While Wanderstop is a cozy game, it’s also about expectations, with Wreden’s own process of dealing with burnout as a major inspiration. Despite the charming vibes and intriguing clientele, Alta isn’t jazzed to be there, and yet, there may be valuable lessons to learn from the experience.

Between conversing with various NPCs, players will also make and serve tea. Of course, you have to grow the ingredients, harvest them, keep the shop clean, or even meditate. You can also decorate surroundings to suit your tastes (and potentially impress customers). Head here for more details on the development process.

Wanderstop tells the story of Alta, a fallen warrior who ventures to an out-of-the-way tea shop in a forest. Despite feeling out of place, she prepares tea for various travelers while tending to the shop. The trailer highlights the inner machinations of the tea shop, the mechanics that go into creating drinks, and some of the creatures Alta must deal with.

Developed by Davey Wreden, who created The Stanley Parable, alongside Gone Home co-creator Karla Zimonja, it’s a meditative, cosy sim that helped Wreden move on from the burnout of previous titles.

Wanderstop is out on March 11th for PS5 and PC with an Xbox Series X/S version also announced. A demo is currently available on Steam, coinciding with the Steam Next Fest (which ends on March 3rd). Stay tuned for more details and announcements from the Annapurna Interactive Showcase.

Players will gather tea ingredients and mix them to serve customers who share their stories while unwinding. You can also decorate the shop and keep it clean, but there’s an unknown power to it all, one that seemingly won’t embrace Alta. The latter isn’t too keen on her new role either, but there’s more to her story than meets the eye.

In a press release, Wreden said that Wanderstop’s gameplay was “borne out from a lot of inner stress I was experiencing, and the coziness turned out to be an interesting creative restraint as I thought more about a character struggling with hopelessness.

“Healing from burnout and finding inner calm is a difficult messy process. My hope is that Alta’s story can help players reflect on their own paths and find some glimmer of hope and rest that everyone needs more of in their lives.”

It’s a strong premise and based on the trailer, Wanderstop could provide a narrative we’ve yet to see in cozy games. Published by Annapurna Interactive, it also involves developers like Gone Home co-creator Karla Zimonja and Minecraft composer Daniel “C418” Rosenfield. Stay tuned for more details and gameplay before its release.

Naturally, there has been plenty of excitement for Wanderstop’s release, though it turns out the wait for that is going to be a little longer than expected. When it was announced earlier this year, it was given a 2024 release window, but developer Ivy Road has announced that Wanderstop has been hit with a delay, and is now scheduled to launch sometime in early 2025, before confirming that more details on the game will be shared before the end of the year. 

“Reading the tea leaves, it has become clear that Wanderstop needs a tiny bit more time to fully bloom,” the studio wrote in an announcement on Twitter. “As a result, we’ve decided to push the release date to early 2025. We truly appreciate your understanding, and rest assured we’ll have more news for you before the end of the year.”

Wanderstop is in development for PS5 and PC. It will be published by Annapurna Interactive- the indie publishing label has seen significant behind-the-scenes turmoil recently, with its entire staff having resigned last month. Read more on that through here.

Wanderstop has been described by its developers as a cozy game, where players will be able to relax as they plant flowers and harvest them in order to make and sell fancy varieties of tea. The game puts players in the shoes of Alta—a former warrior—who runs a tea shop in a magical forest.

Among other things, the game will also allow players to chill while sitting on a bench and having some tea, or decorate her shop in the style of her choosing.

There is a twist in the game’s story, however, as despite the general relaxation Alta experiences, she doesn’t seem to want to be here, and seems to yearn to go back to her days as a fighter. The game’s development features quite a bit of talent that has previously worked on acclaimed titles, including The Stanley Parable‘s Davey Wreden, Gone Home‘s Karla Zimonja, and Daniel Rosenfeld, who is known for his work on Minecraft‘s soundtrack as “C418”.