Ever since Stardew Valley dropped in 2016, we’ve been inundated with cozy, pixel art RPGs. Everywhere you look someone is taking the genre in a new and interesting direction, and the newly released Everholm is the latest to catch my eye. A diverse mix of interpersonal relationships, isometric dungeons, and more life sim activities than you can shake a magical stick at, not everything is sunshine and rainbows. Everholm might hide some spooky secrets in the dark, but it’s already looking bright enough to keep me hooked.
Everholm is a game about relationships. Protagonist Lilly is searching for her lost sister Melanie before she stumbles into a magical portal that whisks her off to Everholm: a quaint island with as many vibrant pixels as quirky townsfolk. Strangely, everyone seems to know who Lilly is and her quest to find her sister, even if she doesn’t know them. To escape you’ll need to take up Lilly’s mission, befriend the citizens, and figure out why everyone’s stuck on the island. You can make decisions in a non-linear order and befriend (or turn your back on) whoever you like, so you don’t need to put up with any of that snark.
This is where Everholm’s RPG elements come in, as you’ll need to learn and thrive on skills like farming, foraging, fishing, and livestock rearing to build up Lilly’s little homestead as you search for her sister. Once you’ve got a cozy little home away from home though, it’s time to head out into the wilds of Everholm. There is a spate of procedurally generated dungeons across the island, each with its own beasts and rewards that get progressively rarer the further down you delve.
Those resources will really help you out, too. You can make fresh jams, cheese, pickles, honey, and wine while also crafting tools and decor to turn your house into a true home. There are even seasonal festivals, town gatherings, and more timed events across Everholm as well, so you’ve got more than enough to keep Lilly busy between bouts of searching for Melanie.
Launch isn’t the end of Everholm, either, as you can expect plenty of updates with new content and features down the line as well. So you can jump in right now, and come back later and expect even more to do, just like in Stardew Valley.
Developer Chonky Loaf has now launched Everholm on Steam, with a 10% discount until Tuesday November 19 so expect to pay $17.99 / £15.07 until then. You can find Everholm on Steam here.
If you want even more we also have all the best relaxing games and life games to play on PC today, alongside Everholm. Oh, and if you’re looking for an alternative check the best games like Stardew Valley.
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