Home Wind

About

Home Wind is a minimalist, relaxing and cozy city builder about creating large settlements based on proximity tactics. All for free!

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

89%

Audience ScoreBased on 469 reviews

gameplay17 positive mentions

monetization3 negative mentions

Fun yet challenging gameplay that is easy to learn but difficult to master.
Beautiful hand-drawn graphics and relaxing music create a cozy atmosphere.
Generous amount of free content with the option to purchase additional levels.

Gameplay can become repetitive and lacks variety in building options and strategies.
No undo feature, which can lead to frustrating mistakes during placement.
Some technical issues and bugs, including UI problems and performance issues on certain systems.

gameplay
71 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
24%
72%
4%
The gameplay is generally described as relaxing and enjoyable, with a simple yet engaging core mechanic centered around tile placement and building synergies. However, many players find it repetitive over time, with a lack of variety in the game loop and some frustrating RNG elements. While the visuals and atmosphere are praised, there are calls for more depth, additional mechanics, and improvements to enhance the overall experience.
- “I love the hand-drawn visuals and the gameplay is chill and relaxing while giving your brain some workout.”
- “It's so cozy and the visual style is so lovely and charming, the gameplay is really fun and well done for an early access game, and it's just challenging enough while still being fun.”
- “The gameplay feels laid back, the scoring and UI is intuitive and you can play it at your own pace, either as a pleasant, relaxing, small scale city builder or a min/maxer who is intent on squeezing every last coin out of the map.”
- “I played the first 10 levels and then got somewhat bored of it - it becomes repetitive since the gameplay loop is repeating itself with the same exact order of cards/monuments you get. Modifying this or switching it up a little would make me put much more thought into the gameplay.”
- “The gameplay is simple; you place a given set of buildings to get points. I prefer 'Islanders', which has the same gameplay but doesn't have this problem.”
- “The time it takes after placing each building gets annoying after a while, and the animations for points ticking in and then cancelling your next placement when you level up interrupts the flow of gameplay.”
graphics
70 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
49%
47%
4%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their cute, hand-drawn, and minimalist style, contributing to a relaxing and aesthetically pleasing experience. Many players appreciate the beautiful pixel art and the charming animations, although some note issues with certain design elements, such as harsh angles and the aesthetics of water platforms. Overall, the visuals are considered a strong point, enhancing the gameplay and atmosphere, despite some calls for improvements in map generation and building interfaces.
- “I love the hand-drawn visuals and the gameplay is chill and relaxing while giving your brain some workout.”
- “The beautiful pixel graphics draw you in and you'll find yourself proudly looking down on your creations!”
- “The artwork is beautiful and neat, relaxing to watch and put down some more homes.”
- “Would like the design of the water platforms to be a bit more aesthetically pleasing, and a bit more freedom with where you can place it and how you place buildings on top of it.”
- “The interface, on the other hand, is a major step down: the building grid here is implicit, with all of the problems it entails, but the building shapes now cannot be derived from visuals (hitboxes tend to be smaller than the presumed floor levels, never mind the full outlines), so welcome to hovering all over the map to deduce them.”
- “So you're able to freely place buildings - but without any meaning behind any of the buildings outside of their point scoring, and a lack of the graphical breadth that could at least offer an aesthetic relaxation element, the sandbox mode feels useless and boring from the very first moment you open it up.”
music
62 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
45%
5%
The music in the game is widely praised for its relaxing and atmospheric qualities, enhancing the overall experience with a calming soundtrack that complements the visuals. While many players appreciate the pleasant melodies and serene ambiance, some express a desire for more variety and better sound settings, such as independent volume control for sound effects and music. Overall, the music contributes significantly to the game's appeal as a soothing and enjoyable escape.
- “The music is wonderful and lends to the simple feel of the game.”
- “A blissful soundtrack that works very well with the gameplay.”
- “The background music is relaxing.”
- “Although the music is relaxing, I found I just couldn't get into it.”
- “- music could use some more variety”
- “Every few seconds you'll level up and it plays the same stinger music while also cancelling out whatever you are currently placing.”
atmosphere
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
44%
22%
33%
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its relaxing and pleasant qualities, enhanced by atmospheric music and appealing artwork. Players appreciate the minimalistic design and the opportunity to unwind in sandbox mode, although some note that the gameplay can still induce stress. Overall, the game successfully creates a tranquil environment that appeals to a diverse range of gamers.
- “I like the artwork, music, and the relaxing atmosphere.”
- “This minimalistic city builder, with an emphasis on a relaxing atmosphere, is the perfect game to play when you are looking for some downtime away from other more high-intensity gameplay titles.”
- “They reinforce the patient atmosphere of the game, giving you time to stop micro-focusing and actually look at the beautiful community that you are creating.”
- “For a game about a relaxed atmosphere, it’s pretty stressful :’).”
- “But, if you are looking to scratch your creative itch, you should try out sandbox mode for its relaxed atmosphere and its no consequence gameplay.”
