My favorite Stardew Valley-like, the one where you manage a graveyard of course, is free for a few days as dev reveals sequel: Graveyard Keeper 2 is coming with a whole zombie-infested town to manage

I have two very good news things to share with y'all today: Graveyard Keeper, the Stardew Valley-like RPG for people who still shop at Hot Topic, is getting a sequel. Also, Graveyard Keeper is free for a few days. RAWR.

In case you haven't heard of it, Graveyard Keeper is a management sim where the thing you manage is a cemetery, and if you can get past the whole dead bodies thing, it's actually remarkably chill. In fact, it's one of my favorite games to play when I just want to idly click through progression boxes while listening to Stuff You Should Know.

It's a grindy start, but once you learn how to make zombies you can automate the most tedious tasks. I will say, there isn't much of a tutorial and the game doesn't do a great job walking you through things organically, so it might be best to go into this one with Google on hand, as anything you'll need to know is easily accessible there.

Anyway, Graveyard Keeper's free until April 13 on Steam, the PlayStation Store, and the Xbox storefront. It's usually $20, and even at that price I'd easily recommend it, but for free I'm practically begging you to give it a try.

As mentioned before, the freebie is accompanied by the reveal of a full-blown sequel, aptly titled Graveyard Keeper 2. I would've been happy enough with a more polished version of Graveyard Keeper with some deeper management mechanics, but instead it seems developer Lazy Bear Games opted for something much bolder.

Graveyard Keeper 2 is still a management RPG like the first game, but it's also fully embracing battling whereas its predecessor only dipped its toes into combat. In the sequel, you can organize zombie armies, build towers and fortifications, and wage war against an impending zombie apocalypse. It's also somehow even prettier than the first game, which I've long held up as one of the more aesthetically pleasing retro-styled cozy games.

Graveyard Keeper 2 - Announcement Trailer | PS5 Games - YouTube

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Also, instead of managing a graveyard, you're now in charge of a small town that's fallen victim to zombie invasion. Your job as, uh, mayor I guess? Is to help your constituents restore their homes "and turn their problems into revenue." You'll also complete various quests around town and eventually, automate almost everything with your legion of zombie soldiers, allowing you to "transform local efforts into a scalable and profitable operation."

There's no release date for Graveyard Keeper 2 just yet, but you can add it to your Steam wishlist now.

Here are some more games like Stardew Valley in case you want to relax without thinking about dead people.