Games Like When the Embers Wake

A quiet first-person night walk through a moonlit park, where your thoughts drift, settle, and slowly find clarity. Navigate the branching paths of your own mind with no goals, no pressure — just choices, you, and the dark.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 26.4%, Narrative 24.8% ★, Emotional 21.3%, Nature 12.8%, Atmospheric 7.8%

A peaceful third-person adventure where you play as a red panda. Climb trees, roll into a ball, swim, knock down objects, and even fly with a balloon! No combat, no rush — just the forest, atmosphere, and full immersion in nature.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 25.2%, Nature 21.9%, Emotional 16.8%, Cute 7.8%, Atmospheric 6.8%

Experience the wild as a badger sheltering your cubs from harm. On your journey, you will be stalked by birds of prey, encounter perils of the night, cross fierce rivers, escape forest fires and face the looming threat of starvation. Food is to be found, but is there enough for everyone?

Why similar: Nature 18.1%, Emotional 17.4%, Walking Simulator 15.9%, Survival 11.6%, Cute 6.2%

As the last mother fox on Earth, your cubs need all your care to survive in a merciless world that slowly destroys itself. You have to help them, teach them and save them. And you should never forget that extinction is forever – in the real world and in this 2023 BAFTA award winning experience.

Why similar: Emotional 25.4%, Nature 17.7%, Survival 11.9%, Walking Simulator 11.6%, Atmospheric 7.3%

Crawl, fly, mate, dance, push dung and dive into the tiny struggles of fascinating bugs. Discover their unique stories as humanity awaits an imminent collapse, in a short narrative adventure framed as a nature documentary.

Why similar: Narrative 34.3% ★, Nature 20.6%, Walking Simulator 15.7%, Adventure 7.8%, Atmospheric 4.9%

Healing Animals is a game where you help out adorable animals on a relaxing journey, and escape from the dark reality with a blind girl called Anna. Find the puzzle pieces to solve problems in animal town to help Anna heal her emotional wounds.

Why similar: Emotional 18.4%, Nature 17.3%, Walking Simulator 14.4%, Survival 12.7%, Cute 7.5%

A lonely dog follows scents and memories through a dreamlike forest searching for someone who never returned.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 31.1%, Emotional 26.2%, Nature 15.3%, Atmospheric 11.9%, Exploration 6.4%

A narrative game about grief, memory, and perception. Explore a shifting home that reshapes itself around emotion. What you’re willing to face will determine what you find, or what stays hidden.

Why similar: Narrative 42.4% ★, Walking Simulator 22.4%, Emotional 14.7%, Exploration 7.8%, Atmospheric 5.8%

A first-person psychological experience set inside a fading mind. Explore an empty asylum, shifting memories, and the quiet weight of promises left behind. No puzzles. No escape. Just one last visit.

Why similar: Narrative 31.2% ★, Emotional 22.5%, Walking Simulator 16.5%, Atmospheric 9.5%, Adventure 8.9%

As a powerful Lynx, you will make your way through vast open landscapes. In the harsh tundra, you will raise and strengthen your cubs by mastering your skills for hunting prey. Do everything you can to prepare your little ones for the vicious entities dwelling in the wilderness.

Why similar: Emotional 20%, Nature 18.1%, Walking Simulator 15.5%, Survival 12.2%, Atmospheric 7%

Rei, a grieving girl, is drawn into a mystical realm where the Zodiac spirits are bound by the Jade Emperor. Mediate their inner struggles and guide them toward freedom in a first-person journey steeped in myth, conflict, and emotion.

Why similar: Narrative 32.8% ★, Walking Simulator 20.7%, Emotional 19.4%, Nature 9.3%, Atmospheric 6.4%

You lead Stigandr, a determined explorer, through a wintery landscape. Despite having no ability to seek refuge, the game unfolds into a harrowing battle against chilling elements. Witness Stigandr's death to the unyielding cold, leaving players to marvel at the beauty and brutality of nature.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 28.7%, Emotional 19.6%, Nature 16.9%, Simulation 9.9%, Atmospheric 8.1%

Loverowind is a very short experience about the wind of spring.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 34.6%, Emotional 16.7%, Nature 12.3%, Adventure 8.1%, Exploration 7.9%

Embark on an emotional first-person narrative adventure where you control the story—and affect its outcomes—with your real-life blinks. With this innovative technique you will fully immerse yourself in a world of memories, both joyous and heartbreaking, as your whole life flashes before your eyes.

Why similar: Narrative 45.8% ★, Emotional 30%, Walking Simulator 13.3%, Cute 3.3%, Adventure 2.5%

Unsettled is a short single-player first-person adventure game. Experience the most exciting journey of your life against the background of the beautiful landscapes of the northern mountains.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 22.9%, Nature 22.8%, Emotional 11.9%, Survival 7.4%, Cute 7.1%

Out On The Water is a short, meditative journey through memory and grief that tells the story of an inattentive father and his last chance to connect with his children. Set adrift in quiet waters that represent each child, catch strange memory fish to uncover the past and face regrets.

