{"id":24463,"date":"2026-01-21T11:24:21","date_gmt":"2026-01-21T19:24:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/?p=24463"},"modified":"2026-02-11T11:28:57","modified_gmt":"2026-02-11T19:28:57","slug":"a-literature-nerds-dream-game","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/a-literature-nerds-dream-game\/","title":{"rendered":"A literature nerd\u2019s dream game"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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An image of the cover art of the game \u201cTiny Bookshop.\u201d | Photo from @neoludic on Instagram<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Jan. 21 2026 | Belen Ponce Leal | Lifestyle Editor<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I love cozy games. Cozy games are known for being the types of games that are designed to be relaxing and non-combative. They are designed to be brightly colored with activities that range from organization to puzzle solving to decoration. Some can have combat, though it is typically simplistic. However, I believe that the main purpose of this genre is falling in love with the game\u2019s world, having the player express themselves in their own unique way with customization and learning about the colorful characters these games have to offer. Games such as \u201cAnimal Crossing,\u201d \u201cStardew Valley,\u201d \u201cSlime Rancher\u201d and \u201cUnpacking\u201d are all very well known for being enjoyable, cozy games. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One game that deserves much more attention is a little game called \u201cTiny Bookshop.\u201d Released in 2025 and developed by Neoludic Games, \u201cTiny Bookshop\u201d is a game where the player leaves their old life behind to move to a coastal town known as Bookstonbury to run a traveling second-hand bookshop. After playing the demo and quickly falling in love with the game, I bought the full version and spent most of winter break playing through the game, even completing the main story. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gameplay <\/strong>\u2014 <\/strong>The game consists of the player moving around various locations to sell books. The player will start out with only one shelf that holds a certain number of books, and it is their job to stock the shelves. The books are color-coded, with each color being a different genre. Different locations will prioritize different types of literature, so it\u2019s important to keep that in mind. Once on location, the player opens the shop, and customers will come inside to browse the selection. When recommendation requests pop up, the player gets the opportunity to look at the books stocked on the shelf. Each book will have the title, author and a brief description of the story. The customer will tell the player what kind of book they are looking for, and it\u2019s the player\u2019s job to find the closest book possible to that description. If successful, more customers will come in and buy more of the stock. If the interaction fails, nothing really happens aside from the customer leaving immediately. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Customization <\/strong>\u2014 <\/strong>For anyone who really enjoys customization, \u201cTiny Bookshop\u201d has incredible options for making the bookshop ideal for each player. The shop is able to be painted in various colors from the start, with more available for purchase later on in the game. Some of the decorations that are bought can also be painted in custom colors, such as the bookshelves. There are many different types of furniture available to buy with the in-game currency the player receives from selling books. Certain items can be gained from the characters in the town as they are befriended, with most of the items having boosts for certain genres of books, as well as some types of customers. For example, during the fish market, the player will receive a major boost in sailor customers if their shop is decorated with beach or sea decor. If it isn\u2019t, the customers will avoid the bookshop due to the player\u2019s \u201clack of taste.\u201d There is also a coffee machine that increases the number of customers on rainy days. It also generates more revenue, so I strongly recommend getting it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lovable characters <\/strong>\u2014 <\/strong>The first character we meet is Tilde, who is the retired bookshop owner of Bookstonbury. She teaches the player the ropes of running the shop at the beginning of the game and is very well known throughout the town as a gentle woman with a big heart. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shortly after meeting her, we meet Fern, who is the town journalist. They are a bit shy and awkward around the player, but they quickly warm up and even ask for their help at times. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Walt is next, known as the town\u2019s retired sailor who is generally more reserved but kind. He\u2019s incredibly antagonistic toward the cruise ship that will occasionally visit the town. Once the player\u2019s friendship increases with him, he will be able to invite them to the fishing market that happens on certain days of the month. