This cozy roguelite tricked me into trying a dungeon crawler by using farm sim features as bait, and I think the Steam Next Fest demo has officially converted me

The latest Steam Next Fest has arrived, and that means I get to try out the demos for my most highly anticipated indie games – and Grimoire Groves, despite initially wooing me with its farming sim vibes, has won me over with its unique twist on the roguelite and dungeon crawler genres.

I’m no stranger to cozier games like Stardew Valley, but more challenging, roguelike-aligned genres aren’t generally appealing to me – until now, that is. Grimoire Groves has converted me, with its vibrant art and whimsical gameplay loop, to a type of game I never thought I’d play, and I have developer Stardust’s short but sweet demo to thank. Between the magical plant creature growing and the witchy undertones, I can’t get enough.