Competitive games are great for a daily dose of adrenaline rush, but have you tried something feel-good lately? Well, Steam has just the 2D pixel art experience to soothe your soul, and it’s absolutely free to play.
Buttercup garden’s Robot Hospice is for “everyone who wishes to be kind, and for those who can only live with kindness.” The gameplay is exactly what its name suggests: Old, beloved robots live out their final days in a hospice. And you, as the main character, help these robots pass the time they have left and bid them farewell when they’re ready to go. The game was released recently—on June 10—and has already garnered a bunch of Steam reviews, all of which are, unsurprisingly, positive. There’s nothing not to like about this beautiful single-player experience.
To dig deeper into what this free Steam game has to offer, Robot Hospice takes you on a wholesome journey of welcoming a robot that has served its purpose to the hospice, interacting with it, sharing memories, and finally parting ways when the time comes. At the time of writing, there are five robots and multiple conversational and action possibilities that you can play through. As you learn more about these robots, they not only stimulate the kindness in you but also teach you the importance of letting go. It’s an indie game, so it doesn’t have much content to explore. The developer hasn’t indicated any plans to add more content to the game in the future. Still, there’s enough to give you a couple of hours of cozy couch time.
As far as the reviews are concerned, players have left appreciative comments about the game’s art style, story, and, of course, the “cozy tragedy” vibe in a classic Famicom musical setting. Many of these reviews spoke about how emotional and moving the stories and scenes are, and how they left a lasting impression. One player even declared that they’d have paid money for this experience—and I’m sure many would.
“With the world exploding, this is the kinda of cozy tragedy I needed to start the weekend.”
“Didn’t expect this deep of a story going into it. The art style is beautiful, and the game manages to make such a small place feel huge. Made me feel much more than I was prepared to. Amazing use of 2 hours.”
“I absolutely loved this game; the story is very emotional and beautiful, and the visuals are very aesthetically pleasing and cute. The music is also great, and the game all around is just very beautiful, and I highly recommend it.”
At the time of writing, Robot Hospice has 47 reviews on Steam and is rated 4 out of 5, with 100 percent of players recommending the game. It’s not available on any other gaming platforms, so if you’re on a console like Xbox, PlayStation or even Nintendo, you’ll have to find something else to spend your time on.
Also, in case you like to be aware of AI usage in video games, the developers have declared the use of generated content for in-game scripts and the translation of in-game text and the Steam store page.
- Brand
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Valve
- Original Release Date
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September 12, 2003