Too many cosy games about mindlessly planting turnips. Not enough cosy games about the house slowly being taken over by viscera. Fractured Blooms is tagged on Steam as “cute” and “anime” and “psychological horror”. It was announced at the Summer Game Fest, where presenter Geoff Keighly described the game as “Doki Doki Literature Club meets Silent Hill”. There’s no release date, but here’s a trailer.
Kinda afraid to find out what the true story is behind this one. “Play as Angie, a girl who finds herself stuck in a time loop and a world that is soft and still,” says the Steam page. “Every loop is a strategic game of resource management and discovery. Plan each day carefully to manage your food and stamina. Only by mastering your routine and finding ways around challenging tasks can you dig deeper into the blessed reality around you.”
You cook meals, tend the vegetable patch, and wake up every day in slightly new surroundings, and it’s all “a deeply personal narrative inspired by a true story. The more you play, the more this broken story blooms. Don’t let them touch you. What are you trying to keep alive?” Okay, as someone keen to see the wholesome game genre eviscerated for once, I’m intrigued.