Starsand Island Preview: Setting the New Cosy Gaming Standard

I previously described Starsand Island as having the “potential to be the next major titan of the cosy genre” and after having had full access to an alpha build of the upcoming life sim, I’m wholly convinced that my bold assertion was absolutely right. I’ve sampled so many cosy life sims in recent years, none of which have truly torn me away from my tried and tested favourites; I’m talking genre heavyweights like Stardew Valley and Animal Crossing: New Horizons. I truly mean it when I say that Starsand Island is the only spiritual successor that, and what I’m about to say may be considered blasphemy, may actually blow both of those titles out of the water.

To bring you up to speed, Starsand Island is an upcoming cosy life sim from Seed Lab, set to launch on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC, and Nintendo Switch consoles on 1 February 2026. Its premise is simple, offering the usual cosy fare. The player will escape the hustle and bustle of the city, returning to the island they once resided on as a child. There, they’ll set up a humble new abode, engaging in all of the classic activities including the likes of crafting, farming, fishing, exploring, and romancing. It’s the genre’s classic formula, yet it’s in just how exceptionally that formula is realised in Starsand Island that allows this title to truly shine.

I had the opportunity to go hands-on with Starsand Island several months ago at Gamescom, playing through the game’s opening before I was shown a short run-through of its build mode. As you can perhaps tell, I came away endlessly impressed. “Starsand Island has always made it clear that it’s not trying to be a carbon copy of existing franchise heavyweights, by which I mean the likes of Stardew Valley and Animal Crossing. It’s instead attempting to be the next evolution, and having been hands-on with the title at this year’s Gamescom, I’m wholeheartedly onboard with Seed Lab’s wildly ambitious vision,” I wrote.

“At this stage, there’s nothing at all that I can criticise. Starsand Island is a true feast for the eyes with its charming Studio Ghibli-esque aesthetic. Crafting and switching between items all felt incredibly intuitive, while a handy phone made navigating the island and checking my next objective exceptionally easy. Cosy games can often come with a hefty helping of unwanted ‘grind’ within the gameplay formula but my early impression is that Seed Lab has done all it can to make sure that’s not the case here.”

In recent days, I’ve had the opportunity to sample the game far more thoroughly having been granted access to an alpha build, and it’s one that you’d never know was still a work-in-progress. Starsand Island is everything I claimed it to be in my earlier preview. In the game, you won’t just pick one profession; you’ll have the opportunity to master them all. I’m well on my way to learning the ropes of crafting, farming, animal husbandry, fishing, and adventuring, all of which are a complete and utter delight to do.

There’s no item degradation, although you will be able to craft more effective tools in time, helping to rid the game of that feeling of grind, nor are players held back in any way due to time. You don’t, for example, have to play through a certain number of in-game days to get going on these things. The world, or should I say island, is instantly your oyster. The more you succeed in your various professions, the more Starsand Points you’ll gain which will then be reinvested in your career, granting you additional skills or buffs. I also adore the fact that befriending or romancing NPCs can go hand in hand with developing your skills as many of Starsand Island’s most memorable characters will also double as mentors.

You don’t have to settle for growing ‘normal’ produce. It’s not something I’ve done myself just yet but you can grow colossal-sized watermelons that wouldn’t look out of place in a fairytale. Fish can be sold to the island’s aquarium. Animal husbandry can include keeping chickens, pigs, and sheep to name just a few, although it’s rabbits that you’ll start off with. I realise I’m zooming through these key areas, but there’s a very good reason for that. These are the activities you’d expect to find in a cosy life sim, and they’re activities that Starsand Island has made incredibly engaging and rewarding, but it’s where the game is unique that I’d truly like to focus.

The crafting profession is perhaps a good place to begin then. All professions within Starsand Island involve crafting but the crafting profession specifically will allow you to make new items that really do improve your quality of life. The very first item you’ll create with your mentor is a skateboard that you can instantly equip to explore the full breadth of Starsand Island. And it’s somewhat after this point that you’ll begin to realise what a special game this is. Starsand Island itself is, for a cosy game, pretty huge. On my skateboard, I quickly took to exploring the island, including its various neighbourhoods, even climbing up to the island’s peak to look out over my new home.

I think what Seed Lab has so excellently captured is a sense of immersion. The life sim genre is supposed to imitate life and yet, so often games within that space send us to cookie cutter towns with, say, one general store and one coffee shop. Starsand Island feels like a living, breathing place. I ran into tourists who requested that I take their photo. Visiting one of the island’s beaches at night prompted the beginning of a NPC-related quest. There’s even a bike and scooter rental system where you can pay to rent your vehicle of choice for either a set number of hours or all day that sees you charged for both the time period and a deposit.

