Originally published on May 30, 2026
Although we haven’t officially hit the first day of summer, I’ve already dug out my terry cloth and linen shirts for the warm weather ahead. I started the month off strong with a lot of game development before my time and effort was monopolized by a cavalcade of other obligations; jury duty, house hunting, day-job projects, among other things.
Albeit limited, I am happy with the work I did accomplish this month. Above are two examples of dialogue profiles that I created for the dream versions of two NPCs. This was month two of polishing the five distinct areas of the demo, and so I worked on the dream version of the castle area, with my eyes set on the dream version of the cemetery area for the month of June.
Beyond some other additional asset building, I pinned down an aesthetic for some of the first-person view sections of the demo. A lot of the assets I’m using for the dream world — or “spirit realm,” I’ve been internally using these phrases interchangeably — were originally created with a 4-color color palette and have been adapting them to the dream world’s 2-color palette, often leading me to choose which detail work gets removed to avoid visual clutter. At any rate, with every completed asset, every integrated sound, and every polished animation, I can see the game forming into the experience I hoped it could be all along.
Apart from game development, I finished reading two books this month, Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto and On Earth As It Is Beneath by Ana Paula Maia. Both are excellent books about death, Kitchen as a whimsical and solemn exploration of the topic and On Earth As It Is Beneath exploring man’s brutality, subjugation, and power dynamics as they relate to perpetuating systems of death. Both books were roughly 100 pages in length. I find an added beauty to any art that achieves complexity within a smaller package; a smaller package that still asks for your entire attention but maybe you see it through within a week instead of several.
To celebrate big things in small packages, this month I’ve decided to highlight some of my favorite shorter games. Whether you’re looking to dip your toe into a genre you don’t often play or just want to pick up a game that starts and ends within one play session, this list is for you!
Note: Game durations listed are taken from howlongtobeat.com. Additional info from their Steam pages.
To celebrate big things in small packages, this month I’ve decided to highlight some of my favorite shorter games. Whether you’re looking to dip your toe into a genre you don’t often play or just want to pick up a game that starts and ends within one play session, this list is for you!
Note: Game durations listed are taken from howlongtobeat.com. Additional info from their Steam pages.
Title: Wide Ocean Big Jacket
How Long to Beat?: 1 Hour
Genre: Slice-of-Life Narrative
Developer: Turnfollow
Release: 2020
Tag Line: A Camping Story starring: Uncle Brad, Aunt Cloanne, Mord (and Ben)
With a gorgeous color palette and charming characters, Wide Ocean Big Jacket is about four characters going on a classic American overnight camping trip at a beachside campground. The minimalist art style, simple objectives (bird watching and cooking hotdogs, for example), and stripped-down naturalistic sound design give the game an intimacy and familiarity that is comfortable and cozy from beginning to end.
How Long to Beat?: 1 Hour
Genre: Slice-of-Life Narrative
Developer: Turnfollow
Release: 2020
Tag Line: A Camping Story starring: Uncle Brad, Aunt Cloanne, Mord (and Ben)
With a gorgeous color palette and charming characters, Wide Ocean Big Jacket is about four characters going on a classic American overnight camping trip at a beachside campground. The minimalist art style, simple objectives (bird watching and cooking hotdogs, for example), and stripped-down naturalistic sound design give the game an intimacy and familiarity that is comfortable and cozy from beginning to end.
That said, the star of the show here is the writing. The characters are well-rounded and charming in a way that reminded me of my favorite graphic novels. Much of the game is spent reading through dialogue scenes as the characters make small talk and get to know each other better.
This is a wonderful little game that is so much more than the sum of its parts.
This is a wonderful little game that is so much more than the sum of its parts.
Title: Öoo
How Long to Beat?: 2 Hours
Genre: Puzzle, 2D Platformer, Metroidvania
Developer: NamaTakahashi, tiny cactus studio, Tsuyomi
Release: 2025
Tag Line: A Bomb Caterpillar's Big Adventure! "Öoo" is a charming yet mysterious exploration puzzle platformer where you discover creative ways to use bombs!
How Long to Beat?: 2 Hours
Genre: Puzzle, 2D Platformer, Metroidvania
Developer: NamaTakahashi, tiny cactus studio, Tsuyomi
Release: 2025
Tag Line: A Bomb Caterpillar's Big Adventure! "Öoo" is a charming yet mysterious exploration puzzle platformer where you discover creative ways to use bombs!
Öoo is a perfect little game. With its chunky pixel art aesthetic, diabolically smart puzzles, and limited yet expressive movement, every single piece of this game is deliberate in a way that is incredibly rare to find in any art form.
