If you loved caring for spirits in Spiritfarer, play Spirittea and Cozy Grove next: both are about helping ghosts in a cozy routine. For the tender talks and goodbyes, try Wanderstop, Coffee Talk or Necrobarista. For a short, moving story about loss, play Before Your Eyes or GRIS. Below are 11 games, grouped by what you loved most, with honest notes. We checked every game on October 29, 2026.
At a glance
| Game | Best for | Length | Platforms |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spirittea | Players who want a long, cozy management game with spirits | About 33 hours for the main story (HowLongToBeat) | PC, Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X |
| Cozy Grove | Players who like a small cozy routine every day | About 73 hours for the main story, across many days (HowLongToBeat) | PC, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One |
| Wanderstop | Players who want a gentle game about rest and change | About 11 hours (HowLongToBeat) | PC, PS5, Xbox Series X |
| Coffee Talk | Players who loved hearing the spirits' stories | About 4.5 hours (HowLongToBeat) | PC, Mac (also on consoles; check the store page) |
| Necrobarista | Players who want a story about death and letting go | About 5 hours (HowLongToBeat) | PC, Mac, Switch, PS4, iOS |
| Before Your Eyes | Players who want one moving evening | About 1.5 hours (HowLongToBeat) | PC, Mac, iOS, Android, PS VR2 |
| GRIS | Players who loved Spiritfarer's art and music | About 3.5 hours (HowLongToBeat) | PC, Mac, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox, iOS, Android |
| Venba | Players who loved cooking for their passengers | About 1.5 hours (HowLongToBeat) | PC, Mac, Switch, PS5, Xbox |
| A Space for the Unbound | Players who want a longer, heartfelt story | About 10 hours | PC, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X |
| Sail Forth | Players who want more sailing | About 16 hours for the main story (HowLongToBeat) | PC, Mac, Linux, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox |
| Dredge | Players who liked Spiritfarer's melancholy and want it darker | About 9.5 hours (HowLongToBeat) | PC, Mac, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox, iOS, Android |
| A Short Sail | Players who loved the boat and the friends, without the grief | Not shared yet | PC (Windows), Mac, Web, Steam Deck |
What makes Spiritfarer special
In Spiritfarer, you are Stella, a ferrymaster for spirits. You sail a boat that you build into a home, and you cook, farm, fish and craft for your passengers. You get to know each one, and when they are ready, you take them to the Everdoor and say goodbye.
Developer: Thunder Lotus | Year: 2020 | Platforms: PC, Mac, Linux, Switch, PS4, Xbox One, iOS, Android | Length: about 26 hours for the main story (HowLongToBeat) | Steam Deck: Verified | Steam page
No other game does all of that at once. So we grouped this list by the part you loved most: caring for spirits, listening to people, a short story about loss, or the boat. Most of these games are gentle, but a few deal with grief, burnout or depression, and we say so in each entry.
Our picks
- Closest to Spiritfarer: Spirittea
- Best daily routine with spirits: Cozy Grove
- Best for slowing down: Wanderstop
- Best for listening to people: Coffee Talk
- Best one-evening story: Before Your Eyes
- Best if you loved the boat: Sail Forth
- Our own game: A Short Sail (a cozy boat game, but not about grief; not ranked)
If you loved caring for spirits
Spirittea
Who it is for: players who want a long, cozy management game with spirits.
You move to a small village and find that you can see spirits. You fix up an old bathhouse and run it for them: heat the water, scrub the tubs, keep the guests happy. Meanwhile, mischievous spirits cause trouble in town, and you help sort it out. It is funnier and lighter than Spiritfarer.
The downside: it is long, and the bathhouse chores can get busy.
Developer: Cheesemaster Games | Year: 2023 | Platforms: PC, Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S | Length: about 33 hours for the main story (HowLongToBeat) | Steam Deck: Verified | Steam page
Cozy Grove
Who it is for: players who like a small cozy routine every day.
You are a Spirit Scout camping on a haunted island. The ghost bears who live there have lost their memories and their color. You help them, a few tasks each day, and the island slowly fills with color again. You also craft, fish and decorate. More like it in games like Cozy Grove.
The downside: it runs on real time, so you get a little each day and cannot binge it.
Developer: Spry Fox | Year: 2021 | Platforms: PC, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One | Length: about 73 hours for the main story, across many days (HowLongToBeat) | Steam Deck: Verified | Steam page
If you loved the talks and the care
Wanderstop
Who it is for: players who want a gentle game about rest and change.
Alta has been a fighter all her life, and she has burned out. She ends up working in a tea shop in a forest clearing. You grow plants, brew tea for odd visitors and slowly learn to slow down. It is warm, but it is honest about how hard rest can be.
The downside: its themes of burnout can hit close to home, and the tea-making takes patience.
Developer: Ivy Road | Year: 2025 | Platforms: PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Switch, Switch 2 | Length: about 11 hours (HowLongToBeat) | Steam Deck: Verified | Steam page
Coffee Talk
Who it is for: players who loved hearing the spirits’ stories.
You run a late-night coffee shop in a fantasy version of Seattle. Elves, orcs and others come in for a drink, and you listen to their problems. The drinks you make change how the evening goes. Rain on the window and lo-fi music make it very calm.
The downside: it is mostly reading, with little else to do.
