Winter Burrowimmediately stood out in theXboxGamescom booth this year. Walking past screens showing offIndiana Jones,Starfield’sShattered SpaceDLC, andAvowed, I made my way to this cute little indie about a cartoon mouse trying to survive the winter.
Coming in at only 20 minutes long, the demo I played didn’t require much setup. In fact, it falls into its gameplay loop within minutes. Playing as a mouse returning to their now-abandoned childhood home, Winter Burrow tasks you with putting it back together again, gathering resources and crafting repairs as you go.
With both a day/night cycle and a temperature gauge you need to keep track of to make sure your mouse doesn’t get too cold, Winter Burrow soon falls into a cosy, repetitive loop of resource gathering and crafting. You spend the day outside in the snow, nabbing as many items as you can before it gets too chilly and you need to rest by the fire. Then, you rebuild your home, or perhaps knit yourself a sweater so you can stay out a little longer next time. Towards the end of the demo, I built a bridge so I could visit my aunt.
If you freeze while you’re outside looking for supplies, you’ll pass out and wake up at home, losing items in your inventory. This was the only threat I encountered in the demo.
Winter Burrow is cosy in many more ways than its visuals, too. Nothing that was asked of me was especially demanding, and the complexities of what I was crafting increased so gradually that I hardly noticed. I can see myself losing hours to this game, scurrying back and forth to get more upgrades and follow the story as I slowly but surely progress.
Winter Burrow Is A Perfect Title For Game Pass
With this in mind, Winter Burrow is pulling off what it sets out to do. It’s relaxing, approachable, and provides the mildest stakes to guide your hand. What I’m less sure about is if this simplicity will keep me playing for much longer, but that also makes it the perfect sort of underground indie for a service like Xbox Game Pass
It reminds me of the line-up of games we got in my favourite year for the subscription service. 2022 is often regarded as one of its worst, but I loved it for its indie offerings that didn’t demand too much of your time.Metal: Hellsinger,Scorn,Citizen Sleeper. The lattereven went on to be my Game of the Year pick, andTheGamer’s overall winner.Winter Burrow might not make my list, but I will happily pick it up.
If the idea of a cosy survival game appeals to you, you will find everything you’re after in Winter Burrow. That premise just wasn’t enough to leave much of an impression on me after my demo came to an end, even if everything it wanted to do was presented to me so competently.
Winter Burrow
WHERE TO PLAY
Winter Burrow is a cozy woodland survival game. Explore, gather resources, craft tools, knit warm sweaters, bake pies and meet the locals!In Winter Burrow, you play a mouse who returns from the big city to find their childhood home in ruins. To make matters worse, your Aunt (who was supposed to be looking after it) has gone missing. Restore your broken-down childhood burrow to its former glory so you can relax in front of the fireplace.EXPLORE A FROZEN WILDERNESSBrave the elements and journey out into the frozen wilderness to collect vital resources for both yourself and your new home. Beware of the insect wildlife and remember that nobody survives on their own; find new friends, expand your survival handbook and solve the mystery of what happened to your Aunt.COZY APPROACHABLE SURVIVALWinter Burrow is a survival game you play at your own pace. Customize your character, decorate your burrow and choose a path that fits your play style. This story is yours to tell.