Why similar: Narrative 34.3% ★, Walking Simulator 22.3%, Emotional 19.2%, Nature 12.4%, Atmospheric 6.3%

Immerse yourself in a unique narrative experience and explore the thousand summer colors of Dordogne as you revisit your childhood to uncover lost family secrets in this touching formative journey.

Why similar: Narrative 34.8% ★, Emotional 18.4%, Nature 15.1%, Cute 6.6%, Atmospheric 5.5%

Enter the wilderness and keep your calf and your herd safe from harm. Make your way through the open landscapes as a majestic elephant. Be alert and gather your herd during times of danger. Your herd is your family, shelter is your only hope, and survival your only goal.

Why similar: Nature 23.2%, Adventure 12.7%, Emotional 12.5%, Walking Simulator 11.1%, Survival 8.3%

After her passing, a grandmother’s home holds decades of untold memories. Step into a heartfelt narrative journey through objects, voice acting, and beautifully crafted environments.

Why similar: Narrative 35.8% ★, Walking Simulator 21%, Emotional 16.4%, Nature 6.6%, Atmospheric 5.7%

What if you lost all your memories? An emotional family drama seen through the eyes of a woman with Alzheimer's disease. As Annie’s life slowly unravels, uncover memories of her deceased brother as her past bleeds into the present.

Why similar: Narrative 29.1% ★, Emotional 28.4%, Walking Simulator 20.8%, Adventure 5.9%, Exploration 5.3%

Frog Bard is a short, poetic experience about finding inspiration in the world around you. Explore a simple forest and perform reflective ballads as you travel from inn to inn.

Why similar: Narrative 37.3% ★, Emotional 19.9%, Walking Simulator 12%, Cute 8.6%, Atmospheric 7.2%

In this narrative action adventure, experience both the beauty and the brutality of the natural world through the eyes of a mother groundhog on a quest for revenge.

Why similar: Narrative 31.1% ★, Emotional 23.3%, Nature 20.2%, Atmospheric 6.4%, Cute 6.2%

June 7th, 1995. 1:15 AM. You arrive home after a year abroad. You expect your family to greet you, but the house is empty. Something's not right. Where is everyone? And what's happened here? Unravel the mystery for yourself in Gone Home, a story exploration game from The Fullbright Company.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 53.1%, Narrative 24.9% ★, Atmospheric 6.1%, Exploration 5.5%, Emotional 3.3%

A Pizza Delivery is a narrative exploration game with puzzle elements focused on connecting with people. Share pizza with charming characters to uncover their stories—and your own. Drive and explore a strange, meditative world filled with secrets.

Why similar: Narrative 33.8% ★, Walking Simulator 21.9%, Emotional 18.4%, Cute 5.7%, Atmospheric 5.4%

Embark on a heartwarming journey as a home cleaning specialist.

Why similar: Narrative 46.2% ★, Emotional 23.6%, Atmospheric 6.9%, Simulation 6%, Cute 4.2%

Soar, swoop and glide across the ocean as Toroa. Fly as an albatross embarking on an epic journey back to land to reunite with their family in this relaxing, atmospheric flight game grounded in the Māori world.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 19.9%, Nature 19.2%, Narrative 18.8% ★, Emotional 17.7%, Atmospheric 7.1%

Lead a small herd of sheep through the desert. Ensure their survival by managing their needs. Protect and save them from various environmental hazards, as well as their own silly decisions. Bond with them over the course of your journey by fulfilling their wishes, and be their Shepherd.

Why similar: Nature 23%, Survival 16.6%, Emotional 15.7%, Cute 10.3%, Atmospheric 9.8%

Boat, climb, interact and explore in the beautiful ruins of a sunken world.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 27.3%, Emotional 21%, Nature 19.2%, Exploration 7.9%, Atmospheric 7.9%

Time is the only thing we can't resist. Some people and things will never be found once they are lost. In the dark, a man was walking alone. The moment when you turn back, don't forget the place where came from!

Why similar: Narrative 37.1% ★, Emotional 23%, Walking Simulator 20.5%, Atmospheric 7.3%, Exploration 4.1%

Harper Jones is missing. In a last-ditch attempt to find him, Sheriff Oaklyn heads out to the forest surrounding the infamous Watcher’s Point to investigate. But she soon finds herself experiencing the unsettling nature of the forest, one snapshot at a time, when she discovers an abandoned camera.