Developer: Toge Productions | Year: 2020 | Platforms: PC, Mac (also on consoles; check the store page) | Length: about 4.5 hours (HowLongToBeat) | Steam Deck: Verified | Steam page
Necrobarista
Who it is for: players who want a story about death and letting go.
In a back-alley cafe in Melbourne, the dead get one last night to spend with the living. You follow the staff and guests through that night. It looks like an anime film, and it is funny and sad at once.
The downside: it is a visual novel, so you mostly read, and the cast swears a lot.
Developer: Route 59 | Year: 2020 | Platforms: PC, Mac, Switch, PS4, iOS | Length: about 5 hours (HowLongToBeat) | Steam Deck: Verified | Steam page
If you want a short story about loss
Before Your Eyes
Who it is for: players who want one moving evening.
A ferryman carries your soul on his boat to the afterlife, and you live through the memories of your life on the way. You play with your real blinks, through your webcam: each blink moves time on, so you cannot hold on to a moment for long. You can also play with a mouse.
The downside: it is short, it is very sad, and the webcam feature works best with good light.
Developer: GoodbyeWorld Games | Year: 2021 | Platforms: PC, Mac, iOS, Android, PS VR2 | Length: about 1.5 hours (HowLongToBeat) | Steam Deck: Playable | Steam page
GRIS
Who it is for: players who loved Spiritfarer’s art and music.
A young girl walks through a world that has lost its color after a loss. There are no words. You solve light puzzles and platforming, and color returns as you go. You cannot die.
The downside: it is short, and it is more a mood than a story.
Developer: Nomada Studio | Year: 2018 | Platforms: PC, Mac, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox, iOS, Android | Length: about 3.5 hours (HowLongToBeat) | Steam Deck: Verified | Steam page
Venba
Who it is for: players who loved cooking for their passengers.
Venba and her family move from India to Canada. You cook her family’s recipes, and you follow their life over many years. Each recipe is a small puzzle, and food holds the family’s memories.
The downside: it is very short.
Developer: Visai Games | Year: 2023 | Platforms: PC, Mac, Switch, PS5, Xbox | Length: about 1.5 hours (HowLongToBeat) | Steam Deck: Verified | Steam page
A Space for the Unbound
Who it is for: players who want a longer, heartfelt story.
Atma and Raya are two teens in a small Indonesian town in the late 1990s. You explore the town, help its people, dive into their hearts to solve their problems, and pet a lot of cats. It is warm and funny, then deep.
The downside: it deals with depression and anxiety, and some parts are heavy.
Developer: Mojiken | Year: 2023 | Platforms: PC, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, iOS, Android | Length: about 10 hours | Steam Deck: Verified | Steam page
If you loved the boat
Sail Forth
Who it is for: players who want more sailing.
You sail a bright ocean of islands, build up a fleet of ships and explore. You can customize your ships as you go. It is about adventure, not care, but the open sea feels free.
The downside: there are ship battles with cannons, and the story is light.
Developer: Festive Vector | Year: 2022 | Platforms: PC, Mac, Linux, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox | Length: about 16 hours for the main story (HowLongToBeat) | Steam Deck: Verified | Steam page
Dredge
Who it is for: players who liked Spiritfarer’s melancholy and want it darker.
You captain a small fishing boat around remote islands. By day, you fish and upgrade your boat. By night, the fog brings strange things, and the story gets darker the further you sail. For calmer games like it, see cozy games like Dredge.
The downside: it is not cozy at night, and it can be tense.
Developer: Black Salt Games | Year: 2023 | Platforms: PC, Mac, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox, iOS, Android | Length: about 9.5 hours (HowLongToBeat) | Steam Deck: Verified | Steam page
A Short Sail
Who it is for: players who loved the boat and the friends, without the grief.
A Short Sail is a cozy sailing game where you are a little tabby cat with a sailboat. Like Spiritfarer, it has a boat, a sea of islands and friends you help. You deliver letters and parcels, give islanders rides, fish by day and by night, and build your home island. But it is not a game about death or grief, and you do not build onto your boat as Stella does, though you can customize it.
There are no timers, no fighting on foot, and only gentle sea battles against storms and living waves. It comes out in Q1 2027, and you can play the free demo at play.ashortsail.com.
Developer: Yos Riady | Platforms: PC (Windows), Mac, Web, Steam Deck | Length: not shared yet | Free demo at play.ashortsail.com | Play the demo
Our own game
We make A Short Sail.
Related guides
- Dark cozy games
- Relaxing boat games
- Cozy game stories
- Games like Cozy Grove
- Cozy games for anxiety
- Cozy games with no combat on PC
Questions
What is the closest game to Spiritfarer?
Spirittea. You run a bathhouse for spirits in a small village, look after their needs and help them, in a long, cozy management loop. It is lighter and funnier than Spiritfarer.
Is there a game like Spiritfarer with a boat?
Before Your Eyes starts on a ferryman's boat that carries a soul to the afterlife. For sailing itself, Sail Forth lets you explore an ocean with your own fleet, and Dredge is a fishing boat game with a dark side.
Is Spiritfarer sad?
Yes, gently. It is about caring for friends at the end of their lives and saying goodbye. Nothing scary happens, but many players cry.
How long is Spiritfarer?
About 26 hours for the main story, according to HowLongToBeat.
Does Spiritfarer have co-op?
Yes, local co-op for two. The second player is Daffodil, Stella's cat.
