The Wholesome Direct is a fairly new arrival on the E3-season scene. First airing in May 2020, they've held a showcase of indie games every year since then. The "Wholesome" title is based on their focus: where many games are centered around grim situations and desperate struggles, these are selected based on feelings of optimism and peace. The showcase is a nice demonstration of the wide range of experiences possible in the world of gaming.
2022 was no exception. Wholesome Games held a Direct on June 11, featuring over 90 upcoming games. Truthfully, they're all worth considering, and choosing some over others is a difficult task. However, here's a mix of ten different games featured in the Wholesome Direct that are especially worth keeping an eye on.
10 Spirit Swap: Lofi Beats To Match-3 To
A good Match-3 is hard to come by. It's a simple type of game compared to most, but making the gameplay compelling is the real challenge. Spirit Swap aims to be the complete Match-3 package, featuring a stylishly colorful art style, a variety of modes including local versus, and a connected, inclusive narrative unifying the experience.
It's been in development for years now, but its official release is drawing close. It promises to be a great addition to the Match-3 genre when it releases in 2023.
9 Frogun
A 3D platformer in which, as the trailer boasts, the gun is the player's frog and also their best friend. The most striking thing about this game is its blocky style, which harkens back to old N64 and PS1 platformers. It's a 3D take on the retro game style.
Despite its inspiration, it still looks good, clearly employing modern graphics to imitate a style rather than deliberately handicapping itself. It also comes packed with features, including collectible hats, optional challenges, and a multiplayer battle mode.
8 Potion Permit
This is one of the small-town life simulators that are popular nowadays, doubly so in the Wholesome Direct. The clearest comparison is indie darling Stardew Valley. Much of the time, they focus on farming, but Potion Permit tasks the player with running a local clinic.
Alchemy simulators exist already, as with the Atelier series or upcoming Potion Craft. Potion Permit, however, stands out thanks to the sheer breadth of activities available: Proper medical care requires collecting ingredients, brewing potions, and diagnosing illnesses, each step requiring a different set of mechanics. On top of that, it also includes relationship building with villagers (and the protagonist's dog), interior decoration, and even fishing. It's an ambitious, full-featured title.
7 Lost In Play
Here is a point-and-click adventure styled to look like a Saturday morning cartoon. Designed to be enjoyable for the whole family, Lost in Play includes tons of puzzles and minigames, along with no text or dialogue. Everything is communicated through action and symbol, a bold choice for an entry in this traditionally cerebral genre.
The animation and design are extremely well-done, and the game's focus on accessibility suggests it won't be nearly as obtuse as some older entries in the genre. It promises a surreal, dreamlike experience evocative of a child's imagination.
6 A Little To The Left
This unique puzzle game is about arranging stacks of household items. That's all there is to it, and that's part of why the game is worth watching: seeing what mechanics can come out of such a simple concept. The controls are basic click and drag, and it's all presented in a clean, colorful manner.
It looks extremely relaxing, although sometimes a cat will knock your ordered items out of position. Plus, the game will offer a "Daily Tidy Delivery," promising a new variation of the organizational puzzle every day. It's a winning formula, as Wordle has demonstrated.
5 Snufkin: Melody Of Moominvalley
Described as a musical adventure game, this one is most notable for its partnership with the Swedish cartoon, Moomin, which was first released as a picture book in 1945, and has since inspired several comics and television series.
Sure enough, the resulting game looks like a hand-painted picture book the player can freely explore. Alongside exploration and adventure, the game also features a bit of action and stealth, so the well-known setting is used to its fullest extent. It will be interesting to see how the classic franchise holds up in the modern world, in this unfamiliar form.
4 Tracks Of Thought
This one is tricky to explain. Tracks of Thought is a card-based RPG taking place on a train. The player aids the passengers, anthropomorphic bugs, by solving puzzles and engaging in card battles where the objective isn't to win but to find common ground with the opponent. The player's stats are tied to attributes of the playable character's personality, rather than traditional RPG values.
The whole package is unusual but works fairly well, and it is a refreshing take on both RPGs and dialogue systems, emphasizing cooperation rather than competition. It's also a pleasant throwback to the train section from Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, which features a similar setting and art style.
3 Melatonin
Melatonin is a pastel-colored rhythm game that takes place in a land of dreams. This one is worth watching because of its inspiration: most rhythm games are variations on the Dance Dance Revolution formula, in which the player presses a button when an icon aligns with an outline. Melatonin, however, uses the Rhythm Heaven style, in which the player is guided based on unique animations.
Each individual level is full of unique animations, which need to be studied carefully in order to keep button presses accurate. With several stages and variable difficulty modes, Melatonin is an interesting mix of reflex gameplay and soothing design.
2 How To Say Goodbye
This creative puzzle game was an odd inclusion in the Wholesome Direct since its focus is moving on after the death of a loved one. Nevertheless, the game seems to do its best to confront the topic in a hopeful manner. Its core mechanic is simple: sliding the tiles that make up the ground, similar to solving a Rubik's Cube.
How to Say Goodbye's presentation is striking, boasting a style inspired by illustrated children's books, and represents a wide range of natural and surreal scenes. Despite its inclusion of shadowy demons in the afterlife, it doesn't turn into outright horror, while remaining a charming game about a very personal topic.
1 SCHiM
One of the most striking games from the Wholesome Direct, SCHiM is a platformer of sorts, in which the main character, a schim, can only move around the environment by hopping between shadows cast by everyday objects. Already, the possibilities for interesting level design are immense. Moving objects create mobile shadows, leading to interesting timed jumping challenges.
On top of that, the game includes a narrative and a variety of sub-objectives, in which the player reunites lost schims with their shadows, hoping to find their own shadow at the end. It looks great, and the platforming action is immediately compelling. It doesn't have a release date yet, but once it does, this one is definitely worth keeping an eye on.
All the games demonstrated during the Wholesome Direct can be seen at https://wholesomegames.com.