Eastshade

Very cozy. A game where the focus is on the pretty landscape and solving small problems for people living peaceful lives. If your favourite part of Bethesda games is ignoring the plot, picking up crafting ingredients, and talking to silly NPCs - then this is for you.

It's a nice, relaxed, very visually pretty game. Is it the most compelling story? No. But it's a chill escape from reality for a few hours.
Edit to add: it *does* have crashing/glitching issues. But it autosaves frequently enough that it's a mild irritation to just reboot it, I'm not losing like hours of progress or anything.

Life Changing
The best compliment that I can pay to this game is that it affected me more as an artist than almost any game I've ever played. Because of this game I have bought a table saw, wood, canvas cloth and have begun learning how to make my own canvases. I've taken up acrylic paint when previously I had only down pencil, digital, and some minor watercolor. I would have never even thought to try to make canvases but now I'm learning and loving it.
The Actual Game
I wanted skyrim but peaceful and reddit sent me here. "We have Skyrim at home." isn't an out of place impression that this game initially gives off, and certainly it has some of the jank that goes along with that comparison. However, what it lacks in polish it more than makes up for in heart. This game has character and a world that makes you want to learn more about your surroundings. Plenty of time can be spent soaking in the environment, the characters, the little story threads running through and around interconnecting with one another. The game at times feels unfinished, even narratively. That being said it is an experience I find myself returning to again and again.

I first fell in love with this game when it was on xbox gamepass. I'm only 6 hours in on steam and am more in love with it now then i was then. definitely a cozy game. 10/10
EDIT: I am now 15 hours in and i'm editing to say that I have had several game breaking bug issues: being unable to save the game and having to close it and losing 45+ minutes of progress to being unable to interact with anything (including my bed so I couldn't sleep; which then caused me to FREEZE TO DEATH).
This game is still absolutely beautiful and I want to truly love it but its hard to get over the bugs and issues i have experienced. it is frustrating to have to replay sections over and over due to these bugs. I don't want to sit here and be mad while playing such a potentially "cozy" game. 6/10

This one will stay with me for some time. Basically like an Elder Scrolls game (most of all Oblivion) with only the sidequests. It's very well written and charming, and lovely to look at. No combat, so some might dismiss it as a walking simulator, but if this is your kind of thing, this will very much be your kind of thing.

I played for 33 hours and even near the end I was still discovering paths I'd never been on, buildings I'd never been in, and characters I'd never encountered. Beautiful visuals; I painted some that weren't part of any commission or quest because I wanted to save them for my own collection. I don't usually play as a "completist", worrying about achieving 100% on everything, but I was enjoying this game too much to not want to complete every quest, paint every commissioned painting, visit every section of Eastshade.

I'm on my second playthrough having purchased the game on Xbox when it was originally released. This is one of only maybe 3 games that I felt a great sense of sadness at finishing, and thought of for many days afterward wishing the journey had not ended.
I can tell you that this is not primarily a game about painting, although painting is an important mechanic within the game. First and foremost it is a game of exploration and discovery, with light elements of puzzle solving. The characters and scenery, rendered in beautiful high-resolution (if you set it at max), are calming, intriguing, and urge you on to each new discovery, The locations and NPCs are varied, as are the numerous quests you will embark upon. Each new task adds depth and detail to the story; no mere fetch quests here.
It is clear that this game was painstakingly made; a labor of love and beauty. If you long for discovery and surprise and still have a sense of wonder about you, you have found your game. It's highly recommended at the price (I bought it twice, after all!).
In case you were wondering, I'm a guy, so all you tough dudes, don't think this is a game you can't enjoy too. Put down the guns and relax a while in a world that embraces, soothes, and renews you.
I feel myself beginning to miss it again already, as I sense I am nearing the end again. There is a prequel (Leaving Lyndow), although it is shorter and didn't draw me in as much. Still, it's worth the play if you just have to scratch that itch some more.
I have only one request of the developers: PLEASE, PLEASE PLEASE CONSIDER MAKING A SEQUEL!