This is genius for several reasons. First of all, Starsand Island is packed with so many transportation options that I never tired of doing errands. I didn’t feel as if I was traipsing from one NPC to another, or one location to another as navigating the island is such a joy. The other benefit to the rental system is that, as I alluded to, it really makes you feel as if you do have a fully fledged second virtual life. During my exploration of the island, I found a vending machine that sold me a ticket to a hot spring. I haven’t actually found where that hot spring is yet, but it really does evoke that feeling of moving to a new place and having to find your feet, just as one example.

There’s also a wonderful animal system that adds to the spontaneity. Starsand Island is home to cats, dogs, capybaras, and more, all of whom can be befriended and eventually, if you play your cards right, adopted. You have to reach a certain ‘heart level’ to do that, and players can boost their heart level by petting and feeding said companions. You never quite know, however, when you’re going to bump into a certain, say, feline again leading to some charming moments of jubilation when you do spot the kitty you’ve taken a great liking to.

The adventuring aspect of the title, one of those professions I mentioned, is an area that I feel truly sets Starsand Island apart from its competitors. It’s the one I’ve perhaps sampled the least of, but mainly because I don’t quite yet have the tools I need in order to proceed. It’s where the game’s combat comes into play. Yes, Starsand Island features combat. One of the early adventuring assignments sends you off to the Moonlit Forest, an area home to both rare ores and minerals and corrupted creatures. There are encampments positioned very regularly throughout the forest and once you’ve activated an encampment’s portal, you can return to it at any time. As such, you don’t have to retread your steps in any way.

As I said, I didn’t make it very far into the Moonlit Forest, but I did encounter one corrupted bunny. The only weapon I had at my disposal was a slingshot which you can craft pellets for or use rocks you simply find lying around. A few hits and I’d cleared the bunny of corruption. This didn’t harm the bunny, don’t worry. It actually simply made the bunny mine and it’s now living a very happy life in the garden of my homestead. The slingshot worked much like a bow and arrow. The left trigger allowed me to aim while the right trigger fired the shot. I’m under the impression that you can unlock an actual bow later in the title. The forest teases an interesting storyline, and it’s one that’ll see you partake in several boss fights from what I can gather based on NPC dialogue and the map of the area. It’s most definitely the aspect of Starsand Island I’m most intrigued to learn more about.

Building and romancing are perhaps the two other areas where Starsand Island boasts unique qualities. The romance system is something I’m not much more enlightened on than I was after my Gamescom preview, mainly because I’ve been so busy exploring the island and learning new skills that I haven’t yet had a chance to pursue love. To recap what I said in my previous preview though, Starsand Island features an ‘NPC Affection System’ which is in place for all connections, whether they’re romantic or platonic.

“Essentially, NPCs’ behaviour will change depending on your actions in the game and I don’t just mean whether you’re nice or cold,” I previously wrote. “NPCs will observe what you do, who you help, what you say, what gifts you give, and who you spend holidays with, reacting to all of this. That reaction could come in the form of a subtle facial expression, or it could arrive in the form of a huge romantic gesture. Players are encouraged to see Starsand Island as a living, breathing ecosystem they can hugely effect.” I’ve definitely been playing as too much of a lone wolf so far to really get a feel for this, but given just how detailed I now know the game to be, it’s certainly a claim that feels tangible and incredibly likely to be fulfilled.

I do now, however, have hands-on experience with the game’s building mode which was shown off to me at Gamescom via a short hands-off walkthrough. To recap, players will gain three areas which they can customise: their home, a houseboat, and an entire island off the coast of Starsand Island. The latter two are two of the only aspects of the game that do require you to meet certain prerequisites before unlocking, so I’ve yet to sample those. The island, as I was shown at Gamescom, offers total freedom with players able to change the topography of the area. I have played around with build mode when it comes to the homestead you’re gifted upon arriving on Starsand, and it’s so intuitive, offering a great sense of freedom. If you’re a fan of The Sims, you’ll like what you find here. You can build and customise every wall, roof, balustrade, window, and door. There are endless ivy options to choose from, if you want to give your abode a rustic charm, or you can surround it with charming flora and fauna. I could go on.

Starsand Island really is the perfect combination of Animal Crossing, Stardew Valley, and The Sims, even boasting a few flavourings of Studio Ghibli here and there, but that’s not at all to say that it’s an amalgamation of ‘best bits’. Seed Lab has clearly studied the genre, formulating what is easily the next evolution of the cosy gaming space. I’m not exaggerating when I say that I could happily sink over 100 hours into Starsand Island, which is most definitely what I’ll be doing when the final build officially launches in 2026.

Starsand Island is set to launch on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC (version tested), and Nintendo Switch consoles on 1 February 2026.