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maryam is next and, quite honestly, I didn\u2019t like her as much at first. She\u2019s the owner of a cafe and a very straightforward, no-nonsense character who will voice her opinion in a rather blunt way. However, as the player gets to know her and sees the relationship she has with Tilde, there is a soft spot to her harsh exterior. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moira is Maryam\u2019s niece. She\u2019s a very nonchalant character who, similar to her aunt, is a bit stubborn. She and her aunt can fight at times, but both of them think very highly of the other. She\u2019s a goth queen who is into the supernatural and enjoys a good horror book. She also has a rock band where she plays guitar. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Harper is a child who comes frequently to the bookshop. She is a very smart kid and incredibly persuasive. This child was capable of convincing other children to construct a massive sand castle on the beach that was multi-leveled and needed a construction crew, while having the player fund it all. Harper has quite the leadership skills. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Klaus is a character who works at the M\u00e9ga March\u00e9, which is basically this town\u2019s version of a cheap supermarket. He is also part of Moira\u2019s band, playing guitar and being a singer, as well as Harper\u2019s uncle. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anne is a university student who enjoys plants and will often sell them at the flea market. She is immediately very sweet toward the player and gives them a lot of plants. Anne enjoys romance and fantasy while completely hating nonfiction books, so I like to think she is basically me. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Overall, \u201cTiny Bookshop\u201d has had me in a chokehold since I bought it. With its engaging gameplay, expansive customization and compelling characters, there was so much that made me want to keep coming back to play it so many times. The artstyle is also very appealing, giving a sort of cartoon comic vibe while the music is relaxing. I strongly recommend this game to anyone who considers themselves a connoisseur of cozy games. It\u2019s available on Steam and on the Nintendo Switch. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contact the author at howllifestyle@mail.wou.edu<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I love cozy games. Cozy games are known for being the types of games that are designed to be relaxing and non-combative. They are designed to be brightly colored with activities that range from organization to puzzle solving to decoration. Some can have combat, though it is typically simplistic. However, I believe that the main […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1645,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"A literature nerd\u2019s dream game","_seopress_titles_desc":"A review of \u201cTiny Bookshop\u201d","_seopress_robots_index":"","_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[8519,8626,1239,338,1123,8606,3855,7190,58,8623,5947,8601,8609,7921,8627,3372,161,7707,2051,8611,775,8607,512,5322,3932,2588,2535,4550,8619,264,5373,175,8620,8629,8615,8608,515,2471,1219,4312,8610,8630,1754,6146,8603,8604,8612,8617,8628,3011,2579,340,507,923,2594,819,8622,7020,7720,1347,8624,756,191,1584,8625,6639,8613,8618,8602,8516,8621,8616,8605,880,1230,1254,5291,567,8614,684,3927,3381,39,770],"class_list":["post-24463","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-entertainment","tag-anne","tag-artstyle","tag-band","tag-book","tag-books","tag-bookshop","tag-cartoon","tag-characters","tag-classic","tag-click","tag-cozy","tag-crime","tag-customization","tag-customize","tag-dork","tag-english","tag-entertainment","tag-fact","tag-fantasy","tag-fern","tag-fiction","tag-fully-fleshed","tag-fun","tag-funny","tag-game","tag-gameplay","tag-goth","tag-gothic","tag-harper","tag-horror","tag-hospital","tag-humor","tag-humorous","tag-items","tag-klaus","tag-laptop","tag-learn","tag-librarian","tag-library","tag-literature","tag-locals","tag-lovable","tag-love","tag-major","tag-manage","tag-management","tag-maryam","tag-moira","tag-nerd","tag-newspaper","tag-nintendo-switch","tag-nonfiction","tag-oregon","tag-organization","tag-pc","tag-play","tag-point-and-click","tag-puzzle","tag-read","tag-reading","tag-recommend","tag-recommendation","tag-review","tag-romance","tag-sailor","tag-sea","tag-second-hand-bookshop","tag-silly","tag-simple","tag-small","tag-steam","tag-tilde","tag-tiny-bookshop","tag-travel","tag-traveling","tag-university","tag-video","tag-video-game","tag-walt","tag-western","tag-wolf","tag-wolfie","tag-wou","tag-writing"],"modified_by":"saragerrick","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24463","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1645"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24463"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24463\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24469,"href":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24463\/revisions\/24469"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24463"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24463"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wou.edu\/westernhowl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24463"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}