Players will also find a handy new Quest Tracker, helping keep customer requests organized by displaying their name, order, and trinket condition. Plus, characters of different species now have unique voice burbles, and cleaning time now scales based on trinket size—smaller items clean faster than larger ones.

Kalina loved the game when she wrote her early impressions last November, the game will be even better now.

Sliding-Tile Puzzle Tile Tales: Pirate

Tile Tales: Pirate, a sliding-tile puzzle game from NineZyme is coming! In the game, you’ll follow a mischievous pirate as he scours a secluded island, dodging obstacles and outsmarting critters to claim every last bit of treasure.

With 90 puzzling levels spread across nine unique biomes—ranging from sunny beaches to eerie graveyards—there’s plenty of loot to plunder. The game rewards careful planning, with extra stars awarded for completing levels without wasted moves. And if you’re feeling impatient, a handy fast-forward button keeps the action moving at a pirate’s pace!

Tile Tales: Pirate is coming soon to Steam, Nintendo Switch (Q2), Xbox Series X/S and PlayStation 5 (Q3). PC players can get an early taste now with the free demo on Steam. Plus, the game will be part of Steam Next Fest.

Tales of the Shire Delayed Again

We’ve already been waiting for quite a while, but it seems Tales of the Shire is delayed again. Originally expected during the Holidays in 2024, it was delayed until March this year. Now, it is expected to be released on July 29th 2025.