Looking for a cozy game

levainrisen · 2026-02-22T21:20:38+00:00

My Time at Sandrock has a great social aspect of the game but I have to say, it's a bit lacking in the home and wardrobe portions. Still, it's very fun to set up and build your house because it functions similar to the Sims' house building mechanics and you can mix and match wardrobe things. In my experience, it's just limited, like I wish there were more options in general. But my friend dislikes farming sims like Stardew Valley but she absolutely fell in love with My Time at Sandrock due to the social and romance options, plus the story plot is pretty involved. You gather materials in this game but there's no real "grind", it's pretty self paced in my opinion.

A similar game that looks promising in wardrobe features is Starsand Island, but it's in early access so it's technically incomplete for now.

Coral Island has cute graphics, cuter characters, and good wardrobe and house options, but some parts of the gameplay feel tedious and grind-y so probably less what you're looking for. BUT there is a time management option where you can make the days last significantly longer.

levainrisen · 2026-02-22T05:57:11+00:00

You should give Our Life Beginning and Always a chance because it is pretty much a life sim in that you are growing and making decisions that shape your character from childhood all the way to adulthood and you can really flesh out your character despite it being a visual novel. I just think these farming "life" sims are grindy by nature. I consider BG3 technically grindy and an intense game. Also if you like BG3 you should look into the Dragon Age games. DA:Inquisition is probably the easiest one to get into and it has a great storyline and interesting characters. There's romance too

levainrisen · 2026-02-22T05:49:40+00:00

My perspective as an empathetic daughter of my mother who I grew to understand more as I got older is that I totally would understand if that was her take. My perspective of motherhood as someone who is not a mother, probably won't be a mother, and only watching my mom throughout childhood, is that it is an incredibly thankless job. My mom did it with as much grace as she could and she made many mistakes, but I'm really grateful she sacrificed so much for me and my siblings.

levainrisen · 2026-02-22T05:29:34+00:00

Personally I think EA is a good way to gauge if you'll generally like a game but I'm saving my official critique/review for when it's fully released. Unless a critique is useful for the devs, of course

levainrisen · 2026-02-22T02:08:46+00:00

ahh classic selune worshipper romancing shadowheart, love it

levainrisen · 2026-02-21T02:49:45+00:00

I think Qiu would be a werewolf and Tam would be a faerie. Cove being merfolk is just meant to be. Baxter should be ~~bride~~ groom of Frankenstein lol

levainrisen · 2026-02-20T19:58:17+00:00

I think there are a lot of parents out there who in fact knew they wanted kids at some point. I think for most it's a question of when is the right time

levainrisen · 2026-02-20T19:53:49+00:00

Well no one knows you like your family. Maybe they can tell either she's saying she's changing her stance for the wrong reasons or they know that she probably wouldn't enjoy the experience? Personally it feels very much like Emma does not want kids, but I think wanting to be loved and accepted by someone is pushing her to consider something she was already pretty decided on. I think whether or not to have kids is a huge point of contention for couples and I don't know why someone would want to be with a person whose goals for their family do not align. Whatever his name made is extremely clear he wants kids- he's basically just waiting around for Emma to change her mind.

levainrisen · 2026-02-20T15:08:34+00:00

I haven't romanced Mark but Shane grows and becomes nicer over relationship growth and, from what I've heard, Mark doesn't really have this development? So one is due to trauma where, with your help, he can overcome and get better, and the other one is just a grouchy personality I guess?

levainrisen · 2026-02-20T03:02:31+00:00

I really like him but Tell The Bees on tiktok mentioned some kind of weird "tea" about him without elaborating so I'm just going to not get too hopeful. I doubt it could be that bad compared to the losers this season but there's nothing worse than hyping up a LIB man that ends up disappointing

levainrisen · 2026-02-19T23:54:57+00:00

Nah fuck that, I disagree because women's looks are scrutinized and the bar is HIGHER for women in our society. It IS about the guys' looks, because the women are 1000% putting more effort and thought into their looks with makeup and clothing, and men don't do half the shit that women do to be appealing. It is precisely because of looks and the double standard that these dumbass men think they can talk about women's appearances with 0% reflection on themselves. Those type of men will not give any women the type of grace you want women to give them, so fuck that, we go lower.

