Cottagecore is the idealization of rural life. It is a love of the simple and more natural way of life where most food is home-cooked, plants grow in abundance, the evenings get fireflies, and the nights have a sky full of stars with no city lights to cast them away.
The cottagecore aesthetic has risen in popularity in 2020 due to many people quarantining in their homes. After all, wouldn't it be great to quarantine on a self-sufficient farm instead of a cramped city apartment?
Even some titles of the video game world have cottagecore vibes, and it has made them quite popular. There are major titles like Animal Crossing, but also plenty of hidden gems like The Stillness of The Wind.
Updated on May 13, 2021, by Allison Stalberg: Cottagecore is still trending, at least according to TikTok's hashtags. Many people still are isolated at home, and seek to reconnect with nature through whimsical stories, pretty plants, and wholesome crafts such as knitting and baking. Luckily for gamers, the video game industry has also produced games based on the whimsy of nature.
15 Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion
This game was released in April of 2021, and it has been a hit on Steam for its adorable art style, humor, and references. The gameplay is easy, so do not go in looking for a challenge.
Playing as a vegetable committing tax evasion, funnily enough, is cottagecore. There are plenty of other food, plant, and animal-based characters and it all takes place in a garden world.
14 Cattails | Become a Cat!
Ever wish you could play Stardew Valley but everyone is a cat? Have you ever wanted a game a little like the Warrior book series? If you answered 'yes' to either of these questions, Cattails is the game for you. In this RPG, you play a cat in a cat colony that gets to hunt, fight invading cats, get married, and raise a family.
It is not the most cottagecore game out there, as much of cottagecore is about humans living among nature. However, this game definitely shows a more romantic and whimsical version of a being a cat in the wild.
13 Milkmaid Of The Milky Way
This point-and-click puzzle and adventure game tells the creative story of a Norwegian milkmaid who discovered an alien spacecraft in the 1920s. A big part of its charm is also that the story is completely written in rhyme.
The game is pretty short at two to three hours long. It is definitely has its share of cottagecore vibes with a dash of some sci-fi.
12 Fantasy Life
This RPG takes place in the fantasy world of Reveria and the player gets to play a life-simulation. Basically that means you get to have a house, decorate, do odd jobs, and customize their character. While most of the gameplay is life-simulation, there is also a plot much suited to a fantasy setting.
The game is solely for the Nintendo 3DS. Fans are hoping for a new title or remake for the Nintendo Switch.
11 Road Not Taken
Cottagecore often has a cute fairytale look to it, which makes this game have quite the cottagecore vibe. The player takes the role of a ranger that often travels through forests and saves lost children.
This puzzle game is a hidden gem with many positive reviews on Steam. It also has a lot of replay value, as the story can take different routes depending on player choices.
10 Eastshade
It is not everyday gamers get the chance the play the role of a traveling painter, but Eastshade remedied that. This relaxing game was released in 2019. You do mainly just paint, but you also meet characters, complete quests, and collect supplies.
Players are quite surprised with the amount to do in this game. In true cottagecore fashion, it gives the player a sense of comfort with its beautiful landscapes and soothing gameplay.
9 The Stillness Of The Wind
In this game, you play the last member of a village after everyone else as moved to the city named Talma. It is one of those games that feel like art, showing the player the both beauty of the village's stillness and quiet as well as its loneliness and isolation.
The game is about farm life, taking care of your animals, and developing a routine. The game is not for the impatient.
8 Untitled Goose Game
This game was a bit of a miracle, as it came out of nowhere and got very popular. A major reason of its popular is in its simplicity, whimsy, and humor. The player takes the role of a goose in a little village and they do what typical geese do, cause trouble.
Such trouble includes untying people's shoes, stealing food, and breaking things.
7 Cozy Grove
Released in 2021, Cozy Grove is a game inspired by Animal Crossing. It takes place on a haunted island and uses real-time mechanics to have new things to do every day. It basically has the most popular pleasures of a life simulation game, including crafting, fishing, and decorating.
It is not a game for those who want to play for many hours in one day. With its use of real-time, players must be patient and comfortable with proceeding through the game at a slow pace.
6 Moss
Moss stands out from your average game because it is for virtual reality. It is the perfect game for fans of the Redwall series or the Secret of Nimh movie, as the story is told through the eyes of a mouse who is on a journey to save her uncle.
The game is quite set in the cottagecore aesthetic, as it mixes fantasy with nature. The player explores ruins, forests, and caves, all through the eyes of a humble mouse. The gameplay is mostly puzzles but has a little combat as well.
5 The Harvest Moon Series
Harvest Moon inspired many farming simulation games since its first title came out in 1996. Every game had its different location, characters, and sometimes different goals but they were all tied together through farming and building a family.
The players were encouraged to form a routine. Perhaps milk cows and collect eggs in the morning, check the weather, water crops, and then run around town and talk to everyone to increase relationship points.
4 Littlewood
Littlewood tells the story of how a community rebuilds and heals after the world is saved. The protagonist defeated a Dark Wizard to save the world, and now they have to help rebuild their town.
There is a ton to do in the game like mining, crafting, cooking, gathering, bug catching, fishing, farming, and woodcutting. There are also plenty of characters to befriend.
3 Stardew Valley
Stardew Valley was inspired by Harvest Moon. While its graphics are more simple than the latest Harvest Moon titles, it has gotten incredibly popular. Part of the reason it has is because of the many mods players can use on the game. Also, the possible marriageable partners are LGBTQA+ friendly.
Like Harvest Moon, the game is all about farming and befriending the local townsfolk.
2 Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild
Breath of the Wild is a bit of an outlier in the Legend of Zelda franchise due to how open world it is and how much of the landscape is a mixture of ruins and nature with a strong lack of people. Sure, there are a couple towns but they are quite small and rural.
While the franchise has always romanticized rural living and nature, this title definitely kicked it up a notch to the point of cottagecore.
1 Animal Crossing
There is a reason Animal Crossing: New Horizons has sold more copies than other other Animal Crossing game. Its partly due to many people quarantining as well as the rise of the cottagecore trend! What is better than just rural life? What about rural life with adorable animal villagers?
How cottagecore the game is is ultimately up to the player and how they customize their island. However, cottagecore definitely seems most encouraged based on the adorable plants and festive items that are often available. Also, bug catching and fishing are definitely cottagecore activities.