The Winning Formula of Wholesome Direct: A Conversation with Matthew Taylor and Jenny Windom

The fifth annual Wholesome Direct took place recently, featuring over 70 indie games. The event has its roots in a Twitter account founded by Matthew Taylor in 2019, which evolved into a yearly digital showcase, a monthly newsletter, and a community centered around cozy games. This year's Direct introduced new trailers for highly anticipated titles like Tiny Bookshop, Dungeons of Hinterberg, and Été, as well as a plethora of debut games from small indie studios, including Mythmatch, Caravan SandWitch, and Littlelands. Wholesome Direct serves as a platform for underrepresented games, genres, creators, and cultures, giving a voice to marginalized voices. Taylor emphasizes that this has always been part of the show's vision, stating, 'I think as soon as I realized we had a platform of any meaning whatsoever, I wanted to integrate that into it because that's just another component of changing the industry in a good way that will hopefully outlast Wholesome as a label.' The event also acknowledged the situation in Gaza and showed solidarity with Palestine, with merchandise sales going to the Palestine Children's Relief Fund. Taylor expresses his pride in the impact Wholesome Games has had on developers, particularly with the success of Venba. Jenny Windom, organizer and host, explains that the team considers 'wholesomeness' to be a vibe and a vision, rather than a set of specific criteria. The selection process for the showcase is based on the team's gut impression of each game, with a focus on curating a diverse range of titles. Wholesome Games has also launched its own label, Wholesome Games Presents, which offers funding, QA, marketing, and publishing support to select games. The label aims to target titles that want to remain small and focus on sustainable game development. Taylor and Windom discuss the industry's perception of cozy games, with Taylor noting that there is still a bias against colorful and optimistic games. However, they are hopeful that this will change over time, citing the success of Venba as an example. The pair envisions a future for Wholesome Games that involves continued growth, but in a way that prioritizes the well-being of developers and the community. They are considering a physical presence, such as a convention booth, and are excited to see more interpretations of wholesomeness from developers.