This indie creature collector looks like a cozy Pokemon meets Stardew Valley experience, all at the bottom of your desktop

A screenshot of a pond in Whimside.
(Image credit: Toadzillart)

Whether you're a longtime Pokemon lover or a hardened Stardew Valley stan, you may want to keep your eye on Whimside, a stunning creature collector conveniently set at the bottom of your desktop.

Coming as indie developer Toadzillart's debut title, Whimside looks as fun as it is adorable - and it's very, very cute. The vibrant pixel art coupled with the game's enchanting creatures makes for a uniquely wholesome aesthetic, giving off a storybook-meets-Stardew-Valley sort of vibe. It all unfolds on your desktop, too, much like idle gem Rusty's Retirement does, so its visuals make for a nice addition to anything you're doing.

Whimside - Trailer Whishlist - YouTube Whimside - Trailer Whishlist - YouTube
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Whether you're browsing the web, studying, or working, you can play Whimside at the same time. There's no rush, and I think that's my favorite part of the upcoming creature collector - you can simply leave it running all day while you take care of real-life business and come back to it without any pressure. There's also plenty of incentive to do so, with decorations to place and rare critters akin to shiny Pokemon waiting to be collected.

With various biomes and worlds to explore, Whimlings to capture, and decorations to unlock via achievement hunting, I think I'll be set for more than a good few hours come Whimside's big release once it officially drops. While there's no launch date set in stone just yet, if you're as interested as I am you can keep up with Toadzillart's wholesome game on Steam and wishlist it to see future updates - I know I'll be doing so.

Craving yet another cozy adventure? Here are our favorite games like Stardew Valley.

Anna Koselke
Staff Writer

After spending years with her head in various fantastical realms' clouds, Anna studied English Literature and then Medieval History at the University of Edinburgh, going on to specialize in narrative design and video game journalism as a writer. She has written for various publications since her postgraduate studies, including Dexerto, Fanbyte, GameSpot, IGN, PCGamesN, and more. When she's not frantically trying to form words into coherent sentences, she's probably daydreaming about becoming a fairy druid and befriending every animal or she's spending a thousand (more) hours traversing the Underdark in Baldur's Gate 3. If you spot her away from her PC, you'll always find Anna with a fantasy book, a handheld video game console of some sort, and a Tamagotchi or two on hand.