Why similar: Narrative 32.5% ★, Walking Simulator 27.5%, Nature 12.4%, Exploration 7.7%, Atmospheric 6%

An atmosphere-driven walking simulator where you explore familiar yet unsettling spaces, interact with fragmented conversations, and influence partial changes in the world through small actions, observation, and quiet choices that shape how the experience unfolds.

Why similar: Narrative 30.9% ★, Walking Simulator 26.5%, Emotional 21.8%, Atmospheric 7.9%, Exploration 6.5%

MISKA is a narrative-driven adventure game with a strong focus on Australian flora and fauna. Rekindle your connection to family and nature through acts of restoration.

Why similar: Nature 25%, Walking Simulator 23.7%, Emotional 11%, Atmospheric 8.3%, Simulation 7%

Step into a fractured 00s childhood in the South of England. Inspired by the developer’s real diaries, this autobiographical narrative adventure invites you to uncover Alice’s story by piecing together evocative memories, and following in the footsteps of a young girl’s journey through adolescence.

Why similar: Narrative 30.4% ★, Walking Simulator 23.4%, Emotional 22.2%, Atmospheric 7.9%, Exploration 5%

Calm down from the hassle of your daily life, experience the feeling of flying, and immerse yourself in beautiful and atmospheric landscapes.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 29.1%, Emotional 16.8%, Nature 8.9%, Cute 7.7%, Exploration 7.5%

A first-person narrative adventure set in the unforgiving Arctic. Your plane crashed in a storm, leaving only your court-mandated therapy bot for company as you journey to find your co-pilot and uncover the mysteries buried beneath the ice.

Why similar: Narrative 31.2% ★, Walking Simulator 19.4%, Emotional 18%, Survival 10.9%, Atmospheric 6.5%

Carry Onward is a narrative gameplay short that follows a grieving man as he packs up his home. Immerse yourself in his thoughts and emotions by interacting with items, which shape his internal state. Experience the transformative power of memories and the hope that arises from embracing change.

Why similar: Narrative 37.9% ★, Emotional 24.8%, Walking Simulator 24%, Simulation 4%, Atmospheric 3.1%

The Cold Forest is a hardcore survival walking simulator game. You have a goal, and it's important, but can you achieve it?

Why similar: Walking Simulator 33.4%, Nature 16.8%, Survival 11.6%, Adventure 11%, Simulation 10.9%

Plantiquarian is a First-Person 3D Exploration and Puzzle Game, in which you can collect a myriad of mysterious and magical plants - each with their own quirks and abilities! Consult your trusty Encyclopedia to first find, and then figure out how to uproot each specimen.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 34.9%, Nature 27.1%, Exploration 11.3%, Atmospheric 8.2%, Cute 5.9%

Play as Boris, a curious baby boar who must learn how to use his nose to reunite with his family after a forest fire. Explore beautiful landscapes, track scents, and uncover secrets as you slowly reconnect with nature in this cozy animal adventure.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 23.6%, Nature 17.9%, Emotional 11.4%, Atmospheric 10.6%, Cute 10.5%

Bumblebee – Little Bee Adventure is a story-driven, narrative 3D flight exploration game in which you control a little bee on its journey to find a new home. On its quest to find a beautiful and fitting it discovers distant places, friendly and calm animals, and amazing and dangerously habitats.

Why similar: Narrative 35.1% ★, Nature 20.9%, Walking Simulator 12.8%, Emotional 8.4%, Exploration 6.3%

Your memories are fracturing. Explore an evocative story of love and loss through shifting realities. Solve puzzles to hold on to the moments that define you before they vanish forever.

Why similar: Narrative 29.4% ★, Emotional 27%, Walking Simulator 25.9%, Adventure 5.3%, Exploration 5%

A short walking simulator about a quiet cow, a forgotten chapel, and golden bells. Less than 10 minutes. No enemies. Just peace and hooves, and walking.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 37%, Emotional 16.2%, Nature 13.6%, Exploration 11.1%, Atmospheric 6.1%

This game series tells the stories from the ancient Chinese book Journey to the West. This is the first part of the first chapter of the stories. Suitable for juveniles.

Why similar: Narrative 59% ★, Walking Simulator 27.5%, Adventure 5.2%, 3D 2.9%, Indie 2.9%

Narrative exploration game located in a massive, post-human Western Washington. Navigate an open world that has been reclaimed by nature. Use journals, letters, zines, and other documents to learn the interconnected stories of the people who lived here once.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 36.4%, Survival 20.3%, Nature 14.7%, Exploration 10.8%, Atmospheric 8.2%

Play as a border collie and restore color to your human’s world in an atmospheric journey through the northern isles of Scotland. Explore land and sea, uncover hidden paths, herd animals and free wildlife to bring color back to her world, while revealing an emotional story about saying farewell.

