WHOLESOME GAMES
A comfortable niche
How five years of Wholesome Direct has crystallised a new genre
Wholesome Games is in its fifth year, having been cofounded during the COVID lockdowns by Matthew Taylor, Jenny Windom, James Tillman and Victoria Tran, who first met at PAX East in late February 2020. “We were doing a panel together,” Tillman says. (It was titled ‘A Case For Cosy: Why We Need Wholesome Games’.) “And, as soon as we got back from PAX East, the news broke that all of the summer showcases and conventions had been cancelled.” The four decided to attempt to recreate the excitement of the physical event in the form of an online show.
The first Wholesome Direct, aired in May 2020, featured the likes of Chicory, Spiritfarer and Kind Words, and was successful enough that it was followed by smaller ‘Wholesome Snack’ editions every few months.
On p90 of this issue, you’ll find the developers of Venba citing the December 2020 broadcast as a turning point that led to it launching on Game Pass. “The idea that we in any way open a door for something like that is really important,” Taylor says.
“That is really the whole reason that Wholesome Games should exist.”
But with lockdowns long behind us and a number of the video showcases founded back then falling by the wayside, why is it that Wholesome Direct has kept going? “I think the specificity is key,” Taylor says. “People know what to expect when they tune in.” Tillman adds that it has filled a gap that wasn’t being catered for. “The audience for these games has existed for a very long time,” he says. “It’s just that the infrastructure hasn’t been there for showcasing them.”