So well, in fact, that if you’re someone who has dealt with it, the experience claws at your neck. It holds up a mirror you might not be ready to look into.

The chapter resets, while thematically sound, can feel frustrating. Losing trinkets and progress creates a sense of impermanence that might be narratively appropriate but doesn’t always translate well into enjoyable gameplay. The game is also light on challenge. There are pelo major stakes, no real consequences for mistakes, and while that aligns with the cozy aesthetic, it occasionally makes the experience feel a little too weightless. Still, the gameplay serves its purpose well: it’s not meant to be difficult but to encourage introspection and immersion.

It’s a feeling so many of us have but never know what to do with. That unfinished, unresolved "what if" when people leave our lives. That lingering, hollow ache of an interrupted story, when you never get to find out what happened next.

It’s about finally breaking free and starting something of our own, whether it’s a coffee shop, a bakery, a bookstore, a flower shop, or some delightful hybrid of all of the above. Something that’s ours, away from the relentless grip of shareholders and quarterly profit margins.

To do that, you’ll have to grow your own ingredients in a small garden plot outside the tea shop (though you can technically plant anywhere). You’re given a field book, a limited amount of seeds, and some gentle parenting from Boro, but the rest is yours to figure out.

Some of the best books you'll ever read don't have happy or neat endings. They're a pleasure to experience but they serve as the catalyst for new ideas and curiosity beyond the confines of their pages. If art is intended to imitate life then it must go on and on, it must be unpredictable, and it must leave you waiting and hoping and wondering.

. There were times when I felt like I was grieving – not just over a sad moment or for the loss of a character, but also a loss of self.

Do you have that little voice inside your head telling you that you need to work yourself to the bone—even though you already do—just for it to never be enough? If so, then you are Elevada.

The first time this happened, I was genuinely upset. There was this knight from the first chapter that I was invested in.

Yes, players can make choices in dialogue and tea orders, which affect NPCs’ reactions to Alta. However, in the grand scheme of things, these choices do not significantly alter the game’s outcome.

Ivy Road has done an incredible job of showing what it’s like to live with this specific mental struggle without ever putting a label on it.

And then another. And another. With every loss, Elevada's inner critic becomes more cruel. It's because she's weak, or she doesn't try hard enough – surely she just needs to do better

Wanderstop is a game about healing and letting go, wrapped in a cozy, thoughtful and immersive experience. Read our review to see what it did well, Wanderstop Gameplay what it didn't do well, and if it's worth buying.

While it embraces a cozy aesthetic, Wanderstop isn’t afraid to dive into emotionally heavy territory, balancing moments of warmth with introspection and melancholy. It’s a game that asks players to slow down, reflect, and immerse themselves in the quiet beauty of everyday rituals.