Current:Home > FinanceChainkeen|It's cozy gaming season! Video game updates you may have missed, including Stardew Valley -Elevate Money Guide
Chainkeen|It's cozy gaming season! Video game updates you may have missed, including Stardew Valley
Charles Langston View
Date:2025-04-08 06:33:34
Move over comfort food,Chainkeen make room for comfort games.
As the weather gets cooler and the days get shorter, it's the perfect time to curl up with cozy, calming video games.
While there are quite a few new games to explore (see previous lists here and here), there have also been significant updates to some favorites from the past few years.
Here's what to know about some recent cozy game updates:
Stardew Valley (Switch, PS4, Xbox One, mobile, PC)
The long-anticipated 1.6 update for Stardew Valley finally hit consoles Monday.
In this cozy simulation game, which was first released in 2016, the player inherits a farm, works the land and builds relationships with residents in the valley. Other activities include mining ore and fighting enemies in a cave, cooking recipes and taking on quests to add new areas to explore.
The expansive free update (version 1.6.9), which first rolled out in March for PC, includes new festivals, a new farm type, new home renovations, new crops, a new quest, new dialogue, new NPC outfits, dozens of new items and visual and functional improvements throughout. It is the first major update for the game since 1.5, which was released in 2020 on PC and 2021 for console.
Game developer ConcernedApe (Eric Barone) said that while players will get to check out plenty of new content with existing saves, starting a new farm after updating would allow players to experience more of the additions fresh and with better context.
More:The 8 best video games of 2024 (so far)
A Little to the Left (Switch, Xbox One, Xbox X/S, PC)
A Little to the Left, first released in 2022 by publisher Secret Mode, is a charming puzzle game focused on organizing objects, though a mischievous cat may occasionally derail progress.
New downloadable content, Seeing Stars, was released in June and can be purchased for the game, adding dozens more levels, including bonus puzzles. The DLC is the second one released after Cupboards & Drawers (2023), in addition to the Daily Tidy puzzles released each day.
Wylde Flowers (Switch, PC, mobile)
We can finally fix that lighthouse in the latest update for Wylde Flowers.
This cozy life and farming sim game, first released in 2022, follows Tara, who comes to Fairhaven to help her sick grandmother on the farm – and finds out she's a witch. Aside from the usual goals of planting crops, cooking and meeting villagers, Tara will also join a coven and learn more about her magical powers. The game's charming storyline is made all the sweeter by great voice acting.
Two big free updates were released for the game in 2024. The first this year was released in February and brought hairstyles, a new salon and a new character. The second came in September and included magical creatures and the ability to finally repair the island's lighthouse. It served as the final major update for the game, according to developer Studio Drydock.
Moonstone Island (Switch, PC)
Moonstone Island has had a few updates and DLC options since it was first released in 2023 and ported to the Switch in June.
The life sim game, set in the sky, is sort of like crossing Stardew Valley and Pokemon. You play as a young alchemist who must leave home for a year to learn, collecting and battling creatures, farming, fishing, exploring the other islands and getting to know the people who live on Moonstone Island.
Two recent DLCs from developer Studio Supersoft and publisher Raw Fury added more creatures, festivals and cooking quests (Chef's Kiss, which was released in July) and additional items (Autumnal Accessories, which was released in September).
Of note, Moonstone Island has a deluxe edition that bundles all existing as well as future DLC for the game, so the deluxe version may be worth considering for those still on the fence about purchasing.
Fae Farm (Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox X/S, PC)
Fae Farm is an adorable life and farming sim from publisher Phoenix Labs, where players create a homestead in an enchanting world, Azoria, which is filled with magic, mystery and plenty to do, craft, customize and discover. The game was first released in 2023 and ported to PlayStation and Xbox in October.
The Skies of Azoria DLC, released in June, is a free update for Switch and the PC Deluxe Edition, and it's the second major update for the game. The update takes players into a new realm in the sky and includes new activities, more items, new characters and new adventures.
More:The best Legend of Zelda games, including Echoes of Wisdom, ranked
No Man's Sky (Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox X/S, PC)
No Man's Sky is an open-world game that takes players to the final frontier and beyond
The space exploration game, first released in 2022 by publisher Hello Games, allows players to venture to countless varied planets, gathering resources and crafting tools. The normal mode might be a little less calming, but the game does offer a "relaxed mode," which reduces combat and allows players to take a more leisurely journey through the universe.
Recent free updates for No Man's Sky include Aquarius, which was released in September and brought fishing, a new area, new expeditions and new items to the game; and Cursed, released in October, which introduced spectral anomalies, a new threat and blurs reality in the gameplay.
veryGood! (472)
Related
- Head of the Federal Aviation Administration to resign, allowing Trump to pick his successor
- AP PHOTOS: 2023 was marked by coups and a Moroccan earthquake on the African continent
- Plan to add teaching of Holocaust, genocide to science education draws questions from Maine teachers
- Horoscopes Today, December 2, 2023
- New Zealand official reverses visa refusal for US conservative influencer Candace Owens
- Consider a charitable gift annuity this holiday. It's a gift that also pays you income.
- French investigation into fatal attack near Eiffel Tower looks into mental illness of suspect
- Spotify to cut 17% of staff in the latest round of tech layoffs
- US appeals court rejects Nasdaq’s diversity rules for company boards
- Goodyear Blimp coverage signals pickleball's arrival as a major sport
Ranking
- The 401(k) millionaires club keeps growing. We'll tell you how to join.
- Authorities say heavy rains and landslides in Tanzania kill at least 47 and hurt or strand many more
- Plan to add teaching of Holocaust, genocide to science education draws questions from Maine teachers
- Israel expands Gaza ground offensive, says efforts in south will carry no less strength than in north
- EU countries double down on a halt to Syrian asylum claims but will not yet send people back
- Jim Leyland elected to baseball’s Hall of Fame, becomes 23rd manager in Cooperstown
- White House warns Congress the US is out of money, nearly out of time to avoid ‘kneecap’ to Ukraine
- The North Korean leader calls for women to have more children to halt a fall in the birthrate
Recommendation
Questlove charts 50 years of SNL musical hits (and misses)
South Africa intercepts buses carrying more than 400 unaccompanied children from Zimbabwe
Final goodbye: Recalling influential people who died in 2023
Deebo Samuel backs up trash talk with dominant outing in 49ers' romp against Eagles
Federal court filings allege official committed perjury in lawsuit tied to Louisiana grain terminal
The Challenge's Ashley Cain Expecting Baby 2 Years After Daughter Azaylia's Death
Opening statements begin in Jonathan Majors assault trial in New York
Muppets from Sesame Workshop help explain opioid addiction to young children