Wholesome Games

Wholesome Games began as a Twitter community in 2019 when indie game developer Matthew Taylor started curating games that evoked feelings of comfort, compassion, and coziness, which is why it was named "Wholesome Games." Since then, it has grown to nearly 500k members across Twitter, Discord, TikTok, YouTube, and more. The platform has expanded to include Wholesome Direct, an online indie game showcase, and Wholesome Games Presents, a publishing initiative that shares industry knowledge to help more games succeed while ensuring developers maintain 100% creative control over their work.

Below is an interview conducted by indienova with Matthew Taylor, one of the founder of Wholesome Games and the director of Wholesome Direct, exploring the platform’s journey, mission, and vision for the future of gaming.

Interview

Rashel (R): Could you briefly share the story behind founding Wholesome Games? How did it all begin—starting with the Twitter account, then growing into a platform, evolving into a consulting/agency/publishing role, and eventually hosting Wholesome Direct?

Matthew (M): I remember having a conversation with my brother and Wholesome Games co-founder, James Tillman, about how I felt there was a certain type of indie game on the rise. Games like Ooblets and Mineko's Night Market were the biggest inspirations because this was 2019, and the Animal Crossing: New Horizons excitement was still to come. I decided to create a Twitter account to gather games like that and hopefully help them find new fans.

In 2020, we met Jenny Windom and Victoria Tran at PAX East, and they had an immediate, intuitive understanding of what Wholesome Games should represent. Shortly after, we decided to work on Wholesome Direct in response to the many in-person events that were canceled due to COVID. Perhaps because of those cancellations, many games trusted us with their announcements, and the show was a success.

Our latest venture is Wholesome Games Presents, which came about from working with talented developers like Jess Yu from Usagi Shima, for whom we had an enormous amount of trust and respect. We believed that with more direct support, we could help developers like her reach more players. We feel we have a unique strength in this genre and a diverse skill set within our team to support developers.

R: You’ve probably been asked this many times before, but I’m curious—after years of nurturing this platform for wholesome games, how would you define the word “wholesome” or “positive impact” in the context of games, aesthetically or philosophically? Has your definition evolved over the years?

Another reason I’m asking is that, as an editorial team, we often struggle to translate “wholesome” into Chinese. The most direct translation is “healthy,” but we feel the meaning extends beyond that. Another common translation is “healing,” but it still doesn’t quite capture everything. In any case, we’ll decide on the most accurate term or cluster of words after this interview.

M: "Uplifting" is the word I keep coming back to, in part because it helps emphasize that wholesome games can still have conflict or deal with difficult subject matter (take Spiritfarer, for example), but they typically have an optimistic, compassionate outlook. In this sense, I think it's good that both "wholesome" and "cozy" games can co-exist because they represent different kinds of experiences, even if they overlap in many cases.

R: Could you briefly explain how games usually come to you? Do developers reach out, or do you actively seek out potential games?

M: These days, I receive a lot of wonderful games, and just keeping up with my emails is a big part of the job. At the start, I did more scouting, and I still do some each month for our new releases newsletter. But generally, between the emails I receive and the public Wholesome Direct submission form we release every March, I get a ton of great games to review.

If you're hoping to submit for social media, newsletter, or publishing consideration, that contact info is on WholesomeGames.com. For showcases, we stick to a submission form typically released in early March (Editor's note: This year's portal just opened), which you'll find on our socials or by signing up for our newsletter on WholesomeGames.com.

R: What does your general work plan look like each year? Could you take the upcoming year as an example to give us an overview?

M: It's evolving quite rapidly as Wholesome Games Presents takes hold, and I have more responsibilities for the individual games we support. But generally, our three biggest events each year are the two showcases (Wholesome Direct in June and Wholesome Snack in December) and the Wholesome Games Steam Celebration, which usually occurs around August and features discounts, new game announcements, and game launches.

Each event starts taking shape months in advance, but I would say the thing that unites them all is receiving submissions or scouting for interesting games that we believe will not only appeal to our audience but also help define what a wholesome game can be. Beyond that, it's mostly coordination and communication (emails, emails, and more emails!) with developers and publishers to ensure we're aligning our events with their most exciting news and announcements.

R: What specific challenges do you think indie developers face today, and how does Wholesome Games help them navigate these challenges? Could you share a success story of an indie game that Wholesome Games helped bring to a wider audience?

