The Cozy Gamer’s Starter Kit
New here? This is the one page to bookmark. Everything else on this site branches off from these four things, so if you only save one link from Cozy Gamer Tammy, make it this one.
1. Grab the checklist
The fastest way in is the free printable: a one-page checklist of 41 games that already pass all four checks — no magic, no spirits, no violence, no holiday themes — grouped by what you actually do in them, plus a backlog tracker for the ones you’re working through. Print it, stick it on the fridge, tick things off as you go.
Get the free checklist and tracker
2. Understand the standard
Before you trust a checklist from a stranger on the internet, it helps to know exactly what “passes” means here. The four checks are magic, spirits and religion, violence, and holiday themes — and I lay out exactly what trips each one and what doesn’t (a robot isn’t a wizard; cartoon silliness isn’t violence).
3. See the process yourself
The standard tells you the rules. This one shows you how I actually apply them — the nine sources I work through on every single game, in order, and how I make the call when something isn’t a clean yes or no. If you’ve ever wanted to screen a game yourself before buying it, this is the walkthrough.
4. Browse the database
Every game I’ve checked lives here — not just the ones that passed. You’ll find the ones I turned down and exactly why, so you can see the standard applied in practice instead of just taking my word for it.
5. Or skip straight to the big list
If you don’t need the receipts right now and just want something to play tonight, this is the shortcut: forty cozy games that pass every check, grouped by what you actually do in them — tidying, building, cooking, puzzling, or just tending to something quiet.
However you got here
Screened or played, checklist or database, five minutes or an evening down a rabbit hole — there’s no wrong door into this site. Bookmark this page, come back to it whenever you need the next thing to try, and if you ever think I’ve gotten a call wrong, tell me — that’s part of the standard too.
