Klonoa
JoCat did an excellent retrospective of Klonoa 2 that includes a brief segment explaining how messed up and traumatizing the first game’s ending was.
Tunic.
Lil’ Gator Game.
Slime Rancher.
I guess I’ll start us off with Undertale… In my view the defining game of this genre
Removed by mod
Stardew Valley - getting to know some of the villagers
Undertale - right off the bat
Sheepy - lol wtf I’m emotional
Honestly, Minecraft.
Everyone remembers the moment they first realized nighttime and darkness is unsafe.
And as the years go on, more and more lore and items and events have been added that makes the game even more unsettling when you stop to think about them.
When real-world horrors are too existential and complex to implement, more tangible, definite horrors must be created to make a game world a better approximation of reality.
makes the game even more unsettling when you stop to think about them
respectfully disagree. I ive recently been playing a Minecraft version 1.5 mod and omg it’s so much more eerie than modern versions. It doesn’t help that torches burn out after a while lol
The first time you heard that sssssSSSSSSBOOM right behind branded every player with an eternal fear.
Also, shoutout to the moment they added fire spread. Way back in ye olde alpha days, you’d just randomly set stuff on fire to keep monsters out. Then fire spread suddenly made this dangerous and the world feel a whole lot more risky.
That brief period where fire spread was super op- you’d stumble upon decimated wastelands from natural fires.
Celeste is pretty cute but can get quite difficult if you try to complete everything.
It Takes Two
Cuphead? Idk if it’s quite “cutesy” but with all the old-timey graphics it doesn’t strike me as something that should’ve been so tough
100%-ing that shit during lockdown was one of the hardest gaming feats I’ve ever accomplished. Next lockdown is going to be the DLC.
Hollow Knight
But depending how you feel about bugs it might not be as much cute as it might be nightmare fuel
Kirby. The only note on its official age rating is “fear”
Little Inferno turns into something completely else.
Just finished the game. Can’t reccomend it enough. It’s very cozy.
Doki Doki literature club. I watched it being streamed for a bit. I thought it was just a dumb Japanese school girl high school drama game then suddenly one of the girls offed herself. Was not expecting that.
Ristar!
I mentally think of it as “Sega’s Kirby”. Not because it has any specific similarities to Kirby in gameplay. But simply because it is similar in tone and vibe. A super cute game that is secretly about fighting an eldritch entity.
… And as every Sega game in the 90s, it is exciting arcade action from beginning to end.
Escape from Tarkov
Pony Island
