4 new games just surprise released during a packed Wholesome Direct stream

By Giovanni Colantonio Published June 8, 2024

A Wholesome Direct promo image shows a claw machine full of plushies. — Wholesome Games

A Wholesome Direct stream took place today, showcasing over 70 upcoming cozy games. Four new games got a surprise launch as part of the show, with many more getting Steam demos today.

Recommended Videos

Wholesome Direct is n video game live broadcast that focuses on “cozy” games. That’s a broad term that tends to include farming sims, puzzle games, and more. This summer’s show was loaded with new game announcements and updates on previously revealed titles, like Dungeons of Hinterberg.

Of the 70-plus games shown, four are available today. First, there’s Kamaeru: A Frog Refuge. Out now on Steam, this is a relaxing management game where players take care of a frog sanctuary. It features a wide variety of frogs to collect and breed, as well as item-crafting minigames. Management sim fans can also grab The Palace on the Hill today. It’s a game set in India and is about a child taking care of his father’s chai shop.

Frogs sit in a refuge in Kamaeru: A Frog Refuge. — Armor Games Studios

For puzzle game fans, Poool is a new spin on the popular Suika Game. The twist? Players combine colorful balls by shooting them into one another on a pool table. Finally, Tracks of Thought is a narrative game that’s set on a train and is about a ladybug trying to help passengers’ find things they’ve lost. It features conversations that play out in a card game system.

While those are out now, the show featured tons of other notable announcements. Tiny Lands 2 is a sequel to a solid spot-the-difference game that features photorealistic 3D environments and two-player co-op. Painting adventure Été got a July 23 release date. Other highlights included picross game Squeakross: Home Squeak Home, a strategy side-scroller starring crustaceans titled Crab God, and Rooster, a gorgeous narrative title with gameplay inspired by each animal of the Chinese zodiac.

That’s only a small taste of the eclectic games featured, so make sure to catch up on the hourlong showcase over on the Wholesome Games YouTube channel.

Giovanni Colantonio

Senior Gaming Editor

As Digital Trends' Senior Gaming Editor, Giovanni Colantonio oversees all things video games at Digital Trends. As a veteran…

Topics

Gaming

Don’t skip Call of Duty: Black Ops 6’s great new mode during its beta

A player holds a dead player as a body shield in Call of Duty: Black Ops 6.

The beta for Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 begins tomorrow, and it features eight different modes for players to check out. While I'm guessing most will want to play iconic modes like Team Deathmatch (TDM) or Domination, I recommend you give Kill Order a shot.

Kill Order is a mode new in Black Ops 6 that finds a way to twist the core TDM formula to make it less chaotic. I spoke to developers at Treyarch about its creation and learned that Kill Order works as well as it does because it was built around the aspects of Call of Duty that players like best.
A high-value mode
At its core, Kill Order is TDM with a twist. The basics will be familiar as two teams of six compete to get the most kills, earn points, and win a match. To help focus the action, one player on each team is named the "High Value Target." This "HVT," as the game and developers call it, is powered up with extra armor, directional indicators for other players on the minimap, and the ability to earn more score with each enemy kill. They're not a juggernaut or anything, but in a one-on-one between an HVT and an enemy player, the HVT is more likely to win.

Gaming

Metaphor: ReFantazio just became my most anticipated game of the fall

The main character in an anime cutscene for Metaphor: ReFantazio.

Of all the big games coming this fall, Metaphor: ReFantazio is the most fascinating. The project is the next RPG from Atlus Studio Zero, the developers behind the Persona and Shin Megami Tensei franchise. When it was first unveiled, we saw that team ditch the modern day Tokyo setting for a more high-fantasy-themed world.

The easy shorthand would be “fantasy Persona" but after playing a few hours, its ideas run so much deeper than a new coat of paint. Metaphor feels like the culmination of the team’s aspirations with both the Persona and Shin Megami Tensei franchises. It enhances the world-building, combat, characters, and themes of those titles, all wrapped into the United Kingdom of Euchronia, the world that Metaphor takes place in. After only as few hours of play, I can't wait to go back.
Getting started
Before you even step foot into the world, you’re asked for your name. Not your character’s name, but the player's. It’s a simple question, yet my head swirled with thoughts about how the game would try to use this to bridge the gap between fantasy and reality. Sometimes such a simple question can be so powerful, and the way Metaphor’s sharp and quick-witted writing wields its words wisely, I needed to know more. Luckily throughout the preview, I caught glimpses of the way Metaphor sets out to use this neat little trick to lay the groundwork for bigger questions down the line.

Gaming

Everything announced at the Panic Games Showcase 2024

The main character of Thank Goodness You're Here is hoisted into the air.

Panic, the Portland-based game publisher behind the Playdate and hilarious games like Thank Goodness You’re Here, held a showcase today. It gave us a deeper look at recently released games like Thank Goodness You’re Here and Arco, and confirmed a Nintendo Switch port of Nour: Play With Your Food while also teasing a strong 2025 lineup for the publisher filled titles like Despelote, Time Flies, and Okamotive’s Herdling.

The show kicked off with a Thank Goodness You’re Here segment that delved into the game’s development at Coal Supper. If you’re interested in learning more about how some of its jokes came to be, how Coal Supper settled on its distinct art style, and how one of the main voice actresses involved in the project was found, then you’ll enjoy its segment. Thank Goodness You’re Here is quickly building buzz as one of the year’s best indie games, so it’s amazing to get an inside look at its development like this.