Best games like Animal Crossing to play on Switch & PC (2025)

Animal Crossing may have set the benchmark for cozy games but there are a lot more relaxing games just like New Horizons you can enjoy and we’ve picked some of the best below.

The Nintendo Switch is known for its relaxing laid-back games. But fret not, even if you don’t own the hybrid device, there are plenty of chill titles on PC as well. If you’re looking for your next adventure similar to Animal Crossing, our curated list has you covered.

Stardew Valley

Stardew Valley is a fantastically cozy RPG where you get to farm, mine, fish, make friends with the villagers, and much more. It closely resembles Animal Crossing in this way and will likely not be a huge jump from the game you know and love.

The open-ended nature of Stardew Valley allows you to create the farm of your dreams throughout hours of gameplay that will likely fly by. In the same way, you get engrossed in Animal Crossing, Stardew Valley is extremely tough to put down.

Disney Dreamlight Valley

Disney Dreamlight Valley has taken the gaming world by storm since it’s initial release. It’s full of familiar Disney and Pixar characters to meet, recipes to cook, and exciting Realms to explore.

You can also decorate the valley and your home however you want. Whether you’re a Disney fan or not, if you liked Animal Crossing, Disney Dreamlight Valley is sure to have something you enjoy. Gameleap are also still providing regular updates with new characters to invite to the valley, and missions to complete.

My Time at Portia

My Time at Portia is one of those fantastic hidden gems that deserve more players than it has. It’s got a similar story to Stardew in the sense that you inherit your grandfather’s estate. Only this time, it’s a workshop rather than a farm.

Instead of farming, players are encouraged to explore the post-apocalyptic world they find themselves in and befriend the villagers and battle monsters. It’s a joy from beginning to end and brings just enough new elements to make this feel separate from Animal Crossing yet still oddly familiar.

Garden Paws

Bitten Toast Games

If you adore the cute animal designs of the villagers in Animal Crossing, you’ll love Garden Paws.

In this game, you become adorable animals and build up your farm and the town you live in. It’s essentially Animal Crossing but with more animalistic characters. Perfect if you don’t want to stray too far from the traditional playstyle.

Story of Seasons: Pioneers of Olive Town

Combining cute animation with even cuter animals, Story of Seasons: Pioneers of Olive Town almost feels like a rite of passage when getting into cozy life sims. It’s a highly well-known title, partly due to its similarity with Harvest Moon, and is filled with all the activities you love from games like Animal Crossing.

You have to go from a tent to a house, make friends with villagers, and tend to the land around you. All these similarities will help this game feel familiar yet totally different.

Spiritfarer

While there are plenty of cute cozy life sims where you can farm, fish, cook, and more, sometimes it’s best to stray a little from the traditional tropes of what you know. Spiritfarer is precisely that.

It takes the player on a journey through life, death, and the process of death, all through a cozy management sim guaranteed to make you smile as much as it will make you cry.

Essentially, you play as a boat farer, tasked with helping people ‘go through the gate’ at the end of their lives. You go on adventures, complete quests, make friends, cook, and plenty more similar events to Animal Crossing, only this is entirely unique and is an experience no one should miss out on.

Slime Rancher

Slime Rancher takes a more chill approach to gaming and is perfect if you only have a few hours to spend yet still want to experience something with few restrictions and plenty of adorable creatures.

It drops you on an unknown planet and creates an adorable farm filled with some rather mysterious Slimes. While tending to the farm, you can complete quests, explore, and even find hybrid Slimes if you’re in the right place. If you’re looking for something easy and calming, this is ideal.

Littlewood

SmashGames

Littlewood feels a lot like a combination between Stardew Valley and Animal Crossing. It’s got the pixel-art style of Stardew Valley but the cozy openness of Animal Crossing. Either way, it’s a fantastic experience filled with great quest lines and even better jobs to complete.

Along with the typical crafting, farming, and fishing, you can play challenging card games within Littlewood and collect an impressive variety of items like bugs. It’s a little more quest-heavy than Animal Crossing, but that just gives you something to achieve while getting friendly with the villagers.

Cozy Grove

Spry Fox

Cozy Grove introduces the same tropes as Animal Crossing but combines them with mystery, the supernatural, and a considerable amount of cooking. With that combination, the entire experience is both entertaining and extremely cozy, especially since it’s filled with the most adorable animal creatures for you to interact with.

It feels close to Animal Crossing but instead introduces the spooky elements all fans of Halloween or horror will adore.

Sun Haven

Sun Haven feels like a cross between Animal Crossing, Stardew Valley, and Dungeons & Dragons. It’s a fantastic farming simulator where you can play as devils, angels, and other mystical creatures, all with magical powers to help you on your way as a farmer and an explorer.

There are quests, exciting NPCs, and an art style that will draw you into the game and cause hours to pass in what feels like minutes. It’s the perfect game to get engrossed in for a cozy gaming session.

Forager

Inspired by the likes of Terraria, Zelda, and Stardew Valley, Forager combines the best parts of cozy adventure games and encapsulates them in a simplistic yet effective experience.

Forager doesn’t necessarily have the high-quality graphics many gamers are used to, but it does contain an adorable pixilated world that has a distinct capability to engross you.

Filled with resource gathering, crafting, building, exploring, and puzzle solving, Forager manages to be a title where players can drop in for half an hour or stay for the entire day without struggling to find something to do.

Those are our top pick for the best games like Animal Crossing on Switch & PC in 2025! For more listicles, check out our picks for co-op games like It Takes Two, Switch RPGs, the best MMOs, and Soulslike games.