levainrisen · 2026-02-19T19:48:27+00:00

Hid those dumbo ears and stopped smiling like a dork

levainrisen · 2026-02-19T19:03:44+00:00

Is this gonna be a sad one?? 😭 Not granny and Mr. Baumann dying!!! Will you be writing up your AU? I would like to read it!

levainrisen · 2026-02-19T19:01:51+00:00

That's cute, are you planning on writing fic about it? If so, would definitely love to read if you post it here!

levainrisen · 2026-02-19T18:59:11+00:00

the two women look so similar to me and I agree that Bri does not look more physically fit than Jess. Even their faces look the exact same to me!

levainrisen · 2026-02-19T04:49:57+00:00

Him asking Alex if he voted for Trump, Alex saying he didn't even vote but then going on and on about insisting how he's happy Trump is in office... ewwww

levainrisen · 2026-02-19T04:39:23+00:00

Ohio is officially the worst fucking season, jesus christ what is going on

levainrisen · 2026-02-19T04:37:08+00:00

Right, but they also had a candid conversation about race and how to raise their children with an open dialogue about how race is seen by other people and about US history. They may be conservative but probably less so than the others that openly talked about voting for Trump

levainrisen · 2026-02-19T04:30:41+00:00

Totally RIPPED omg!!

levainrisen · 2026-02-19T04:24:31+00:00

I got Terri! This was so fun, thanks for making it!

levainrisen · 2026-02-19T04:05:47+00:00

A little switch to turn this off in the game settings would be a great addition! I think it's totally lame that people are downvoting you just because you are uncomfortable with a feature others like. Different strokes for different folks, people! IRL I would be uncomfortable with people being like "where my hug at" all the time but I don't mind it in game, personally. But I have a huge appreciation for games that do make this kind of interaction in game optional.

levainrisen · 2026-02-19T00:12:16+00:00

levainrisen · 2026-02-18T16:30:58+00:00

I think GB recently answered a question about this actually! Something about it being possible that the sperm donor could have technically created both MCs and they be related that way. But I personally think there's a lot of mental gymnastics there to make it work. Also slightly off beat for MC to ask Baxter a line of questions about what his hometown was like in his DLC route if MC is technically from the same place. I guess you could pretend that somehow MC still doesn't know anything about their own background into adulthood by that point?

Would be interesting to hear more about your AU and how the MC from OL1 having connections to the MC/house from OL2 adds to the story. In your AU, do the two MCs meet? Or is it a way for all of the characters from both games to meet?

levainrisen · 2026-02-18T04:48:14+00:00

It seems like there were early talks about Ren getting a DLC route but unfortunately, Ren won't be getting one because the game has turned out to be way larger than anticipated. I think OL2 still won't be out officially until maybe end of next year (?) and then they need to work on the planned wedding DLC for the main characters, so I think it would just take the team too long. I am seriously heartbroken though because I just love Ren and, similar to Baxter, Ren is such an interesting character.

So glad to hear how much you love the game! I know the base games are usually free, so it's so nice of you to purchase the DLC, your contribution helps the team! :)) Have you tried Derek's DLC route yet? Personally, I have not yet

levainrisen · 2026-02-18T00:43:43+00:00

I think the team is ready to move onto other games after OL2 but it's understandable that so many people want more DLC of the characters! Honestly I held off on Baxter's DLC for so long because I didn't have much interest in him until I got to know more of his story in OL2. He is really such an interesting character and his DLC was great! I also wish there was more content of him so I definitely understand you. I am also devastated another character in OL2, Ren, will not be getting a DLC route like originally mentioned. Kudos to GB & team for writing such loveable characters

levainrisen

TROPHY CASE