The Gamer's Hearth

Hey cozy friends! Today I am very excited to share a chat I had with my friend and fellow content creator, SaraStrawb, about our experiences streaming and making content for Fields of Mistria and Infinity Nikki. We touch on: • Why Fields of Mistria is often accused of being a “Stardew Valley ripoff” (and why they’re wrong) • What Infinity Nikki means for women and femme gamers and cozy gaming as w...

Welcome adventurers! Today we’re talking all of my favorite cozy games so far of 2024, plus a breakdown of some cool cozy news from the most recent Indie World Showcase / Nintendo Direct ‧₊˚ Sites mentioned: • Nintendo Direct ‧₊˚ Games mentioned: • Minami Lane - Steam, Nintendo Switch • Fields of Mistria - Steam (early access) • Magical Delicacy - Steam, Nintendo Switch, Xbox, Playstation • Coffee...

Howdy adventurers!  Today I’m yapping about my new FAVORITE game, Fields of Mistria! Let’s discuss what I love about it, some lore theories, and how I think it elevates the entire farming sim genre. Please note this episode has mild storyline spoilers, mixed in with some personal speculation! Grab the game here ‧₊˚ Shoot me an email at gamershearthpodcast@gmail.com ‧₊˚ Follow me across all of my s...

Welcome to Season 2 of The Gamer’s Hearth! 🍓 In this special episode, I’m interviewing Louis Durrant, the solo developer behind The Garden Path, a new gorgeous slice of life game. We talk about all sorts of things, including: • The inspiration behind the game • Why it’s nice to stay in the forest sometimes • Solo dev life • and more! Get cozy and let’s sit around the hearth together! ‧₊˚ Find Lou...

Hello adventurers! Here’s a quick little episode to update you on the future of the Gamer’s Hearth! I’m super excited for the future! See you in Season 2! To keep up with me and the pod til then, be sure to follow me on my socials and join the Discord! ‧₊˚ shoot me an email at gamershearthpodcast@gmail.com ‧₊˚ follow me across all of my social media platforms! • tiktok - https://www.tiktok.com/@la...

This past weekend I had the honor of attending Summer Game Fest! This is a recap of my time there along with some of my favorite cozy-ish and indie games I saw there! ‧₊˚ Games mentioned : • Civilization VII • Neva • Wanderstop • Deer & Boy • LEGO Horizon Adventures • Hello Kitty Island Adventure • Building Relationships • While Waiting • Afterlove EP • Cozy Grove: Camp Spirit • Arranger • The...

Episode Content Warning: Mental Health (Depression / Anxiety)  Hey y’all! Coming at you with a chattier episode taking you behind the scenes of my life as a full time content creators. We’re talking how I started, how I grew and when I decided to quit my job, how I earn my money (and how much I earn!), routines, and how my mental health affects my work! We’re getting super personal and vulnerable...

The Animal Crossing online community experienced a meteoric rise in 2020 and 2021, launching the careers of many gaming content creators. But when Animal Crossing and Nintendo announced there would be no more content updates for Animal Crossing New Horizons, many in the community were left confused, hurt, and even angry. I sat down with Chey (Cheyleif) to talk all things ACNH online community, inc...

Hello adventurers, for this episode I had the absolute pleasure and joy to get to chat with Arief Johan about his working covering the Southeast Asian gaming landscape and some of our favorite cozy games that come from the region!  Arief is a content creator from Malaysia who hosts a recurring live-stream on Twitch called Southeast Asia Nights where he works with regional developers & publishe...

Hello adventurers, today on the podcast we’re introducing a brand new news segment , discussing the recent Singularity 6 layoffs and a few exciting announcements from the indie game space! Then, we’re talking podcast games - games you can play while listening to a podcast, audiobook or even watching a show.  Get cozy and let’s sit around the hearth together! ‧₊˚ Games mentioned • Powerwash Simulat...

Welcome to our FIRST guest episode! I had such a lovely time talking with Gale (GamerGirlGale) about all kinds of topics including How TikTok has helped shape the cozy gaming community online How the definition of what a cozy game is shifting  Mental health as a cozy gamer and content creator Get cozy and let’s sit around the hearth together! ‧₊˚ Find Gale online: • TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/...

Welcome adventurers! We’re diving into cozy narrative today, discussing what makes a narrative cozy and what archetypes and common tropes we see in narratives that are cozy! ‧₊˚ Sites mentioned: • Project Horseshoe:  https://projecthorseshoe.com/reports/featured/ph17r3.htm ‧₊˚ Games mentioned: • My Time at Sandrock • Stardew Valley • Unpacking • Coral Island • Wylde Flowers • Harvest Moon (series)...

Let’s dive into the world of Palia where we’ll be discussing what the game is, early receptions and community activity, and my thoughts on the game both at the outset and its current state! Get cozy and let’s sit around the hearth together! ‧₊˚ Sites mentioned: • Polygon article:  https://www.polygon.com/23833110/palia-cash-shop-microtransactions-cost-outfits-cosmetics • What’s with the community...

Let's try this again with the correct audio this time (: Does cozy gaming have a toxic positivity problem? Or rather, a cozy toxicity problem? We’re exploring that topic today by using specific games such as Palia and Disney Dreamlight Valley as case studies. Get cozy and let’s sit around the hearth together! ‧₊˚ Sites mentioned: • Toxic Positivity: https://adaa.org/learn-from-us/from-the-expe...

Welcome to the podcast formerly known as Cup of Cozy!  From Tetris, to Stardew Valley, Animal Crossing and beyond, in this episode we’re tackling the origin and evolution of the cozy game genre and community. We’ll also take a look at the current landscape, and I’ll make some predictions about what’s to come. ~ ‧₊˚ shoot me an email at thegamershearth@gmail.com ‧₊˚ follow me across all of my socia...

Welcome to the very FIRST episode of Cup of Cozy! We’re starting off with a bit of a fluffy episode - games I’m looking forward to in 2024. 2023 was a great year for cozy games and 2024 looks to be great as well!  Games Mentioned: Spirit City Lo-fi Sessions - https://store.steampowered.com/app/2113850/Spirit_City_Lofi_Sessions/ Summerhouse - https://store.steampowered.com/app/2533960/SUMMERHOUSE/...