Review: Smushi Come Home broke our cozy meter for how relaxing and enjoyable it was

You can get me to play pretty much anything if there’s a mushroom involved. (I wish that was an exaggeration.) So, when the newest Humble Bundle of cozy games dropped into my ever-growing hoard, I was excited to see Smushi Come Home as part of it.

Mushrooms, adventure, and exploration? If it only had potions and a cat, I’d say that’s the exact formula for my brand of cozy. 

Smushi Come Home Gameplay and Controls

Smushi Come Home is an endearing game about a mushroom who lives on an island in the middle of a lake with their three younger brothers. You get the sense that you’re the caretaker and that nothing really works without you.

So much so, that when a bird swoops down to steal one of your brothers, you get in the way and are whisked off instead. You’re taken far from everything familiar and dropped into a nest of unhatched eggs.

Your adventure begins here as you pick your way through the oversized fauna and discarded human items. Some of such items will be useful in your adventures. It’s honestly the most adorable thing when you come upon a set of hex wrenches and the smallest wrench becomes your pickaxe to mine up crystals.

Through your adventure, you’ll meet a whole host of interesting bug- and shroom-type characters. Nearly all of them are helpful and will teach you how to climb and glide your way through lands of various seasons and caves.

What I particularly loved about Smushi Come Home was that while it had a lot of elements that I generally stay away from, it presented them in a low-stress format. I’m the worst when it comes to parkour, swimming challenges, and flying courses, even worse when they’re timed. 

However, I had no troubles getting through all of these things – even the timed elements! But, if you are having trouble, there is a setting to make things easier. I think it’s only for the obstacle course though. I didn’t explore it since I didn’t need it. Nevertheless, I’m glad it was included.

I never had any problems with controls, but the camera seemed a little sensitive at first. Honestly, that was just a learning curve. Once you get into the meat of gameplay, you’ll have it figured out. (I played with a controller, so I don’t know how fluid it is to play with a keyboard.)

And, as a side note, if you’re looking to 100% the game, you may find the achievement related to wind essences to be hard to complete. Please note that there are 5 essences and the one you get from completing air challenges is not one of them. 

Art and Sound

I can’t say enough good things about the design of Smushi Come Home. Everything was perfect. The characters were varied and adorable and the lands were filled to the brim with foliage and objects.

I really enjoyed getting to run around and peek behind every nook and cranny to not only find the crystals but to see every inch of these gorgeous maps.

I have zero complaints about the music. If I’m honest, I don’t remember much about it because I was so zoned into the surroundings. 

Coziness and Cons

I wanted to say that if I could give this a cozier score than 10, I would, but I’m the writer and this is my system. So, eff it. This is the first game to get a cozy score of 11. I don’t make the rules, except that I do.

Smushi Come Home was a seriously cozy adventure that I was happy to sink five and a half hours into. Even with elements that usually stress me out, I never felt like something was outside of my capacity. It was refreshing to be served these challenges with the expectation that I would succeed rather than try to test my skills.

As far as cons… I don’t have any. This game delivered everything I wanted and did so perfectly. 

Verdict

I can’t recommend Smushi Come Home enough. This game is short enough to play in a day but also chill enough to play in short bursts if you only have a little time.

I’ve reviewed a lot of games for Comfy Cozy Gaming this year and Smushi Come Home is by far the coziest and low-stress game I’ve played so far and likely will play all year.

Sometimes, I struggle to find things to find as a con, but I seriously don’t have any for this game. If you want to have the coziest gameplay experience, then you’ll want to grab Smushi Come Home for $19.99 on Steam or Nintendo Switch. You will not regret it.