Summary
Multiplayer games don’t have to be stressful; they can be wholesome, wonderful spaces for human connection. Cozy games have exploded in the past few years with players finding new ways of using the gameplay space to have wonderful wholesome experiences. Multiplayer cozy games that encourage wholesome human connection are a great way towork with friendsor strangers towards a common goal.
Just because a game encourages wholesome interactions does not mean the gameplay isn’t engaging or culturally complex. Cozy games have a history of exploring heavy topics in a safe space. And some are just joyful explorations of teamwork and cooperative play.
The goal ofEcois to work as a society to save the planet from a meteor headed for Earth,without destroying the environment. It is wonderfully cooperative, with players able to assume different roles within the server. There is a lot of data and strategy involved in moving the server’s society forward andEcois a great co-op game for those who are after a world they can immerse themselves in. It captures that feel of a wholesomeMinecraftserver but with a lot of additional complexity and depth.
Part of the coziness and wholesomeness inEcois contingent on choosing the right server. Picking a “beginners welcome” server with lower expectations can ensure a relaxing co-op experience for your first run through the game. Players looking for community should look for servers that will be active during convenient times and most servers are very upfront about their expectations.
Sky: Children of The Lightis a delightful social adventure game that is incredibly accessible for players of all levels. It has some of the anonymity features key to the coziness of games such asJourneyandKind Words, but it allows players to save players as friends. There are no usernames, so the player gets to assign their new friend a nickname for their reference only.
It is a sprawling fantasy adventure game that allows players to run, jump, and fly their way through seven distinct realms, adventuring on their own or with other players. Unfortunately, there are microtransactions, but they are cosmetic. The visual design is stunning and while the game has someEarly Access bugs, it is still well worth playing.
Escape Simulatoris a fantasticescape roomco-op game that fosters the kind of collaborative problem-solving that real-world escape rooms can elicit. It is online and local multiplayer, with online matchmaking that works quite well. The physics are a little zany, but not to the point of being frustrating. Half the enjoyment of this game comes from flinging objects around the room haphazardly.
Escape Simulatorbrings out the unique skills of each member of the party, strangers and friends alike. There is also a handy hint function that doesn’t give the whole puzzle away, offering just enough help to get players back on track. The base puzzle rooms hit that challenging-but-not-too-challenging sweet spot and there are DLC and user-generated escape rooms as well.
The originalKind Wordswas developed by Popcannibal to foster human connection with strangers in a simple and safe way. Rather than complicating social outreach with layers of multiplayer mechanics, it was a beautifully anonymized experience in which players write kind things to others and catch kind words from others written on paper airplanes. Players can also share their specific issues and emotions.
The originalKind Wordsis still quite populated, and it’s an emotionally satisfying way to send and receive good vibes from the ether.Kind Words 2added extra mechanics, but the aesthetic and philosophy remain the same. It extends the world beyond the room in which the player was writing in the first game.Kind Wordsalso provides easy access to externalmental healthresources. It’s a responsible move by a game that allows people to be at their most honest and vulnerable.
Before they madeSky: Children of Light, developer Thatgamecompany had already made the most wholesome game, which was a multiplayer game in disguise. Nowadays, it is one of the worst-kept secrets in video games, but back when it was released, not many people knewJourneywas aco-op game. Players could spend hours gliding along with someone they thought was an identical NPC, only to find at the end of the game that it was another player the whole time.
It is difficult to explain the joy of playing alongside another player, only able to communicate in chirps. While the solo experience of Journey is still a stunning experience, being joined by another player, purely by chance, elevates this orchestral masterpiece to a whole new level. DespiteJourneybeing over a decade old, there are still people playing the game, maybe even some experiencing it for the very first time.
