At first glance, Wanderstop looks like exactly the kind of cozy shop sim game I’m used to: Main chracter Alta brews teas, serves customers, and does chores. But this is the the next game from The Stanley Parable’s developer Davey Wreden with new studio Ivy Road, so there’s bound to be a twist.
I like doing chores in cozy life sim games. But Alta does not like chores at all. And she’s having a very hard time convincing herself that this low stress life isn’t actually stressing her out a hell of a lot. She’s a former warrior champion and she just can’t seem to keep that life from haunting her.
“I’m happy. I can stop running now,” Alta tries to convince herself in the reveal trailer above. “I can stop running. This is good for me. I need to enjoy this. I feel good.” No points for guessing that Alta in fact does not feel good.
Wanderstop is “a narrative-centric cozy game about change and tea,” Ivy Road says. You’ll grow and harvest your own ingredients outside the shop, brew your own tea blends in a wacky two-story contraption, and chat with passing travelers who are your customers.
“In your downtime, you might tidy up around the clearing, decorate the shop in your style, or just sit on a bench with a cup of tea and listen to your own thoughts,” Ivy Road says. “Maybe doing nothing at all is okay. The shop demands patience, it rejects those who have come only in the pursuit of growth unchecked.”
We all know that being left alone with spare time to have one single existential thought is torture. And exactly the kind of commentary we’d expect from Wreden as Wanderstop’s director and writer.
There’s no release date for Wanderstop just yet, but you can wishlist it on Steam in the meantime.
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