I feel like "cozy" as a game genre has always functionally been a thing (Harvest Moon games, off the top of my head, and probably those old FB games where you manage restaurants or dress up characters), but "cozy" as a term feels newer so what the heck did we call them before
I think they were lumped into "casual" when that became a thing (and I feel like "cozy" became a term because "casual" got negative associations), and before that I think there wasn't a catchall genre for them, they were just put into the other genres they fit into ('farming sim' for Harvest Moon, &c)
Yeah, and I feel like "lifestyle sim" got used as a really broad stroke, too
I also have thoughts about how cozy gaming took off w/ the pandemic because games with low and peaceful stakes where you have control of your environment were understandably appealing but I have no clue if cozy gaming actually took off or if it just seemed like it did in my particular bubble
Extremely lukewarm take: D&D combat can absolutely be a slog but most of the time the burden for making it not a slog is on the players, not the DM
Like yeah the DM should encourage prepared turns and snappy combat but if you have to wait ten minutes to take your turn and start off by going "hmmmmmmmm so, hang on, lemme see what spells I have" then you are, in fact, the problem
And yeah sure sometimes the turn right before yours will goof your plan but dear god at least have figured out where you are, where the bad guy is, and your basic goal (do damage, heal, interact with environment, whatever) because these turns translate to seconds of "real time" and the longer a round takes the less that feels true
yes I did have D&D last night why do you ask
Color theory is made up
But Erika aren't you color blind
Yeah okay fair
It is made up though
While I'm complaining about random things this is definitely a competing needs thing or whevs but I am finding it increasingly alienating when adult spaces expect all mentions of alcohol, drugs, sex, weapons, etc to be spoiler tagged
Like, I get it, and I want the majority of people to feel safe
But it also feels extremely puritanical and puts me off
someone get Ann Reardon to do an episode about wtf happened to those opaque gummy snacks
these bitches:
Did they just fall out of favor because translucent gummies seem more like fruit juice and therefore more "natural" or is the component that makes them matte actually a carcinogen or something