Hello r/CozyGamers, soo I'll try to be straight to the point... me and my girlfriend are (for now) in a long distance relationship, feeling far sometimes gets the better of me... so I've been looking for games similar to Animal Crossing that we can share and play together, like having a shared house to customize, tending to crops, fishing and all of that, "building" something together in a virtual space if you get what I mean... I was hoping you had some suggestions for multiplayer games to try and that are doing these exact things? Stardew Valley is a good contender for that place already but I don't have it on Switch (she does), I currently have no money to get it on there and there is no cross platform with PC... so maybe there is something else with a similar concept and possibly free to play? Tysm if you can help I'd really appreciate...
Minecraft could be a good option! It’s not free, but it’s pretty inexpensive.
Another unconventional suggestion I thought of is Wizard 101. It is free to play and only requires a subscription for certain areas.
Palia or Children of the light?
Coral Island is cross platform now!
Great game, but it';s not on Switch due to the publisher issue.
Oh! I could have sworn it was on Switch. Sorry about that!
Humble closed their publishing branch, which is what caused the game a lot of problems. They're also either holding the rights to the switch version, or the money for it. Not sure which, but I know Humble is the reason that the switch version is MIA.
You could try Second Life. It can have a high learning curve and be a drag on some PCs, but you can basically do anything you want in SL. It does have a phone/tablet app now. As a virtual world and not really a game, SL is whatever you want to make it. You also don't have to use any content you don't want. There's systems inside it for farming, etc. For a cheaper version, you could do Opensim. They have a free farming system.
There might be a bigger selection of options in r/ComfortGamers
I think Minecraft is a great game for what you’re looking for. For extra cozy you can put it on peaceful mode and just focus on mining and building
Heartopia! It has everything you listed, cute graphics and you can also co-build houses with another player. It's also non-gacha and not littered with top-ups. Right now it's very new and the character customization options are great. It has fishing, farming, bug catching, wild animal taming, pets, cooking, building and socializing. I recommend watching a few youtube videos to get avfeel for it. It sounds like what you're looking for.
I also recommend Sky: Children of the Light. You can create social spaces and decorate them, but it's not like Animal Crossing. More like Tchia. It does have in-game purchases (cosmetics) that aren't necessary to progress. It's breathtakingly beautiful and emotionally moving, especially when playing with other people. Its a comfort game for sure with a slow pace and gorgeous world if you don't mind it's more somber tone and lack of farming mechanics. Also it has controller support and can be played on many platforms so you can play on any device. I went into it blind and was totally lost at first, but the deeper you go, the more alluring this strange world becomes.
It has a hand holding mechanic where you and one other player can travel, complete missions and explore the world together hand in hand. It's absolutely perfect for couples and families.
It does have gacha and top ups, though?
I read this and was like, "Wait, it's not gacha?!" because that was putting me off playing.
...the hand holding thing almost made me cry i want to try that, like i can endure the gacha stuff if that's a thing
It’s not shoved in your face like other games.
It's an emotionally moving game with a beautiful story. It deals with things like memory, grief and coming to terms with mortality (but it's handled in such a way that it's comforting, not depressing)
Farm together 2 maybe?
heartopia was just released and it’s amazing! you can play on mobile and pc. it’s a slow burn like animal crossing and you can build together when you progress a bit.
This!
I was actually upset to find the gacha system. But, I think the house decorating and collecting, and the fun hobbies have made the game pretty fun for me, so far.
THIS !! it’s super cute and allows for co building . the gacha system is shockingly not as bad as i expected ? it’s the least greedy i’ve seen of all the gacha systems to be honest. the base game is amazing and you really aren’t missing out. and it’s cross platform so you can still play together if someone opts for phone and another for pc :)
Heartopia, Stardew Valley, Enshrouded
Grounded! You can play in sandbox and make it to where the bugs don’t attack you if that’s your thing. My husband and I have spent DAYS in game. You can play it in Xbox game pass which has a PC version and is cross platform. You can build elaborate bases/houses together and explore. You can make a shareable save file so you can both access it when the other is not there. There is a little bit of farming, as you can make little pots to grow grass and mushrooms. No true fishing, but you can swim underwater with the fish and tadpoles.
Heartopia!!
I’d love to send you the $15 to download Stardew Valley on your Switch, if you’re comfortable sharing your Venmo or Cash app handle. Truly no pressure; I just have a soft spot for this as a fellow 🏳️🌈 who used to play multiplayer Stardew Valley with a long-distance partner.
Witchbrook should be good for that when its out
Oh I don't think it has fishing and all that