Cozy Game Restoration Review - A labour of love

Every reader of our beloved AltChar knows that games aren’t just games. Each cartridge and each disk carries a story with it, carries memories of afternoons spent with friends, games swapped back and forth so everyone can play a newly released game, and the kind of nostalgia that only gets stronger with time.

While today we usually get things digitally and through downloads - unfortunately, might I add - we all have that one CD or disk that instantly brings us back to our childhood and our gaming beginnings. For me, it would be a floppy disk (damn, I'm getting old), because that’s where I had an old Lucky Luke game that I played as a kid. I think my cousins from Sweden brought it to me, they got it from a cereal if I remember correctly, and it wasn't even the full game, but a demo. Still, I remember playing the hell out of it, because I had nothing else to play but also because things were simpler back then, you played what you could get your hands on, and you cherished it. 

If you’ve played that game, you get a cookie.

Cozy Game Restoration taps right into that feeling. It’s a quiet and gentle game with no pressure, made for moments when you need a break from combat, action, or multiplayer madness. And while the retro atmosphere will appeal the most to people who started their gaming adventures in the 1980s and 1990s, anyone can get into its groove easily.

It’s satisfying, relaxing, and surprisingly heartfelt. But, it’s not without a few smudges of its own.

Grandpa's gift

Since this is a simulation game, there isn’t much of a story here but there story that is there carries a meaningful message.   

Your grandfather has left you a house and a restoration kit, and he has only one request: bring his forgotten gaming collection back to life. But the games aren’t just waiting for you there, you will get parcels each day which contain different types of retro games. Each of these needs to be bought, too. Seems like grandpa didn’t want to make it that easy for us.

When you first come to the house, it doesn’t look too good. It looks dark, abandoned almost, and just overall like something in need of restoration and some decoration. But in the end, it’s not really all that about the house, but more about what’s inside those boxes which are waiting for you.

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It's a nice feeling to bring these games back to life.

This game won’t give you a complex storyline or a bunch of action, you’re just a guy that collects games and enjoys restoring them. But, there is still a heartwarming and beautiful story hidden here, in its own quiet way.

Each of these games that you get and bring back to life represents a piece of a memory of your grandfather, and by keeping them alive, you keep the memory of your grandfather alive. We all have these things, it doesn’t have to be games, it can be books, jewelry, watches, different accessories, or even pieces of clothing, something that we’ve inherited from our old ones, and something that we cherish and would absolutely hate to lose. Nostalgia and fond memories in general have always played a really important role for us humans, and usually when we have a physical object that we can tie to that nostalgia, or memory of someone, it becomes more than just "a thing" and its value increases for us greatly. I still have a note from my late grandfather which he gave me when I graduated college, and that is something that I'll always hold near and dear to my heart, because of the person that gave it to me.

These are the things that help keep the memory of the ones we’ve lost alive, and you never know, maybe your grandchildren will keep something of yours alive, in your memory.

Unboxing the past

Each day in Cozy Game Restoration starts with a new batch of packages, and it’s up to you to decide which ones you can afford. You can’t pick what’s inside, though, as they’re all mystery parcels. The contents are randomised, so you can end up with duplicates, but even then, two copies of the same game will arrive in different conditions, and one might have a dirty cartridge, while the other is covered in marker drawings.

You can also check the weather and the market conditions, which both play a part and can affect which genres will show up, which will be duplicates, and whether you get something rare. For example, if it's rainy, a certain genre will see a price increase and similar. Don't ask why, I don't make the rules.

The house is your main hub, from there you decide whether you’ll end your day, restore another game, sell it, or head to your collection room. You will have a bunch of parcels there, and then it’s up to you to choose which one. You pay for it, open it, and that’s when the game starts. You peel off stickers, clean the dirt, remove scratches and markings, repair it as much as you can and then it’s up to you whether you keep it or sell it.

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There is a lot of games to collect.

The dirt reacts to your tools and doesn’t just disappear, and if you don’t clean it off your tools, you might just make an even bigger mess. You can see how restored the cartridge is, and the game lets you know when it’s acceptable to stop, but you can keep cleaning it until it’s spotless too. And you can always go back to that cartridge and polish it more if you wanted to, they don't lock once you finish them. The camera controls are good too, although for some reason, the game zooms in when I turned a cartridge to the side a couple of times, not always though.