M: If I may borrow from a section of our FAQ that James wrote:

"One of the goals of Wholesome Games is to change how we think about which games are taken seriously. For many years, the most critically acclaimed titles have been the ones with the darkest themes and grimmest depictions of life, but there's also a whole world of hopeful video games with rich storytelling, innovative gameplay, and beautiful art and sound. We want to be a part of showcasing the breadth of experiences that games can offer players."

So, there are a million challenges indie devs face, but specifically for those creating wholesome games, we felt there were a lot of publishers and outlets that didn't take them seriously or believed the market for those games was very limited. They were basically considered games for children, and if you were lucky, a few games like Animal Crossing would scratch that itch, but not much else.

Two examples I'm especially proud of are Venba and Little Kitty, Big City, both of which were announced in our showcases and went on to have great success. Matt from Little Kitty recently thanked us after winning an award and said that we were part of the initial push that helped generate interest in the game (Editor's Note: The Indie Game Award for Debut Game). Abhi from Venba told me that the response they got from being in Wholesome Snack helped prove that there was a market for a game like Venba, which is exactly what we were built to do.

R: From our perspective, there seem to be two valid approaches: one is intentionally designing a game to be "wholesome" from the very beginning within a specific framework, while the other is creating a game freely without constraints, only to realize later that it naturally embodies "wholesome" qualities. What are your thoughts on these two approaches? From a consultant’s perspective, do you find one to be more effective than the other?

M: As you said, I think both are valid, but art with a personal connection is often the most effective. So, I would say creating something that is meaningful to you on a human level, like Venba, is more valuable than setting out to make something purposefully built for an audience or genre.

R: What are some key elements you look for when curating games for your showcases? Wholesome Games often highlights underrepresented voices in gaming. How do you identify and support these creators? Since last year, in-person events have gradually been making a comeback. Wholesome Direct started as an online showcase during the pandemic—do you see it evolving into other formats, such as an in-person event in the future?

M: We look for variety, smaller teams, fresh ideas, and underrepresented voices, as you mentioned. We actually took some Wholesome Games Presents titles to PAX West last year as part of our first in-person event. But it would be great to do something more representative of Wholesome Direct and showcase games we're not directly associated with—kind of like the Day of the Devs in-person events, which are a great companion to digital shows and help connect developers with players.

R: Can you share some insights on maintaining the Wholesome Games Community on social media, such as Discord? Have there been moments when the community influenced your approach or decisions?

M: We have some of the best moderators in the Wholesome Games Discord, and they are the reason it's such a beautiful space. Seeing the community they've helped foster and the way they discuss games so thoughtfully and respectfully is definitely inspiring when it comes to making decisions for Wholesome Games or Wholesome Direct.

R: How do you collaborate with other organizations to amplify wholesome gaming experiences? Do you see opportunities to expand beyond gaming, perhaps into other areas of media or entertainment?

M: To be honest, I haven't considered anything outside of video games! That's where my heart has been since I was a child, so I'm just happy to focus on games and developers, who I believe are the most talented people in the world.

R: Do you think the concept of "wholesomeness" in gaming has impacted how larger studios approach game design since the rise of Wholesome Games? What do you think is the significance of Wholesome Games for indie games and the broader gaming industry?

M: I would feel pretty pompous speaking about our significance, in part because there are many other great creators in this space helping spread the word—many of whom we've had as co-hosts for our showcases.

Ultimately, I just hope we've been able to help developers make the games they want to make. The idea that we've influenced bigger studios or publishers is interesting, but only if they're pursuing it as a result of their creative vision and not just because they think it's popular or a way to reach a certain demographic.

R: Does the current development of Wholesome Games align with your initial expectations? Are there any areas you feel need improvement or further development?

M: My favorite wholesome games are those made by smaller teams with deeper, more personal meanings, often expressed through both gameplay and storytelling. Games like A Short Hike and Venba, for example. I would like the genre to be known for games like that, rather than for games that simply adopt a particular mechanic, like farming or fishing, without much thought to the meaning behind the game or the emotions the player will experience.

When we started, I would have been happy just to create a space for games with non-violent mechanics. Years later, I feel more certain about the specific traits I want to encourage, and I will continue striving to shine a spotlight on those games and the incredible developers who pour their hearts into their work.