Steam's Latest 9/10 Free Cosy Game Oozes Studio Ghibli Vibes

The survival genre can oftentimes feel punishing and that’s perhaps because it so often grounds itself in realism.

It doesn’t have to be that way though, as proven by the newly released free-to-play game Rootnote.

Developed by Spore Games, Rootnote offers a more whimsical take on the survival formula, dropping players into the heart of a magical forest.

You’ll still need to partake in the usual survival fare, establishing a safe abode, for example, but that’s far from all that makes up the gameplay formula.

Rootnote encourages you to explore a Studio Ghibli-esque forest as you attempt to “restore the forest’s decaying life force”.

You’ll help out an array of whimsical creatures, known as guardians, by using music to reunite their powers.

Spore Games

“Your goal is to reunite the root, as this is the only way for the tree of life to regain its strength,” the synopsis reads.

“Through your connection as a guardian to the Tree of Life, you will experience the musical side of the forest. Collect the songs of the guardians and use their abilities to fight the spreading disease.”

Players will acquire a boat and a grapple hook which makes traversing the forest a breeze both by water and by air.

This is an enchanted forest so, of course, there are secret gates and hidden areas with treasures for you to collect.

Rootnote is only available on PC storefront Steam but it’s completely free-to-play having landed earlier this month.

You Can Finish Rootnote In Under Two Hours

Players are impressed by what’s on offer with the game boasting an 89% positive rating at the time of writing.

“I didn’t expect to get pulled in like that, but I ended up just wandering around for a long time without really thinking about objectives. There’s something about the way the game lets you explore at your own pace that makes it easy to lose track of time,” wrote one satisfied player.

“Very cute game. A small, coherent story for a quick gaming session with a cozy nature vibe,” added another.

“Very cute, simple mechanics, great atmosphere, I desperately want a bigger game,” someone remarked.

By the looks of it, you should be able to complete Rootnote in less than a couple of hours, so it’s not a particularly big offering.

That’s quite nice for a survival game though, plus this won’t harm your backlog which, let’s face it, we all have.

If you’re a fan of Studio Ghibli’s Princess Mononoke or My Neighbour Totoro, you’ll surely delight in helping these forest spirits - even if playing Rootnote does leave you simply wishing for an official Ghibli game.

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