Bundle of Joy

Bundle of Joy is a true trojan horse of a game, presenting itself as a collection of fun parenting-themed mini-games while containing the sort of deeply poignant moments of raw self-doubt that any new parent will recognize but few new fathers openly discuss, let alone make art out of. This is a hard time that is easily forgotten once a child gets older, often hand-waived in conversations, but there is so much truth here not only in the emotions but also in how any new tasks becomes normalized through repetition and ritualized through love. The last few years have seen a wealth of games that use thoughtful design, narrative, and mechanics to try and capture a very specific corner of an experience, and not only does Bundle of Joy squarely belong in that company but it should played by any current or prospective father who needs space to remember or reckon with emotions not often raised in any medium.

I've always said I can't imagine having children. It's probably past my point of being able to do so in real life, but this game is really interesting. First time parents simulator. The stress and anxiety and worry and care and concern. So, selfishly I was glad I could put that down whenever I put the controller down – the narrative design conveyed it well, with animations and sound and colors, in systems. This most reminded me of one of my favorite games, WarioWare – series of mini games, highly stylized. I think a key pillar of that series is you kind of don't know what you're doing. Which seems perfect, echoing the adage – you're never ready to be a parent. The game is very appropriately named, you definitely handle a bundle, your hands are full, and also the joy is there in the writing. The reflections. Full disclosure, I had kind of met the developer before I played, but I also heard enough about the game organically that I was definitely wanting to play for myself just to study the narrative design, and I had already played a previous essay game that I thought the writing was just fantastic.

while the game is fun, its extremely short, and you cant continue the minigames on the same save to skip the story you have already played through, nor is there a freeplay mode.

This was a lot of fun! And stressful! But fun! And stressful! I imagine this is what having a child might be like. Beautiful visuals and touching music. And stressful. And, most importantly, fun. And stressful.