Lil Gator Game is an adorable and wholesome indie game that serves as a homage to the Legend of Zelda series, specifically the beloved 3D entries like Wind Waker and Breath of the Wild. Due to its positive vibes, relatable story, and relatively brief total play time, players may want to keep that feeling going and might be looking for similar games.
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Within the indie games space, there are a ton of wholesome games, inspired by the Legend of Zelda or not, that are quite approachable for any interested in experiencing other titles with similar vibes to Lil Gator Game.
7 A Hat In Time
3D platformer A Hat In Time stars a hat-wearing girl appropriately named Hat Kid as she journeys to recover the timepieces she needs to make new hats that give her various abilities. Hat Kid may be on a mysterious planet, but each area she goes through is based on a familiar theme, ranging from treetops to trains and even movie studios, feeling similar to older 3D platformers.
Besides its base campaign, A Hat In Time also has DLC with new areas, a challenge mode, new collectibles, and an online multiplayer mode where up to 50 players can be in the same world, so it goes beyond being just a simple homage to its various influences.
6 Calico
Calico is an intriguing indie title where you take the role of your own created character and manage a cat café while rebuilding and improving it. While you do manage a café in Calico, it's purposefully much less stressful than other management sim games, with a more laid-back atmosphere.
All animals featured in Calico can be befriended, so whether you want to play with them, have them follow you, or interact with customers in the café is up to you. Calico also features a unique cooking game and magic potions that help make the game more fantastical, including one that can make any animal giant and ridable.
5 Spiritfarer
Spiritfarer is an indie management sim game that revolves around helping characters before they pass on. As the ferry master Stella, you must ensure that all your passengers' requests are fulfilled before they go to the other side, which requires gathering many resources and adding many new features to your ever-expanding ferry.
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Due to all the various resources needed to improve your passengers' afterlives, they are plenty of activities to participate in, including but not limited to fishing, cooking, and weaving. Spiritfarer also features some light platforming that Stella must jump and glide through to obtain necessary items. There's also local co-op if you prefer not to play alone.
4 A Short Hike
Despite being titled A Short Hike, this charming indie exploration game has much more to it than you might expect. A Short Hike features a bird named Claire exploring Hawk Peak Provincial Park as she hikes to the peak to get cellphone reception for an important call she has been expecting.
Players can decide whether they want to help individuals in the park or go straight to the peak, but for the latter, they must have collected at least seven gold feathers, which allow Claire to jump more frequently and climb. There are also a handful of optional side activities to participate in, such as fishing, finding lost items, and playing "beachstickball."
3 Shin Chan: Me And The Professor On Summer Vacation ~ The Endless Seven-Day Journey ~
The lengthily titled Shin Chan: Me and the Professor on Summer Vacation ~The Endless Seven-Day Journey~ is a charming game based on the family-friendly Crayon Shin Chan Japanese anime series, which many Western fans may know of from the more adult-oriented English dub from the early aughts.
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This surprisingly gorgeous game has Shin and his family travel to the island of Kyushu, where a series of strange events occur after their arrival. While on vacation, Shin can participate in morning stretches, garden, explore the town of Assou, catch various insects and fish, and even battle dinosaurs thanks to the collectible Dinosaur Showdown cards gained from buying chocobis.
2 Tunic
While Lil Gator Game is a homage to the 3D style Legend of Zelda games, Tunic is heavily inspired by the top-down style Zelda games instead. This game stars a young fox as they adventure to find treasure, recover the pieces of a special book that also serves as the game's instruction manual, and become a legendary hero.
Since the Legend of Zelda series so heavily inspires Tunic, there are many familiar elements, such as a sword and shield, dodge rolling, special abilities and items needed to open new areas, various enemies, bosses, and so much more. Unlike Zelda games, Tunic isn't limited to one platform, so you can choose where you want to play it.
1 Croc: Legend Of The Gobbos
While not a homage to the Legend of Zelda series, Croc was the original 3D platforming amphibian and predated Lil Gator Game by over two decades. In Croc: Legend of the Gobbos, the titular character must journey his way through various environments to save the strange furry creatures that raised him.
Unfortunately, unlike other platforming mascots from the time, such as Crash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon, no game in the Croc series has been remastered or remade, so interested players may have to dust off their original PlayStation and Sega Saturn consoles if they still want to experience it.
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