Not every step is as fun as the rest. While I was doing the tutorial game, I couldn’t get some dirt to be cleaned no matter what I tried, but luckily after the tutorial it worked as it was supposed to. You sometimes get duplicate games, and while they are good for selling and earning some money, it does get tedious and a bit frustrating to clean and restore games you already did.

The collection itself is impressive. There are around 108 unique game titles across six retro-inspired platforms, all inspired by video games from the 1980s, 1990s, and early 2000s. You’ll find different labels and artworks, game genres, and rarity levels, with some particularly rare versions in unusual shells, including gold-coloured ones. Since the developer created fictional games for the collection, you’ll also come across some weird names (such as SEGUL), but there are also collaborations with real indie games such as Abiotic Factor and CONSCRIPT, which are a fun surprise to stumble upon.

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Mystery packages add a sense of excitement too.

Once a game is restored, you decide whether to sell it or keep it. As much as you might want to, you shouldn’t really keep every game you restore, as you need money to grow. With what you earn, you can buy more parcels, increase the number of packages available, expand your daily shelves, and develop your collection room. Some games are also worth more on certain days, so timing your sales can pay off.

That leaves you with a choice to make: do you want to be a collector with as many games as possible, or a successful restorer who sells games to finance the operation? These collection and financial-management mechanics add some welcome depth, and finding new rare games gives you a sense of progression. However, if you want to get the rare ones, expect to be grinding for a bit. The fact that the packages are mystery and you can't see what's inside does keep things exciting, as you never really know what you might get.

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I can't even imagine what these games went through to be this dirty.

There are plenty of quests to keep you busy too, 300 of them at launch, such as collecting a certain number of puzzle games, collecting specific genres, or finding rare platform games. Completing these gives you gifts, decorations, and cosmetics, which you can use to decorate your room. You can display your restored games, expand your shelves, put up posters and artworks, and add other new decorations. However, the decorating does feel a bit limited, and even after you’ve decorated, the house still feels a bit grim, at least to me.

​Easy on the eyes and ears

Cozy Game Restoration brings a visually realistic style, and it pays off where it matters the most, and that is the games themselves. The games look really nice, and the graphics make the cartridges look dirty and rather convincingly grimy, which adds a new layer of satisfaction to the restoration. I remember opening a parcel and thinking how incredibly dirty that cartridge is, and I've cleaned a few before that so my surprise there shows how sometimes you'll get a dirty one, and sometimes you'll get a nicer looking one, but you won't get two that look the same.

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After the cleanup, you get to see some stats about the cleaning process and the game itself.

While you work, you’ll be vibing to soft, easy-going lo-fi music, the perfect music to listen to while you do these things. Honestly, now that I think about it I literally could not think of any other genre that would work for this, maybe some classical music. It fits the vibe nicely, and since the game never rushes you or puts any pressure on you, this type of music is great.

My time with the game resulted in zero technical issues, everything ran smoothly and overall I didn’t experience any issues.

Polished, but not mint

There’s something really satisfying and relaxing about cleaning up all these old games and bringing them back to life. Cozy Game Restoration brings a relaxing, calm and cosy experience beautifully, and since we're in November and there isn't much to do outside, the timing it chose to release works very much in its favour. It's a great pastime with a cup of coffee or tea.

It does have its scratches, though. Beyond the repetition and the stubborn dirt, the biggest one for me is that it lacks a real sense of progression. Yes, you’re restoring the collection, but what else? Something feels like it’s missing, and the longer you play, the more you notice it. It works perfectly if your goal is to play it for two hours or so, and then turn it off until you feel like playing a cosy game again and repeating this process. It's not a bad game though, and I'm glad I got to experience it. 

It’s impressive to think that the whole game was made by a single developer, Adam Stormhardt. You can feel the love for retro games in every cartridge, every weird fictional title, and every hidden note tucked inside a parcel.

In the end, it’s a game about keeping memories alive, one cartridge at a time. It might not be in mint condition just yet, but it’s well worth a spot on your shelf.