Cozy Game Restoration

Limited Playtest from May 8th

About the Game

Cozy Game Restoration is about the quiet satisfaction of restoring something that matters. You’ll unwrap carefully sealed packages to discover old, battered video game cartridges. They'll be covered in stickers, markers, dust, and all the accumulation of time. Each one is different, flawed in its own way, and waiting to be brought back to life.

RESTORE FORGOTTEN RETRO GAMES

Every cartridge is procedurally dirtied. Some have clean labels but cracked shells. Others are scuffed, drawn on, or covered in adhesive residue. Grime is layered. Dust, ink, discoloration, stickers, and scratches each require a different tool to remove. Surfaces stretch, smear, and lift as you work. It’s slow, tactile, and satisfying.

LOOT BOXES BUT IN A GOOD WAY

Game cartridges will arrive inside mystery parcels sealed with tape. You’ll peel them open by hand, lifting the flaps, and wrestling with sticky tape to see what’s inside. Each game has randomized conditions and visuals, with 108 distinct titles inspired by classics from the 1980s to early 2000s.

Some are common finds, but others can be much rarer. You’ll encounter regional variants of carts, sticker artwork, and even shells made of gold (or better). Every game you restore will bring you closer to completing your collection, and there’s always a chance something unexpected will show up.

COMPLETE YOUR COLLECTION

As you restore games, you’ll complete collection-based quests. This might be simple stuff like “collect three puzzle games”, or “two rare platformers”, but you’ll also see more unique things which work with the game’s in-game calendar like “Have 4 sci-fi games on your game shelf on November 7”.

Each finished quest will reward you with a gift. Inside will be a decoration or cosmetic for your collection room that you can use to make it a little more personal.

BUILT FOR THE FEELING

There’s no timer and no fail state in this game, but that doesn’t mean it's a shallow experience. There’s a deep set of interwoven systems which keeps gameplay varied and interesting, all whilst respecting the quiet chill vibes of a cleaning game.

If you’ve ever carefully peeled a sticker, dug through 2nd hand store games for a rare gem, or reminisced about your old collection, this is for you.

The game runs great on desktop, but it is being built from the ground up for Steam Deck. I’m planning on making this performant on a pretty wide range of systems.