Cozy MMO Loftia Showcases New 'Neighborhoods' Feature At Wholesome Snack: The Game Awards Edition

Australian independent developer Qloud Games made a new announcement during the festivities at the recent Wholesome Snack: The Game Awards Edition presentation. Their "cozy solarpunk MMO" Loftia, which has currently crowdsourced $1.2 million on the prominent funding platform Kickstarter, presented a new gameplay feature that wowed audiences in attendance and players across social media.

Loftia had gained popularity online, amassing 40 million views, which saw players backing its Kickstarter to help the developer get the game across the finish line. The game is currently available to Wishlist via its Steam page, for which a release date has yet to be finalized by the developer as of writing.

At the Wholesome Snack: The Game Awards Edition presentation, Qloud Games unveiled a new gameplay feature called Neighborhoods, creating a way for players to connect and establish communities. This was explained in an official press release, in which this social feature allows players to attach "their personal floating islands to others, forming a small community of islands anchored around a central, shared hub."

"Whether players want to farm together, visit each other’s homes, host social events, or simply hang out, Neighborhoods is designed to bring players closer, either by matching them with existing friends or connecting them with new ones."  The Neighborhoods feature can work in tandem with other unique gameplay and social features including "group adventures, community projects, clubs, and many other ways to interact and connect with others."

Qloud Games founders Michael Su and Martina Qin added that this new social feature looks to aid players in rediscovering "the joy of shared online experiences,” an aspect they noted when developing Loftia, which speaks to "the nostalgic charm of early online games - the way they’ve connected people and sparked so many lifelong friendships.” Loftia aims to be a groundbreaking gaming release within the cozy MMO genre by making "meaningful player interactions" the heartbeat of the game, which continues to be "shaped by its community."