Comfy
Added 2024-11-04 21:09:55 +0000 UTC"Cosy" or "Wholesome" games are a hugely established sub-genre of video game. The moniker celebrates games a specific gentleness, colour and charm to them. The sub-genre has become so popular that there's even an event for them on Steam.
Through this kind of popularity, "cosy" has turned into a strict collection of rules: pastel colours, cute character designs, light-hearted narratives and gameplay without stakes. The formula has become cynical in it's attempt at audience capture that it's lost all sincerity. Rather than exploring a genuine meditative experiences, they cater to an idealized, sometimes superficial notion of what "wholesome" means.
The market’s demand for tried-and-true elements pushes developers to avoid anything that might disrupt that audience capture. In doing so, losing their sincerity.
I'm looking to avoid this with Honcho. Whether it's through knowing that new exhaust you're installing will be secure because you've tightened each bolt yourself, or hearing the rich spatial audio of the rain-patter hitting the cabin. Honcho aims to be a comforting experience through small, honest details.
Honcho won't be a cosy game, but I hope it is a comfy one.
Written as a break from working on an optimisation pass, because frame drops aren't very comfy.
Cheers,
Greg
Wishlists: 14,946
Comments
From Gracemeria on the discord, thought it worth archiving: "When a good measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure." This asinine notion that certain things must be achieved to be "wholesome" or "cozy" is precisely why I enjoy Minsk's games. As much as I like Webfishing and how genuinely comfy that game is, I can't help but feel the writing on the wall that it started out first and foremost as a slightly more adult Animal Crossing. Which meant they were aiming for my age group, and that art style, and made Comfy a target and not simply something to compare/contrast with. Minsk's games are, to me, comfy because they are a slice of history. While they dont have grand stories, nor do they drag big meaningful decisions to the forefront, they tell small and contained slices of life. A boy and his Uncle driving a barely functioning car across Europe, learning about why the world is as tense and dangerous as it is, while also simply looking after each other and a car. A fella just trying to make a go of it with what little money he has left, with what skills he develops, in a time where such things were rare. And soon a girl and her vending machines. Maybe I'm just a fan of immersive sims and things of that nature, but while Webfishing is undoubtedly cozy and comfy, I am also fairly cozy in a game like Star Citizen. Sitting on a bench in public transit, traveling to the space port so I can hitch a ride with my friend to go run deliveries and make a few bucks takes me to a time when I was a young punk, waiting at the bus stop so I can head into the city, hitch a ride with my buddy, and deliver some mail to make a few bucks. Star Citizen, to me, is as cozy a game as any other because there is some part of it that resonates with me. It doesnt hit all the marks of a cozy game, just that it is one in the process of trying to simulate what it is trying to simulate. So while Keiko is cute, and wrapping the Honcho around a light pole is funny, I have a feeling it's going to be comfy to me because that's just something Minsk does when he makes a game. He doesn't set out to make games with the express idea of being comfy, or cozy, or wholesome. He simulates a small slice of life, and it either resonates with you, or it doesnt.
Greg Pryjmachuk
2024-11-07 11:17:09 +0000 UTCCan't wait 👍
David Matthews
2024-11-05 05:58:44 +0000 UTC
