Early 2026 Is Going to Be Huge for One Type of Game (And I’m Here For It)

When you think of the big games of 2025, a few standouts come to mind. There’s RPG hit Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and long-awaited indie roguelite Hollow Knight: Silksong. We also had a new Battlefield game that’s coming for Call of Duty‘s crown and a new horse girl gacha that’s gunning for mobile game of the year. For many video game genres, it’s been a pretty solid year. And then, there’s my personal favorite arena of more laid-back, so-called “cozy games.” It’s much harder to think of any huge wins here. Instead, I’m left thinking about the disappointments.

This year should’ve brought us Witchbrook and the Early Access launch of Paralives, but both were delayed. The Sims 4 has had a tough year, despite putting out some new expansions with fun themes. Then we had flat-out disasters like the half-baked release of Pixelshire. Personally, I really enjoyed Tales of the Shire, but many gamers felt let down but its short story and emphasis on cooking over farming. As a result, fans of cozy games are rounding out the year hoping for better things to come. And so far, the absolutely stacked lineup for early 2026 just might deliver, if these games live up to their promise.

2025 Was a Rough Year for New Cozy Games

It’s kind of wild to think back on 2025 and realize that the same year that gave us the Nintendo Switch 2 was full of so many cozy game disappointments. Thanks in part to Animal Crossing: New Horizons, the OG Nintendo Switch has been the go-to console for many people who enjoy life sims and other, more relaxed games. So you’d think the Nintendo Switch 2 launch year would be stacked. But the Switch 2 didn’t arrive until halfway through the year, and a lot of the newest cozies tend to be indie games. That means they often arrive on Steam first, then progress to console if things go well. And this year, for many games, things did not go well.

Pixelshire was a highly anticipated farming sim that got its start on Kickstarter. Many people hoped this pixel art sim would be another great game to go alongside the likes of Stardew Valley. But it launched without all four seasons, riddled with glitches that, in some cases, completely prevented progress on the main story. Naturally, gamers were upset, and even though subsequent patches helped remedy those issues, many felt the game missed the mark.

The same can be said for several attempts to compete with The Sims 4, including the high PC demands of inZOI and the relatively buggy launch of To Pixelia. Though these games did find their audiences to an extent, many felt underwhelmed by them. And then, there’s Tales of the Shire. Some people, like me, enjoyed it for what it was. But many more, from Lord of the Rings fans to farming sim lovers, felt disappointed that the game wasn’t more expansive.

That’s not to say nothing new in 2025 was a hit. Fantasy Life i, which some would argue is a cozy game, did relatively well. And the newest Story of Seasons lived up to hopes for many early fans of the original Harvest Moon game. But the cozy space has certainly struggled this year, and it leaves many of us wary of picking up new games. Yet early 2026 is stacking up to offer a ton of opportunities to do just that.

Exciting Early 2026 Cozy Game Releases We Know of So Far

Keeping up with new releases is a big part of my job as someone who writes about games. I try to stay abreast of what’s going on in general, but my heart lives with the cozy games and the fantasy RPGs. And when I look at the first 3 months of 2026, I’m already wondering when I’m going to sleep. Early 2026 is absolutely packed with exciting new cozies, and we haven’t even had the annual Wholesome Snack showcase yet!

Here are a few of the games I and other cozy gamers have to look forward to in early 2026 so far:

• Animal Crossing: New Horizons 3.0 Release & Switch 2 Edition – January 15th
• Highly anticipated pixel art coffee shop sim Tailside – January 21st
• Open-world horse raising game Legend of Khiimori – March 3rd
• Pokemon’s first-ever life sim, Pokemon Pokopia – March 5th
• Visual novel spinoff Coffee Talk Tokyo – March 5th
• 3D anime-inspired farming sim Starsand Island – Q1 2026

Just looking at that list makes me tired, because boy do I have a lot of gaming to do already. And there’s no doubt that more release dates are headed our way during the showcase-heavy week that leads up to The Game Awards.

Looking at so many promising life sims, farming sims, and management sims, I’m hopeful that 2026 is going to be a good year for cozy games. There’s a good chance not all of these releases will live up to the hype, but I think it’s a good bet at least some of them will. So as we head into a new year, I’m hoping the cozy gaming space will feel vibrant again after some big disappointments in 2025. And with any luck, Paralives and Witchbrook will be waiting for us later in the year, too.

What games are you looking forward to in 2026 so far? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!

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