Pointless Bliss: SUMMERHOUSE
The zen decoration game for the rest of us.
‣ SUMMERHOUSE
From: Friedemann, Future Friends Games
Platforms: PC
Release: 2024
Steam Page • Demo Video
There is a broad genre of games revolving around the design of an environment. The best-known are house-flipper and property manager titles, where you have to keep your wits about you to avoid failure. But tucked into the genre’s cosy corner are games where you just decorate. There are rarely limits and no objectives. Simply have fun and follow your creative whimsy. No stress, all chill.
I’m not wired for chill. To me, a sunset is something you watch for two minutes and then do something else (thank you, Terry Pratchett). And I don’t enjoy these cosy decoration games. I lose interest once I’ve put down a desk, a chair, and something on a wall. Decorating can be fun—it’s a highlight of many good survival games, even the ones about barbarians and dinosaurs. But games that offer decoration for the sake of it just don’t ring my bell.
Yet, there’s bound to be an exception. Summerhouse (stylised SUMMERHOUSE) is, in every respect, a zen decorator. Instead of filling rooms, you create buildings along an idyllic lake shore. Flip through the various construction tiles and bring your eclectic summer house to life. There’s enough space to build a super mansion or an entire village. There are no costs or deadlines. The only rewards are new pieces that you can unlock by building.
📽 Demo snapshot: Adding onto a building is simple.
Usually, this game would lose my attention after a few minutes. But something about it is very inviting. The modern pixel art helps a lot—creating buildings in Summerhouse feels less like design what-if than building a cosy level for a side-scroller game. The pleasant colours and tones give it a soothing vibe.
In other games, you decorate a room or a property. In Summerhouse, you feel part of something bigger (especially since the map gives you abundant space to use). The building blocks have nice variety and character, and you can unlock new ones when you place certain combinations of tiles—so, experiment! Adding pieces is simple, though the layers in the demo can have a mind of their own and mess with your intentions. But there is time to fix these things.
In property parlance, Summerhouse has good bones. Expect its release in 2024.
Explore The Game with Youtube Chapters:
📽 00:16 Let's build a house
📽 01:36 Time for a roof
📽 04:20 Let's make it bigger
📽 08:11 A tree is nice
📽 10:40 Let's add another building
📽 11:50 A hidden card!
📽 13:45 Adding a storey
📽 15:30 Adding some details
📽 20:20 Timelapse time!
Thanks for reading Adventures in Indie Gaming! Subscribe to receive new posts.