Why similar: Narrative 24.3% ★, Emotional 18.4%, Nature 15.8%, Walking Simulator 15.6%, Atmospheric 5.7%

LANI’S CALL is a bite-sized, linear narrative game where you play as Lani, a playful humpback whale who dives into action when an earthshaking event threatens her underwater home. This cozy, emotional adventure offers a heartfelt introduction to the richly woven WHALE SINGER universe.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 35.2%, Emotional 21.3%, Nature 18.3%, Adventure 11.1%, Atmospheric 7.8%

A Bonnie Odyssey is a retrofuturist puzzle mystery where you’ll explore an enigmatic abandoned island. This open world sci-fi adventure in the Scottish wilds tells the tale of a father and daughter separated by time, unravel the secrets of your past, and meet odd little friends along the way.

Why similar: Emotional 20.6%, Walking Simulator 20.4%, Nature 17.1%, Cute 9.3%, Atmospheric 7%

Your village is dying. Your only hope of saving it is buried in the desert scrapyard, hidden behind mountains of trash // memories. Will you uncover those memories? Or will you blast them to pieces?

Why similar: Narrative 34% ★, Walking Simulator 27.6%, Emotional 20.1%, Exploration 8.2%, Adventure 4.4%

Sayri: The Beginning aims to warm your heart and whisk you away on a colorful journey to a new home, filled with emotion and wonder. Experience a beautiful, living world where friendship is the only recipe for surviving the unknown.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 24.6%, Emotional 20.7%, Nature 18.8%, Cute 8.2%, Atmospheric 7.1%

Été (summer) is a relaxing painting game set in Montréal. Color the city to explore, create artworks on canvas, collect stamps in your album, decorate your studio, fulfill commissions from your neighbors, and unleash your inner artist!

Why similar: Narrative 32.6% ★, Walking Simulator 21.7%, Nature 14.8%, Atmospheric 7.8%, Exploration 6.3%

The Honours Project is an autobiographical walking simulator. Enjoy a narrative experience, adventuring through dream-like levels, solving an occasional puzzle and listening to the dark and sometimes comical dialogue that acts as a commentary about being a student and game development.

Why similar: Narrative 41.6% ★, Walking Simulator 27.5%, Emotional 8.4%, Simulation 5.2%, Atmospheric 5%

You are a young, genetically modified, son of a samurai T-Rex in a post-apocalyptic Tokyo, who is fascinated by the once mighty humans and the ruins of their civilization.

Why similar: Narrative 26.4% ★, Emotional 17%, Walking Simulator 16.4%, Nature 14%, Survival 9.5%

Enter the world of Milly, a troubled tattoo artist who sets out to revive her dying neighborhood by collecting remaining stories through her art. Walk the streets of Nortown, witness the comes and goes of its people, and redefine the meaning behind each tattoo in this first person narrative game.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 29.4%, Narrative 19.3% ★, Emotional 13.7%, Atmospheric 12.7%, Exploration 9.6%

A young kid returns to his boyhood home in search of closure amid strong family ties and regrets while uncovering bittersweet memories.

Why similar: Walking Simulator 23.1%, Nature 22.2%, Emotional 18.7%, Survival 9.6%, Atmospheric 7%

Enter the realm of animal dreams! Experience adventures in places where humans exist only in legends. What path will you take, my friend?

Why similar: Walking Simulator 24.6%, Emotional 22.1%, Nature 18.9%, Atmospheric 10.9%, Exploration 8%

A first-person, story driven, cave exploration experience where a routine expedition turns into something far more complex as you descend into the unknown.

Why similar: Narrative 38.1% ★, Walking Simulator 22.5%, Nature 12.8%, Survival 7.9%, Atmospheric 7%

A short narrative exploration game in which you play as Bean, an unemployed, 20-something, smart-ass. Wander around town, play mini games, feed the geese, and get to know the neighbours as Bean’s sanity begins to slip...

Why similar: Narrative 50.2% ★, Emotional 17.8%, Exploration 9.1%, Adventure 8.1%, Atmospheric 6.4%

Valley of Shadow is a narrative puzzle game that tells a poignant true story of loss and grief through the discovery of real-life home videos and photographs. Harness mysterious abilities to solve puzzles and heal a broken family.

Why similar: Narrative 34.2% ★, Walking Simulator 23.5%, Emotional 19.1%, Atmospheric 8.5%, Exploration 6.2%

Back To Home is a cozy third-person cat adventure game where you explore stunning worlds and solve puzzles. Uncover the captivating story of a cat’s past as you embark on this heartfelt journey

Why similar: Walking Simulator 31.5%, Nature 21.4%, Emotional 10.9%, Atmospheric 9.7%, Exploration 8.7%

The Inspector is a first-person dreamlike adventure where you explore the coma of your patients, looking for memories that will wake them up.

Why similar: Narrative 33.6% ★, Walking Simulator 24%, Emotional 18.7%, Atmospheric 8.2%, Exploration 6.1%