Öoo does not have any dialogue or tutorial. This is a game that teaches you the rules and mechanics of the game through interaction. As you navigate through the colorful tunnels, the true rewards are found in “aha” moments that recontextualize previous areas and make you feel like a true genius. Just when you think the game has played all its cards, there is always another satisfying reveal just around the corner.
If you are a fan of Animal Well or Braid, this game is a must play!
If you are a fan of Animal Well or Braid, this game is a must play!
How Long to Beat?: 1 Hour 30 Minutes
Genre: Exploration, 3D Platformer
Developer: adamgryu
Release: 2019
Tag Line: Hike, climb, and soar through the peaceful mountainside landscapes of Hawk Peak Provincial Park as you make your way to the summit.
A Short Hike combines design elements from Animal Crossing (NPC interactions, digging, and fishing) and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (climbing, gliding, and exploration) to create a bite-sized adventure celebrating the beauty of nature. In the game, you play Claire, a young bird vacationing in the idyllic Hawk Peak Provincial Park. Claire needs to make a phone call but there’s no service in the park, well, except for at the top of Hawk Peak. Your goal is to make it to the top of the mountain however you’d like, whether you wish to take your time or make a b-line to the summit.
If Wide Ocean Big Jacket encapsulates the casual downtime of camping, A Short Hike leans into the joy of running through the forest to see what’s on the other side of the next big hill. And tying the experience together is Mark Sparling’s joyful and energetic soundtrack, one I have listened to endlessly while working on game development.
Title: Frog Detective 1: The Haunted Island
How Long to Beat?: 44 Minutes
Genre: Comedy, Deduction
Developer: Grace Bruxner, Thomas Bowker
Release: 2018
Tag Line: You're a detective, and a frog, and it's time to solve a mystery.
How Long to Beat?: 44 Minutes
Genre: Comedy, Deduction
Developer: Grace Bruxner, Thomas Bowker
Release: 2018
Tag Line: You're a detective, and a frog, and it's time to solve a mystery.
Comedy is difficult to get right and even harder when you build a video game around it. Grace Bruxner, the writer behind the Frog Detective series, strikes a perfect balance, offering a small detective story that feels like a 1st-grader’s Columbo spec script where every character is a smiling animal. It’s silly, it’s fun, and it moves along at a breezy pace.
This game is also kid-friendly, so if you’ve been looking for a game to play with a child in your life, this one checks a lot of boxes.
Title: Florence
How Long to Beat?: 47 Minutes
Genre: Story-Driven Minigame Compilation
Developer: Mountains
Release: 2018
Tag Line: Florence Yeoh feels a little... stuck. Her life is an endless routine of work, sleep, and spending too much time on social media. Then one day, she meets a cello player named Krish who changes everything about how she sees the world and herself.
How Long to Beat?: 47 Minutes
Genre: Story-Driven Minigame Compilation
Developer: Mountains
Release: 2018
Tag Line: Florence Yeoh feels a little... stuck. Her life is an endless routine of work, sleep, and spending too much time on social media. Then one day, she meets a cello player named Krish who changes everything about how she sees the world and herself.
Florence is a colorful illustrated love story that unfolds through vignettes and short minigames. At first blush, I wondered if this story would be better suited for another medium: a graphic novel or animated short film. But as you progress through the story, the short minigames offer insight into the characters that would be lost in a medium lacking player interaction. One example of this that I love from Florence is a minigame where you use puzzle pieces to construct word balloons. As Florence gets more comfortable with her date Krish, the puzzle pieces get simpler and simpler to fit together until it takes no effort at all. The two characters are completely in sync. Later on, this mechanic is explored through a different emotion in such a clever and insightful way. I won’t spoil it here, but if you’re curious, it is optimized for iPhone, Android, and just about any other devices you can find games.
If you like this one and are interested in games that use similar design philosophies, I’d recommend Unpacking or Consume Me.
If you like this one and are interested in games that use similar design philosophies, I’d recommend Unpacking or Consume Me.
Looking back on these games has been a great reminder that games don’t need to be 20 hours long to be a complete experience and that smaller games are a great playground for experimentation and storytelling. Although Sad Land is planned as a 5- to 7-hour experience, I’ve been working hard to craft the demo as its own satisfying little slice.
We’re reaching that time of year where I can bring my laptop to the back deck and do some work outside, an all-around pleasant experience except when my cat cries for me at the door to let him out (where he is NOT allowed). I hope you too have some exciting plans for the summer months as well. I’ll be back in June with some more updates on Sad Land.
Sincerely,
Neil
Sincerely,
Neil