For the most part there’s nothing I enjoy more than settling in for a mammoth play session with a tricky platformer or thoughtful RPG. There are times though where life gets away from me, and something less taxing is what the doctor ordered. This is why cosy games were invented, and continue to be an ever growing part of this great hobby. I’m always up for trying a new cosy game to see what will be my medicine for a rough day in the future, and after playing a preview build of Starsand Island I’m almost certain it’ll be something special.
Starsand Island is essentially a life simulator, where your own custom character (with plenty of outfit options to ensure you look particularly stylish) is moving back to a childhood island home. Life on Starsand Island is incredibly easy going, yet still has a variety of fun tasks to dive into at your own leisure. It won’t take you long to be offered a new hobby to engage in, and to learn how all the creating, collecting and cultivating works.
Like any good crafting game, you’ll have plenty of different tables you can use to make new items and there are tons of recipes to obtain on your cosy adventure. After gathering a few sticks and stones I was happily making all the tools I’d need to start tending to the garden, but there’s clearly going to be so much more to create further into the game.
I was able to try out a few different jobs in this preview build of Starsand Island, and it just felt right to start with farming. If you’ve played any cosy farming game this will feel immediately familiar, with the usual steps of preparing the land, planting and watering all present and accounted for. There are a few more in depth systems too though, involving fertilisers for those who really want to maximise their harvests and profits. If you’re lucky you might even grow a ludicrously massive fruit or vegetable, which is as silly and charming as it sounds.
After growing enough wheat to feed an army, I decided to partake in a cuter task and start raising animals. Even just from exploring the island I had seen plenty of utterly adorable critters, and was delighted when offered some rabbits to raise. This wasn’t too tough to manage, and once I’d built them a nest and chucked some food into it I was getting plenty of precious fur to sell. As you progress down this more caring career path you’ll be able to tame wild animals too, which will definitely be my focus when Starsand Island releases in full.
My final activity was fishing, and my childhood friend was particularly eager for me to get stuck into this. It’s another cosy activity you’ll probably be used to indulging in but I still enjoyed casting out into the depths and managing my line so a big catch wouldn’t get away. I even managed to fish out my mentor’s first ever fishing rod they lost long ago, which they seemed to really appreciate.
If I had more time with Starsand Island I’d probably do my best to befriend the lovely locals, as the game promises a deep and meaningful relationship system that encourages you to remember what your buddies like and visit them regularly so they don’t miss you too much. From the nature to the humans inhabiting the island, it truly feels like a living, breathing place that I just want to spend all my free time hanging out in.
If you’re solely interested in the relaxing vibes of Starsand Island, then you can just run off and explore with no pressure from the game. The visuals are lovely, and there are a ton of vehicle options you can use to get around with ease. Skating down the beach in the sun and watching the world go by is just a great way to spend a lazy Sunday, especially when there’s a real world storm in the background.
There’s still a lot of Starsand Island I want to see, but even this limited preview was such a joy to play. In the colder months when you need some comfort then prepare to get lost in island life, because I reckon it’ll cure those winter blues in no time.
Starsand Island is coming to PC in Q4 2025.