- “They reinforce the patient atmosphere of the game; they give you time to stop microfocusing and actually look at the beautiful community that you are creating.”
monetization
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
29%
43%
The game's monetization model has received mixed reviews; while it offers many levels for free, it also includes premium levels available through DLC and in-app purchases, which some players feel detracts from the experience. Additionally, the presence of microtransactions and an achievement tied to purchasing premium content has led to calls for the developer to reconsider their monetization strategy. Players have also suggested that localizing in-app purchase prices would improve accessibility.
- “Is this game the best free game on Steam, with absolutely no garbage monetization, and a lot of levels available for free?”
- “It does progress for free for many levels and then you can make an in-app purchase to get more.”
- “I think the developer needs to completely rethink the monetization.”
- “The game has premium levels, either via DLC or an in-app purchase.”
- “There are microtransactions.”
story
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
29%
43%
The game's story is largely absent, with no progression, upgrades, or overarching quests to engage players. Instead, users often create their own narratives while playing, as the game lacks structured storytelling elements. The sandbox mode allows for creative exploration, but it does not provide a cohesive or informative storyline.
- “Last night, I showed it to people from all sorts of different gaming backgrounds - military shooters, fantasy MMO, atmospheric story-driven, and all of them gravitated towards this and started playing.”
- “The story I made up in my head as I went along.”
- “It also has no progression between levels, like upgrades or research systems, no global quests or unlocks.”
- “This limits you a lot in what you can do, which is pretty much some base missions and a sandbox mode that doesn't really give you any information.”
- “Found open country and built me a small cottage and about 2 minutes later magical fields of crops appeared everywhere and more homes with neighbors already present inside; it was miraculous... I digress, no story.”
replayability
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
14%
43%
Islanders offers high replayability thanks to its procedurally generated maps, numerous levels, and a sandbox mode, allowing players to continually explore and improve their strategies. The game's engaging mechanics and pleasant visuals further enhance its replay value, making it a relaxing yet challenging experience.
- “This is a game with lots of replayability, due to its many levels and sandbox mode.”
- “Unbeatable entry price point, pleasant visuals and style that is matched by substance, high replayability factor, relaxing and straightforward gameplay loop.”
- “Islanders is better, is replayable enough, and if you need more, there are different heirs out there, without annoyances packaged in.”
- “Considering the maps are procedurally generated, this is replayable.”
- “It has amazing graphics and gameplay, lots of levels and replayability.”
grinding
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and stressful, as it requires constant attention to various elements like building colors and score management. The necessity to place unattractive structures closely together for progression adds to the frustration, detracting from the otherwise relaxing nature of the city-building genre.
- “Having to constantly pay attention to the color of the building while watching the numbers above is a bit tedious.”
- “I enjoy this genre of relaxing city builder, but I find this game to be stressful and tedious.”
- “The wildlife adding to the score could get a bit tedious if the player is having trouble beating a level and trying to max out the score.”
stability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is mixed, with some players encountering semi-common glitches, such as the ability to place an excessive number of buildings on a single platform. However, others report a smooth experience with no bugs or glitches during their gameplay. Overall, while the game is generally fun, it does have some stability issues that can affect the experience.
- “There are also semi-common glitches, my favorite of which being the ability to place near infinite buildings on a single platform, so long as an inn is placed first.”
- “Fun simple but a little buggy.”
- “Since the order of the 'building packages' is always the same, and most of the 'difficulty' is either due to randomly moving animals (dumb idea, with no mechanic to make them move it's just waiting for hours for them to move), pixel hunting, or glitches.”
humor
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is noted for its unexpected and engaging results, creating a unique experience that keeps players entertained. However, some users feel that the game could benefit from more humorous interactions, particularly with the animals on the world map, and suggest adding playful sound effects to enhance the comedic elements.
- “No idea why this happens, but it leads to extremely humorous results.”
- “Funny enough, this is the most engaging game that simultaneously makes me not want to pay to unlock more of its content, as I dread whatever torture dungeon awaits behind the locked gates of 'premium levels'.”
- “It needs more funny interactions when clicking on the animals in the world map, along with a squeaky toy sound effect added when you click them.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is praised for its engaging optimization mechanics, allowing players to strategically arrange buildings for maximum profitability based on their interactions and the surrounding terrain, contributing to a relaxing gameplay experience.
- “Very relaxing game based on the optimization of space in order to build the most profitable buildings according to their interactions with each other and the terrain.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Players find the game to be a relaxing and wholesome experience, evoking positive emotions and a sense of comfort.
- “The game evokes a deep sense of nostalgia and connection.”
- “I felt a rollercoaster of emotions throughout the story.”
- “The characters' struggles and triumphs resonated with me on a personal level.”