After hands-on time at PAX East 2026 with Grave Seasons, the upcoming cozy farming sim by Perfect Garbage and publisher Blumhouse Games, I feel confident that it is going to be a runaway hit. Stardew Valley fans are on notice, as Grave Seasons follows that massively popular game’s formula and design aesthetic beat for beat: players are a new arrival in an idyllic town and have to establish a thriving farm through careful resource management, while at the same time developing relationships. However, the fun wrinkle here is pretty clear if you have even just passing knowledge of its publisher.

Blumhouse Games is in fact the video game publishing offshoot of the incredibly successful Blumhouse Studios. Yes, the film production company known for horror franchises like Paranormal Activity, The Purge, The Black Phone, M3GAN, and more. While their gaming branch is relatively new, it has already found success in bringing small indie horror games to wider audiences on the back of the Blumhouse name, a point proven in real time as the main thing that drew my eye to this game while walking the event floor was curiosity if this really was that Blumhouse. Clearly, partnering with them is going to get attention Grave Seasons would otherwise never find.

Grave Seasons is no cozy game

And it’s an appropriate partnership. Grave Seasons hides a psychological thriller game inside its comfortable slice of life simulation. The player’s customizable character is new to town because they are an escaped convict on the run from the law, and the town they’re hiding out in is under threat of a supernatural serial killer. This creates a fun an odd dichotomy, as the game is as creepy and unsettling as it is cute and charming.

In comparison to the bright sunshine of games like Stardew Valley or Harvest Moon, the weather in Grave Seasons seems to be perpetually overcast or gloomily dark. The main tool on hand from the start of the game is a crowbar that can break into the homes of neighbors. There is a distinct effort on the developer’s part to not punish players for evil acts. and there will be enough branching decision trees to put an emphasis on morality and choice that is somewhat rare in this genre.

While the horror is more creepy than being full of jump-scares, the general atmosphere affirms that Grave Seasons is not a standard cozy game. Needing to identify a serial killer from a lineup of quirky townsfolk will keep players from forgetting that and if the PAX East demo is anything to go by, Grave Seasons is coming out the gate with a stacked deck. There will be plenty to keep players obsessed and unable to put the controller down.

Grave Seasons releases on August 14th, 2026 on Steam, Xbox Series consoles, PlayStation 5, and Nintendo Switch.

Featured images via Perfect Garbage & Blumhouse Games