Immediately after the Guerrilla Collective 3 showcase, Not-E3 continued with the Wholesome Games Direct showcase on June 11 at 12:30 p.m. EDT. Since 2020, Wholesome Games Direct has been a community-run presentation that focuses on positive indie games that give players feelings of comfort, coziness, and happiness.
Streamed on the official twitchgaming channel, YouTube and the Wholesome Games official channels, this year's livestream continued the Wholesome Games tradition by showing many comfy titles that are perfect for a rainy day. For players who need some more uplifting games, titles like Potion Permit may be some of the best examples from the showcase.
Become An Aspiring Witch In Mika And The Witch's Mountain
Seemingly inspired by the beloved Studio Ghibli movie Kiki's Delivery Service, Mika and the Witch's Mountain is a coming-of-age adventure game that is planned to be released sometime this year. Mika, who is a Witch-in-training, must deliver packages to the townspeople living at the bottom of the mountain in order to complete her training. After each successful delivery, she will earn upgrades.
As the player flies on their broom around the island, they'll have to be careful with the packages because they can easily be damaged. With various villagers to connect with and plenty of secrets to uncover, this game will likely provide a heartwarming experience that players will want to explore.
Collect Cute Bunnies In Usagi Shima
Inspired by the cat-collecting mobile game Neko Atsume, Usagi Shima is a cute idle bunny-collecting game that doesn't have a release date yet. In real life, there's a small island in Japan named Ōkunoshima that's also nicknamed "Usagi Shima" or "Rabbit Island" because it's filled with rabbits. Based on this real-life island, Usagi Shima has the player become a caretaker of an abandoned island filled with many unique bunnies.
As the player decorates the island, the bunnies will start visiting the area. Depending on which buildings, toys, and foods the player uses, different unique bunnies will appear.
Relax And Make Tea In Pekoe
Scheduled to release sometime this year, Pekoe is a tea-making simulator that players are meant to relax in. After moving into an old teahouse in a town filled with anthropomorphic cats, the player will build their own teahouse, create their own tea, and serve it to the various unique residents in the town. From harvesting the tea leaves from homegrown plants to choosing which tea sets to use, players will be a part of every step of the tea-making process and uncover plenty of new recipes.
Using the old teahouse as a base, players will be able to upgrade and customize the shop so it becomes their own virtual space. Besides talking to the different customers and learning their likes and dislikes, the player will also visit other teahouses in the area to buy new ingredients and tea sets.
Help Ghosts Pass On In How To Say Goodbye
During The Future Games Showcase, viewers watched a trailer for the upcoming game Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley, which is an official Moomin game based off Tove Jansson's stories. While the game also appeared in The Wholesome Games Direct, another game that was inspired by Jansson's creations, How to Say Goodbye, was also shown. Planned to be released this year, How to Say Goodbye is a puzzle game about how to move on from loss and grief.
The game focuses on ghosts who have recently died and are now trapped in a liminal space between the world of the living and the afterlife. By moving grid tiles, the players will help the ghosts reach the afterlife by guiding them to the door in each puzzle. But, there're also some creatures that will try to prevent the spirits from leaving.
Organize In The Cozy Puzzle Game A Little To The Left
For players who find organizing items in the household to be a relaxing therapeutic process, the upcoming indie puzzle game A Little to the Left, which is scheduled to be released sometime this year, is possibly the perfect game to look forward to. In this game, players stack and sort household objects while also looking out for a mischievous cat who wants to playfully mess with everything.
Over the course of over 75 puzzles, the player will be able tidy up various messes in multiple different ways. Besides the base game puzzles, players will also receive The Daily Tidy Delivery, which will deliver a new puzzle every day.
Play As An Adorable Chicken In Chicken Journey
Scheduled to be released towards the end of 2022, Chicken Journey is a puzzle platformer where the player is a cute pixelated chicken. The chicken is on a journey to finally solve the greatest question of which came first: the chicken or the egg? To get to the bottom of this conundrum, the chicken will need to explore the world and solve puzzles.
During the journey, the chicken will meet and talk to a cast of friendly and charming characters. For many puzzles, the player will need to use the chicken's beak to peck at various objects.
Become A Chemist In Potion Permit
While there're currently plenty of chill indie life sims that are similar to Stardew Valley being made, the upcoming open-ended life sim Potion Permit, which is scheduled to release this year, sets itself apart from other games by having the player be a chemist. Set within the town of Moonbury, the customizable protagonist and their trusty canine companion move in after being sent to the town by the Medical Association.
Despite Moonbury preferring to keep their traditions, the town is forced to turn to modern medicine when the Mayor's daughter falls ill and the local witch doctor is unable to help her. To help her and the other residents, the player will need to diagnose patients, search for ingredients, and brew potions. While accomplishing their work, the protagonist will also befriend the residents and possibly even marry one of the bachelors or bachelorettes.
Explore Vibrant, Hand-drawn Environments In 30 Birds
Although it doesn't have a release date yet, the puzzle adventure game 30 Birds is already dazzling potential players with its storybook-esque art style and mixture of 2D and 3D environments. As a girl named Zig, the player must explore the Lanterns, which is a beautiful flying city, and find the 30 birds so that the giant bird queen, Simurgh, can be awoken from her decade-long sleep.
Inspired by Persian art, the game has players move between 2D environments that exist on 3D objects in order to solve puzzles. Zig will have to talk to unique characters, use her wits, and compose music in order to collect each of the birds' contacts.
Change The World By Folding It In Paper Trail
Releasing at the start of 2023, Paper Trail is a top-down puzzle adventure game that's inspired by printmaking and watercolor. The game follows a young woman named Paige who is leaving home to study at the university. But, in order to reach the university, the player will need to manipulate the world by literally folding the 2D environments like paper.
As Paige explores the outside world, she will only be able to navigate through puzzles and obstacles by folding and joining paths. While on this journey, she will meet various people and uncover secrets as she slowly learns about the world and grows into herself.
Restore A Dead World In Terra Nil
Unlike Factorio where the player ruins an entire planet's ecosystem by creating complex factories, Terra Nil is a reverse city builder, which doesn't have a release date yet, where the player restores the ecosystem by building structures that slowly fix the barren wasteland. By bringing back water and purifying the soil, the player first restores vegetation.
Then, after laying the groundwork, the player fixes the climate, reintroduces biodiversity, and brings back wildlife. Once everything is done, the player recycles the structures and is left with a beautiful environment. With procedurally generated maps, the game promises endless replay value.