Relaxation – Green Media Mediography

Outbound

Outbound is a crowdfunded game project by Dutch developer Square Glade Games about building one’s own home on wheels and living sustainably off-grid by crafting workstations, sourcing energy, upgrading, customizing, and automating processes. Image source: https://www.gematsu.com/2024/02/open-world-camper-van-exploration-game-outbound-announced-for-pc

ABZÛ

In the game ABZÛ, the player takes on the role of a diver in a part of the ocean. Without any knowledge on himself, the environment, or the purpose of being there, it is up to the player to discover the secrets of the deep sea. During this adventure, the player will swim alongside all

The Endless Forest

The Endless Forest is a multiplayer online game PC by Tale of Tales, in which players represent deer in a peaceful forest without goals or the ability to chat. Pictograms above registered deer’s heads represent their names. Players communicate with one another through sounds and body language. From the wiki: “During ‘abiogenesis’, every deer runs

Everdream Valley

The protagonist in the game only spends the summer holiday on the farm with their grandparents, i.e. this time is framed as an ‘interlude’ (rather than an alternative way of life) that should be savoured as much as possible Ties in with the genre of slice-of-life popularized e.g. in anime series; the references to anime

Luna’s Fishing Garden

From the game’s Steam page: “Luna’s Fishing Garden is a short, cozy fishing and building game. Become a part of a fairytale, catch fish, trade with the fox spirit, and create the garden of your dreams by planting new trees, placing water objects, and bringing animals to the archipelago.” The developers encourage slow and paidic

Terra Nil

From the game’s website: “Terra Nil is a reverse city builder about ecosystem reconstruction. Turn a barren wasteland into an ecological paradise complete with different flora and fauna. Then clean up, leaving the environment pristine. Subverting the builder genre, Terra Nil is about the restoration of a ravaged environment.” “Terra Nil, from eco-warriors Free Lives

Alba: A Wildlife Adventure

Alba: A Wildlife Adventure is an open-world adventure game developed by Ustwo Games. The game focuses on exploring the world and conserving the wildlife. On the website, the game is framed as re-creating the sense of wonder and relaxation of a child’s summer holiday and focusing on positive feedback loops as a “feel-good game about running around and doing

Solar Power

A psychedelic/folk-pop album by New Zealand -born artist Lorde. The album deals with nature as a an escapist haven, introspection, climate anxiety, and more through its lyrics, sonic themes and organic recordings such as the chirping of Cicadas.

Petrichor

Petrichor is a strategy board game for 1-4 players. Named after the constructed Greek word describing the earthy smell after rainfall, Petrichor focuses on action selection and area influence mechanics. In Petrichor each player becomes a cloud and aims to let as many crops grow as possible. A player can use for different actions, which

Spiritfarer

Spiritfarer is a “cozy management game about death”, as the developer describes it. In Spiritfarer you play as Stella, accompanied by her cat Daffodil, she becomes the ferrymaster of the deceased and takes spirits onto their last journey. The player builds and expands their boat, helps their spirit friends on their last adventures, and cares

Costing the Earth

Costing the Earth is a environmental radio broadcast that airs on BBC Radio 4. The series describes itself as "Fresh ideas from the sharpest minds working toward a cleaner, greener planet".

Animal Crossing

Animal Crossing is a video game series where the player moves into a village populated by animals, where they are encouraged by the inhabitants and biodiversity to display pro-conservation behaviours and attitudes.

Bee Simulator

Bee Simulator allows a player to experience life as a honey bee, encouraging the player to actively learn about the bee ecosystem, the value of biodiversity, and the relationships between animals and humans.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is the latest original entry in the Zelda series of videogames, which started with The Legend of Zelda (1986) and has grown into an iconic franchise since. While most Zelda games feature environmental themes, such as eternal trees, sacred forests and easily disturbed wildlife, Breath of the

Wayfinder

In the free-to-play online game Wayfinder, the players move a character across the landscape, in search of tokens that reveal lyrical fragments hidden in the wind. This eventually advances the player to the next stage of the experience and, according to the game's website, brings them "closer to fully restoring nature’s balance".

Dorfromantik

By laying and arranging hexagonal tiles illustrated with various pieces of scenery – villages and forests, rivers and railways – you build an idyllic world, devoid of a complaining populace, or the threat of imminent natural disaster.

Grow: Song of the Evertree

Grow your own worlds and nurture a deep natural connection with everything they hold. The game hints at 'slowing down' as part of the intended experience.

Stardew Valley

Stardew Valley mediates farming and gardening, the nostalgic longing for farm life and the idea of being part of an ecosystem. Yet the game's animal-friendliness is more of a posed idea than an enacted reality, as it has a discernible 'killable' hierarchy between types of animals.