Tiny Life is the first in a series of independently developed competitors to The Sims franchise due out this year. Less eagerly anticipated than some of the other life simulation games, the game has nonetheless been a small hit since the first entry’s release last month. 

While the style is a pixel callback to early life-sim games such as The Sims 1, Tiny Life expands on the play style of older games, opting for an open world and a slightly more complex mood system alongside the basic needs system. Your ‘tinies’ get into certain moods from doing certain activities or having certain needs, and this can affect what gameplay is available to you at any given time.

The open world system is fun – your tinies can leave the house whenever they want, and the lack of loading screens allow you to stay immersed in the world even as they travel. It can also cause some hilarious chaos. In the game, toddlers are autonomous and can travel without their parents – I clicked off my tiny toddler, only to return to find that they had travelled across town and were forcing a neighbour to read them a story…

The life-sim market has been stagnant for some time, with Maxis opting for controversial DLC releases for The Sims 4 over the release of The Sims 5. Untitled Goose Game developer Alex Massé took the gaming community by storm last year with the announcement of his life-sim Paralives; Cities: Skylines developer Paradox Interactive have also joined the fray with their upcoming offering Life By You. 

Tiny Life is currently in Early Access, with features like phones and more complex skills and relationship systems (as well as base-game pets) promised in future updates. Hopefully, between them, these three will offer lovers of the genre something new, exciting, and more cost-effective to enjoy. 

Free demo available to download from this link; full game available to buy for £12.79 on Steam.

words HARI BERROW