The Sims 4 and House Flipper set me up perfectly for my new favorite indie game trend: designing tiny cozy rooms

We may only be one month into the year, but I've already discovered my favorite indie game trend of 2024 - taking the interior design skills I learned from The Sims 4 and applying them to little cozy rooms. 

For me, the most exciting part of The Sims 4 is designing the home that my Sims are going to live in. Looking back on it, this may have been what sparked my interest in House Flipper, and its sequel House Flipper 2, and what's probably given me my latest indie game obsession: designing little rooms. There are already several games that fit this description on my Steam wishlist, and I'm expecting even more to join them before the year is up. 

One of the most recent additions to that list is Furnish Master, a relaxing game that has players furnishing apartments, houses, commercial estates, and more. What I love about this indie in particular is that it features a good variety of rooms, a lot of customization options, and the ability to design different rooms on each side of the game's diorama-style world. Furnish Master is set to release on February 20, 2024, with a demo available to try now. 

Elsewhere on my wishlist, we've got Make Room. Similar to the game above, this indie will have players crafting cozy rooms in a miniature diorama. The main thing about this one is that you appear to be pretty limited on space, so you'll have to be smart when squeezing all the home comforts into the room. Make a Room also has a demo but we're still waiting on a release date for it. 

Finally, we've got Spirit City: Lofi Sessions which is a little different to the games above but still has an element of cozy home customization. I'm pretty sure everyone knows about Lofi Girl by now, and this upcoming indie takes that idea and turns it into its very own gamified focus tool. 

In this game, you'll be able to create your character, customize your surroundings, and collect spirits - all while listening to a Lofi soundtrack of your choice. We don't have to wait long for this one either, as it's set to release on April 8, 2024. Just like the other games I've highlighted here, it also has a demo. 

This isn't even the first time I've written about cozy room decorators. Alongside all of the games listed above, I'm also excited for cute house-builder Summerhouse, Unpacking-like Camper Van: Make it Home, and satisfying simulation game My Dream Set-up. 

Find out what else we've got to look forward to with our upcoming indie games list.