The inaugural Cozy Game Awards aired today, May 28, 2026, and it delivered. Six award winners crowned by player vote, five world premieres, a string of release date reveals, and one very cozy community proving it belongs on the big stage.
Today, the very first Cozy Game Awards took place as part of the Cozy & Family Friendly Games Celebration 2026, a major industry event officially featured by Valve and running on Steam from May 28 through June 3. Co-hosted by beloved content creators from the cozy gaming scene, the roughly 30-minute showcase was packed with world premieres, release date announcements, exclusive reveals, and at the heart of it all, six award categories voted on entirely by players.
Winners received physical glass trophies, a fitting touch for a community that’s always been about warmth, sincerity, and celebrating the games that make us feel something.
Here’s a full breakdown of everything that happened.
World Premieres
Pottering
A chill multiplayer gardening game where you and your friends are tasked with reviving Lady Marilyn’s long-neglected garden. You get to restore and decorate it however you like, making it as much about creative expression as it is about digging in the dirt together.
Fables of Dwale
A beautifully atmospheric foraging and exploration game set in a world where fairy tales have ended but their aftermath lives on. You’ll harvest forest fruits, barter with peculiar fairy folk and folklore characters, and slowly uncover the mystery behind a dreadful illness spreading across the enchanted lands.
Rural Cat Trails
Explore Nanoha Town in the Japanese countryside during cherry blossom season as a cat. Use uniquely feline mechanics like Wall Jump, Dig, Paw Swat, and the wonderful Wiggle Butt Dash to find your way to Sakurana Shrine, a place of treasured memories with your late Grandpa.
Wild n Chill
A laid-back wilderness survival game where you forage, hunt, and craft the off-grid cabin of your dreams. Far from noise and city life, it’s just you, a trusty animal companion, and a friend or two.
Winter Whiskers
A cozy snow-cleaning adventure set in Winterlight Harbor, a town buried by a sudden blizzard. Vacuum up snow, convert it into steam to power the town, melt icy paths, help your neighbors, and prepare for the Winter Festival. Wholesome, seasonal, and adorable.
💎 Special Announcements & Reveals
Solarpunk — Xbox Game Pass Reveal The survival game set on floating islands in a technically advanced world where you can build, farm, craft, and explore on an airship alone or with friends is coming to Xbox Game Pass when it launches on June 8. A great pickup for Game Pass subscribers.
Loftia — New Gameplay Trailer The cozy multiplayer sustainability sim where you farm, craft, explore, and build toward a more sustainable future with friends debuted new gameplay footage during the show right before it won Most Anticipated Game.
Map Map: A Game About Maps — Out Now The cartography adventure where you become the mapmaker for a small exploration crew using real navigation tools to chart the unknown got its Out Now reveal during the show. Available on Steam now.
Tavern Talk Stories: Dreamwalker — Release Date Announcement (June 9) The D&D-inspired visual novel where you run a cozy seaside tavern, meet adventurers, gather rumors, and mix fate-altering drinks launches on June 9. Mark your calendars, tavernkeepers.
Ova Magica — Release Date & Console Announcement (July 21) The Stardew Valley-meets-Pokémon JRPG where you raise cute blob creatures, tend your farm, and befriend the residents of Clover Town is headed to consoles on July 21.
The Witch’s Bakery — Release Window Reveal (August) The 2D Adventure RPG where you live a magical life as a witch-baker in Paris, manage your store, wander iconic streets, and heal hearts with your croissants is coming this August.
Cloudscrapers — Release Window Reveal (This Summer) The minimalist sky-tower strategy game with a relaxing atmosphere, build your tower, manage resources, unlock tools, and uncover sky secrets, is arriving this summer.
Wish Upon a Llama — Publisher Announcement (Whitethorn Games) The animal breeding and relationship sim set in Llama Town featuring bunnies, capybaras, horses, and more announced Whitethorn Games as its publisher during the show and that it will be coming to consoles and PC this winter.
Moomintroll: Winter’s Warmth — Console Announcement From the creators of Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley, this charming winter adventure following Moomintroll himself is out now on Nintendo Switch and coming soon to PlayStation 5.
Lou’s Lagoon — Demo Announcement The cozy seaplane exploration-and-crafting adventure. Fly between tropical islands, collect resources, rebuild communities, and unravel the mystery of Uncle Lou’s disappearance. Lou’s Lagoon now has a playable demo available on Steam.
Kabuto Park — Console Announcement The tiny bug-catching game set in a sun-soaked summer park, catch bugs, train them, and compete in the Summer Beetle Battles Championship, is coming to consoles. Also noted as out now on PC.
Drawquarium — Presented by rokaplay A uniquely creative aquarium game where you draw your own fish, then watch them swim and grow. Feed them well and they’ll develop a metallic shimmer as they age. Presented by indie publisher rokaplay.
🏆 The Award Winners
Best Debut Game — Discounty
Presented by Cozybyjoshy. Discounty beat out a strong field including Tiny Book Shop, Spilled!, Is This Seat Taken?, and Snacko to take home the debut award. The quirky supermarket management sim clearly resonated with cozy game fans looking for something fresh.
Best Family Friendly Game — Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar
Presented by Cozyreni. The beloved farming and life sim franchise took this one home over nominees including Two Point Museum, Cast n Chill, Town to City, and Discounty.
Best Co-op Game — Hello Kitty Island Adventure
Presented by Cozycornerkai & Jourdangames. Hello Kitty Island Adventure claimed the co-op crown in a competitive category that also included LEGO Voyagers, Cozy Island, Dinkum, and Farm Together 2.
Most Anticipated Game — Loftia
Presented by Josh’s Gaming Garden. The cozy multiplayer sustainability sim won the community’s most-wanted vote over My Time at Evershine, ReStory: Chill Electronics Repair, Wish Upon a Llama, Moonlight Peaks, and Cat Café Manager 2. Fittingly, Loftia also got a brand-new gameplay trailer during the show.
Best Short Game — Is This Seat Taken?
Presented by Ellie of the Cozy Gaming Club. The charming short experience beat Duck Detective: The Ghost of Glamping, Kabuto Park, Urban Jungle, and Spilled! to win in this category.
Best Cozy Game — Tiny Book Shop
Presented by Cozywithronnie. The big one. Tiny Book Shop took the top prize for Best Cozy Game, edging out Camper Van: Make It Home, Is This Seat Taken?, Tales of the Shire: A Lord of the Rings Game, and Whisper of the House. A well-deserved win for one of the most beloved cozy releases of the past year.
A Community That’s Earned Its Spotlight
What made today’s show special wasn’t just the games, it was what the whole thing represented. The Cozy & Family Friendly Games Celebration has been a fixture of the Steam calendar for years, but this is the first time it’s grown into a full awards show with player-voted categories, physical trophies, and a showcase format that genuinely rivals larger industry events.
The cozy gaming community has spent years building something real, dedicated content creators, passionate players, and developers who care deeply about the experience they’re making. Today felt like a graduation moment.
If you missed the show, you can watch the full Cozy Game Awards 2026 on YouTube. The Cozy & Family Friendly Games Celebration runs on Steam through June 3, with game discounts and demos available across the full week.
Sources: Cozy Game Awards official website, Digitally Downloaded, Cinelinx, Steam
