Could the Cozy Game Genre be *gasp* Oversaturated?

After my last article on Cozy Games (which wasn’t long ago), I’ve only noticed that the genre is receiving more attention in the new year. I see YouTube videos and articles listing up to 20 new releases of the cozy game genre in 2024, and it makes me wonder: Is the cozy game genre becoming oversaturated too soon?

There has already been an influx of farming games over the past year, with Dreamlight Valley, Fae Farm, Palia, and Coral Island joining the mix. And even though I argued in my last article that more games would bring wider influence, it seems that the market is now viewing the genre as a potential cash cow.

The Influx of Cozy Games

While the concept of wholesome games always existed in the form of The Sims, the Animal Crossing series, and the Story of Seasons franchise, the term “cozy games” has only gained significant momentum in the past two years and reached its peak this past Christmas. A quick Google trend search demonstrates the increasing popularity of the term since 2020, likely driven by the recent Animal Crossing release.

With high demand comes a great supply. Just like the previous trends of first-person shooter games and the popularity of battle royale games, companies are quick to catch onto the influx of coziness seekers following the lonely pandemic and have decided to jump on the bandwagon as soon as possible. Disney’s Dreamlight Valley and Avalanche’s Hogwarts Legacy are great examples.

Unfortunately, the rush to mass-produce cozy games often resulted in poor-quality products, not dissimilar to the idea of fast fashion. As Alexia Dahlin puts it in her article “The Fast Fashionization of Cozy Games”:

The eagerness to get these games out as quickly as possible has had several unintended consequences, from weakening fanbases and unhealthy monetization models to a growing distrust in the quality of the games as a whole.

So when we encounter another game that incorporates the same farming feature with the same tools and same controls, we can’t help but see it as another surplus to the already existing pool of cozy games. The genre seems to be overcrowded now.

New Subgenres Surfacing

While farming is prominent in many cozy games we see on the market, it is not an essential feature. The genre is defined by the feeling it evokes, not only by its mechanisms. As such, plenty of developers have noted that the genre might grow out of its label soon.

For instance, Lucie Lescuyer, co-founder of Montreal-based Alblune, which recently released The Spirit and the Mouse, commented, “People need a label right now so they can understand that the game is different... It’s non-violent. But the label may disappear in a few years because it will become normal for everyone to play those types of games.”

Yes, the influx of the farming mechanism, in particular, was on the rise in 2023, but even more so, games are increasingly exploring other themes or mechanics that invoke the feeling of “coziness.”

Some cozy games are leaning more towards an exploration mechanism (Little Cat, Big City). The new Princess Peach game will feature mini-game-like levels, and decoration games such as Tiny Glade and Memento are gaining recognition too.

I believe there won’t be cozy games short of a storytelling element, either. As someone who is passionate about stories and believes that games are the perfect medium to deliver stories without the need for combat mechanics, I think that developers within the cozy genre are still innovating new games that bring us more than the expected farming experience.

Worry Not

Is the cozy game genre oversaturated? Perhaps. I do think companies are catching onto the trend and are attempting to replicate Stardew Valley’s success with similar mechanics. But I also believe that there are developers who truly wish to bring their stories to life through a medium that provides a sense of comfort to us.

It might take a bit of sifting, as is the case with any other genre, but cozy games continue to attract a wider audience, and we should be grateful that there are enough people interested in game studios to realise that this is a genre that people are actively searching for. More interest. More games. More coziness. Why not?

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